Professional Documents
Culture Documents
(eries: )(
Markham Shaw Pyle, author of 0&ools, 'runks, and the (nited #tates): *u+ust 1,, 1 !1, holds his undergraduate and la" degrees from ,ashington 1 .ee. /e is a past or current member of, inter alia, the 2rgani3ation of American /istorians4 the (ociety for *ilitary /istory4 the (outhern /istorical Association4 the (outh"estern (ocial (cience Association4 the (outh"estern /istorical Association4 the (outh"estern Political (cience Association4 the 5irginia /istorical (ociety4 and the e6as (tate /istorical Association.
ogether, they are the partners in Bapton Books, and co7authors of -hen That .reat #hip -ent 'own: the le+al and political repercussions of the loss of /M# itanic4 of The Bapton Books #ampler: a literary chrestomathy0 and of The Transatlantic 'isputations: 1ssays % 2bservations0 and co7editors and co7annotators of The Complete Mow+li #tories, 'uly *nnotated, and The *nnotated ,ind in the ,illo"s, for *dults and #ensible Children 3or, possibly, Children and #ensible *dults4.
Declaring an interest
,
'
e begin by 8eclaring an 9nterest. ,e are authors and publishers "ho do business in the )nited (tates as "ell as in the )nited :ingdom, the #), and the
"orld at large. *r. Pyle is an American, a ; some "ould say, 0nominal< ; 8emocrat, and "hat is called a 0conservative< above all party labels (meaning that he is a -lassical .iberal of the school of /ayek and *ises). *r. ,emyss is e!ually a +ladstonian .iberal, "hich is "hy he is perforce a supporter of the -onservative Party (8avid -ameron not"ithstanding). Being "iser than the average .uardian hack,' *r. ,emyss considers it no business of his to tell Americans ho" to vote, and for "hom, in "hat are, after all, their
he .rauniad, you may recall, in %&&= gathered all its muesli7munching, sandalled idiots to "rite, unsolicited, to 0s"ing voters< in -lark -ounty, 2hio, imploring them, and !uite often instructin+ them, to vote against ,. he results "ere, firstly, some hilariously unprintable responses even from 8emocrats "ho supported >ohn :erry, and, secondly, an increased margin for +eorge ,. Bush in his re7election bid.
$evertheless, it?s neither unfair nor yet meddlesome to point out a fe" things about foreign trade and foreign affairs, the (pecial @elationship and $A 2, and *r. ,emyss has been encouraged to put points to *r. Pyle that have influenced and informed this Paper, in the conclusions of "hich *r. ,emyss "holly concurs.
2bama @omney
he )nited (tates ; even "hen not considered in light of its strategic partnership% "ith the )nited :ingdom, the -ommon"ealth (Australia, -anada, and 9ndia especially), the 0Anglosphere< more generally, and its $A 2 allies ; is the preponderant po"er in the "orld. ,hat is more, this is a +ood thing. $o other po"er on the immediate hori3on, "ere it to attain a similar preponderance, "ould conduct its affairs so much to the benefit of the peace, security, and liberali3ation, indeed liberation, of the "orld, as does the )nited (tates of America.
% #.g., ):)(A, A)(-A$$A):)(, -P, AB-A, P>B (8efence), and the --#B.
9ts allies tend to punch above their "eight in international affairs for several reasons: in the case of the )nited :ingdom, by having a highly professional 8efence establishment in /* Borces, "ith airlift and po"er7projection capacity of the first rank, underpinned by superior state7of7the7art intelligence services4 in the case of most American allies (including the ):), in possessing clearly defined national interests, at least regional po"er to protect those interests, considerable deterrent capability, sophisticated intelligence and counter7intelligence capacities, and the *mericans as allies .
Additionally, American po"er as enjoyed, maintained, and projected, is founded in American values4 in conse!uence, there is a moral component to American po"er and American interests, and, America being a democracy founded upon specific ideals of liberty, an internal corrective against the misuse of American po"er. he primary rivals and indeed enemies of the )nited (tates are also the enemies or unfriends of the )nited :ingdom, the -ommon"ealth, $A 2, and liberal democracy generally. hese
presently consist primarily in non7state actors driven by 9slamism4 C 9ran as the patron of those non7state actors, in pursuit of regional hegemony under the mask of piety4 small7state and non7state actors motivated by resentment or rapacity4 = organi3ed transnational
C = hat is, politici3ed 9slam: not the religion as such, but its bastardi3ation by pols on the make and "anna7be "arlords. $otably in -entral and (outh America, and unfortunately also in the 9(9, "hich state7 "ithin7the7state is increasingly the de facto government of Pakistan4 the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of 2ur America (A.BA) ; and "hat the -ommon"ealth countries that are in "ith that lot are thinking, +od and the B-2 alone kno" ; is the primary source of enmity, it being largely a mask for 5ene3uelan, Bolivian, and -uban mischief7making, along "ith the Argentine.
criminal gangs4D the fe" remaining communist states bar the P@-4 E the @ussian Bederation4F and the People?s @epublicG of -hina itself, regardless of its political ideology, as a mere matter of po"er politics. ,ere any of these rivals to the )nited (tates to assume a position of e!ual or superior po"er to that of the )( and its allies, the "orld "ould not be better off. o the contrary, and regardless of the
subse!uent outcome. -hina today, and the @ussian Bederation still more, is in the position of >apan some decades ago ("hen Americans "ere "orried that >apan, simply through economic success, "as on the verge of eclipsing and assuming American po"er): already at peak, and about to suffer hugely dislocating economic,
demographic, cultural, and internal political crashes. $one of the immediately7foreseeable rivals to the )nited (tates for hyper7po"er status "ould be 0s"eet, just, boyish masters4< and any of them "ould, in the moment of apparent victory, begin a series of hard landings ; almost certainly accompanied by internal strife, the rise of angry young nationalists, and increased militari3ation ("hich no country save the )nited (tates has ever been able to afford to the degree necessary to achieve and retain hyper7po"er status) ; economic implosion, and a last gasp of foreign, likely armed,
D 9t is "orth noting, depressingly, that 9ranian subversion is increasingly common in -entral and (outh America4 and that .os Aetas and 9ran, the 5ew 6ork Times reported last year, conspired to assassinate the (audi ambassador to the )( and to bomb (audi and 9sraeli diplomatic targets. $otably $orth :orea (the H8P@:?) and -uba. @apidly sliding back into (talinism. #oi7disant.
E F G
adventurism to stave off disaster. *oreover, the P@- and the @ussian Bederation, "hich could plausibly, for a brief time and "ith ruinous effort and e6penditures, challenge the )( for dominance, are facing already demographic death7spirals, "hile the more fertile states and non7state actors could only assert themselves "ith -estern technology and "eapons of mass destruction. he national interests of the )nited (tates and its allies are free trade, global security, and the spread of democracy4 the national interests of their opponents, the contrary. his fact, and not puerile fantasies about Aionist plots and the 9srael .obby, is "hy 9srael, and ; "hen freed of such succubi as (yria and /amas ; .ebanon, are America?s natural allies and strategic partners in the *iddle #ast: as urkey "as and may be again "hen the #rdogan folly of flirtation "ith dreams of the caliphate and of riding the 9slamist tiger is finally shattered. *r. ,emyss has said, many times, that here are t"o primary strains in the -onservative Party: grocers, and grandees. I By Hgrandees? and Hgrocers?, 9 am not referring to social class or any of that4 nor do 9 refer to the ,orshipful -ompany of +rocers, all cloves and camels. 9 refer rather to t"o fundamental positions "ithin the -onservative Party, regardless of one?s antecedents. I A grandee -onservative sees the country as a village: a village of "hich he and his party, "hen in government, act the (!uire. As the (!uire, the grandee moves jovially amongst
his tenants in their tied cottages, dispensing largesse and reproofI. here are t"o problems "ith this model. he first is that /*+ is not the (!uire and the subjects of the -ro"n are not the smocked tenantry of the government of the day. he second is that these principles ; or instincts, as one can hardly call them principles ; ho"ever different they may be to the fiercely held ma6ims of .abour old and ne", lead in the end to the same statist solutions as those the .eft proposes, and to accepting and Hmanaging? statism "hen a -onservative government succeeds a .abour one. 9t is the grocers "ho "ill al"ays and rightly attempt to roll back the (tate and its reach in favour of liberty. +overnor @omney has not endeared himself to the -ameroon grandees of the present -onservative Party, and has, regrettably, been used by Boris >ohnson as a figure for a self7and72lympics7 promoting "o *inutes? /ate. $or is he regarded favorably by the professional politicians, "ard7heelers, and placemen of the #). his may not "orry American voters unduly4 it is nevertheless a fact. Against that are numerous other facts. President 2bama, in his term, has openly rejected the (pecial @elationship, repeatedly insulted the Prime *inister "hen the P* "as the @t /on. +ordon Bro"n, effectively sided "ith Argentina over the Balklands, and made more than his o"n share of protocol gaffes "hen in the ):. President 2bama did not !uite pull a (ue3 over .ibya, but his
0leading from behind< in that 0kinetic action< did not precisely advance American interests in .ibya or constitute the sort of support to "hich /* +overnment and the Brench "ere as allies entitled. *oreover, it is by no" nakedly evident that *r. 2bama had no plan "hatever for "hat should happen after"ard. his "as sho"n conclusively in Bengha3i on '' J '% (#P %&'%, the eleventh anniversary of KJ'', "hen Ambassador -hris (tevens and three other Americans "ere murdered by "hat "as decidedly not a 0spontaneous protest over a Lou ube clip.< Ambassador (tevens became the first )( ambassador to be slain in the line of duty since 0(pike< 8ubs in :abul in 'KFK, at the previous nadir of American po"er. ,hat is more, President 2bama and his administration have been consistently disingenuous over the matter, repeatedly asserting, until it became impossible any longer to deny the obvious, that the murder of four Americans at a )( consulate had been unforeseeable, unforeseen, un"arned7against, impossible to stop, spontaneous, unconnected to the anniversary of KJ'', and the unfortunate result of a protest over a film. /aving been thus economical "ith the truth, President 2bama thereupon attempted to deceive the American public over "hat he said and "hen he said it. 9n fact, in his remarks in the @ose +arden ; before buggMerNing off to 5egas for a fundraiser, an activity "hich, "ith golf, has been his primary occupation in office ; immediately after the premeditated attack upon the Bengha3i consulate, *r. 2bama described the event as an 0outrageous and shocking attack< and a 0brutal act<: he
prefaced his denunciation of 0this type of senseless violence< by saying, 0(ince our founding, the )nited (tates has been a nation that respects all faiths. -e re8ect all efforts to deni+rate the reli+ious beliefs of others. But there is absolutely no justification to this type of senseless violence.< 9t "as only in the conte6t of a pro forma recollection of the original KJ'' that he said, 0$o acts of terror "ill ever shake the resolve of this great nation, alter that character, or eclipse the light of the values that "e stand for< ; "hereupon he then again designated the Bengha3i attack, not as a terrorist act, but as 0this terrible act.< The American people are perfectly capable of handling the truth if they had a government capable of telling it. President 2bama and his administration are not capable of that. 2r so the *e6ican government says, and "ith cause, as "e shall see. President 2bama has e6pected defense and intelligence cooperation from /* +overnments in the ):, -anada, Australia, and $e" Aealand, "hile burning their agents, denigrating their assistance, insulting their head of state and heads of government, demanding une!ual e6tradition, at least attemptin+ to buy @ussian amity "ith ): nuclear codes, ignoring their "arnings, and allo"ing their physical and intelligence assets to be taken from unprotected American installations and control. 9n order to further this president?s re7election narrative, allied lives (and agents) have been sacrificed: the physician "hom the -9A and 8o8 used to track bin .aden "as burnt and is in a Pakistani jail, at the dubious mercy of the 9(9.
9n *e6ico and -entral America, a staggering number of people are dead at the hands of narco7terrorists armed ; for domestic )( political reasons peculiar to *r. 2bama ; by )( "eapons 0"alked< and then lost by the 2bama administration, in the operation cynically called BA(
A$8
nor yet did it resemble programs begun under, the previous administration. And as "ith the Bengha3i debacle ; itself suspiciously like a gun7"alking operation, to (yrian jihadists ; the administration is concerned only to hide, deny, cover7up, deceive, and conspire to hide the truth both from -ongress and the American people (and /* +overnment, for that matter, in the case of Bengha3i). (ince Barack 2bama became president of the )nited (tates, the enemies and unfriends of the )( and its allies have been emboldened and not infre!uently materially aided4 )( and ,estern interests, substantially degraded and impaired. +overnor @omney is by no means a military or foreign affairs thinker, but presidents have people for that: the !uestion is one of instinct and philosophy. 9n the final assay, the first duty of a head of government is to secure the safety of his nation. $ot only has President 2bama signally failed to do that, he seems materially indisposed to do that, and to regard that duty as beneath him. -ertainly, by "ay of e6ample, any man "ho believes, or professes to believe ; particularly in light of the P.A $avy?s ac!uisition of 9iaonin+ (e67:arya+) and further plans for -5 construction, and the utility of naval assets in anti7terror and
asymmetrical "arfare operations ; that )($ -5s can operate "ith or "ithout the support vessels of a -(+ (previously -5B+)4 that ((:s, ((+s, (($s, ((B$s, and ((+$s can project po"er over time "ithout surface vessels4 or that in any "ay the submarine and the aircraft carrier have rendered other vessels obsolete or unnecessary, has no business putting himself for"ard to become President of the )nited (tates and commander in chief of the armed forces thereof. *r. @omney is clearly the superior choice in this regard.
2bama @omney
he )nited (tates economy remains, as it has remained for some centuries no", the most remarkable engine for the creation of "ealth for the poor and aspirin+ that the "orld has ever kno"n. 5o credit for this is due to President 2bama, "hose administration has conclusively demonstrated that capitalism truly is idiot7proof. he president?s hand7picked 0"inners< in his rigged game of crony capitalism have established a record of their o"n: fraud, bankruptcy, and automobiles the batteries of "hich e6plode "hen "et. Bor resolving to end this particular "aste of public monies
alone, +overnor @omney deserves to be elected president. $o )( president seeking to play the thimble7rigged game of a directed economy is going to pick "inners: that?s not the point. he point and the !uestion is, ,hy "ould any )( president do this sort of thingO his once more rests upon character and philosophy ; and life e6perience. Any historian "orth his dust ; "e?re more notable for that than for salt ; must be a"are and must insist that no action results from and no actor is ever moved by a single motive. A group of motives can, ho"ever, be identified in *r. 2bama?s case. he President appears truly to believe "hat he has professed to believe, that 0at some point, you< M$B: not heN 0have made enough money,< and that "ealth must be redistributed as a matter of policy, by the government. His enlightened government. 2f course, this credo combines a really nasty sense of unjustified moral arrogance "ith a profound pig7ignorance of basic economics4 but if public choice theory in economics teaches us anything, it is that ; as *r. *adison "ell kne" ; pols and bureaucrats are no less self7 interested than the average >oe: and, in fact, more so, by a long chalk. And *r. 2bama and the "ing, his "ing, currently in control of the 8emocratic Party, have a considerable interest in
demographic slicing and dicing, robbing Peter to pay Paul, bribing fifty7percent7plus7one of the electorate "ith the "ealth created by the =K.KKP, and setting groups ; encouraged to create identities as groups ; one against the other. *r. 2bama?s personal political
interest is to encourage a dependent class of citi3ens and non7 citi3ens, persons "ho are net dependents upon government largesse, "ho "ill support him because of and partly out of the proceeds of his redistributing, to them, the "ealth created by the net7 contributing residents and their companies and businesses. 9t is a long history of success in doing just that that has maintained the .abour Party in Britain in great stretches of #ngland, ,ales, and (cotland ; and left the ): in its present fiscal straits. 8ebt is the great threat to the )nited (tates, American po"er, and the happiness and security of American citi3ens. his is
especially so to the e6tent that the debt is the product of unsustainable deficit spending. 9n the )nited :ingdom, the 9slington7and7$otting7/ill "ing of the -onservative Party has happily accepted the cover of the -oalition to esche" making any actual cuts ; although they are savaged just as much as they?d be if they did. #urope as a "hole is e!ually un"illing to take its medicine. /ard landings ; "ith likely (and likely unpleasant) ; geopolitical conse!uences: irredentism, adventurism, revanchism, military irresponsibility, and internal friction: are inevitable in the former (oviet )nion, Pakistan, some at least of the +ulf states, the .evant and $orth Africa, .atin America, and, especially, -hina, "here the (outh -hina (ea is already a flashpoint. President 2bama, in addition to having personal political interests and an ideology that are predisposed to deficit spending
and economic folly, has never done an honest day?s "ork in his life, or held any job that "ould have taught him the economic realities. +overnor @omney is not, it is true, precisely a small7to"n merchant or heartland farmer, but he is not, as the President is, an economic illiterate (and innumerate). President 2bama is addicted to social programs, deficit spending, an absurd degree of regulation, and a bien7pensant hostility to all capitalism save crony capitalism. But even that is not fully the point. *r. 2bama, elected in large measure because of dissatisfaction "ith the fiscal policies of *r. Bush and the bailout of ,all (treet, has doubled do"n on the failed aspects of those policies, including the bailout boogie (in this regard, his approach is very much the same as in ; contrary to all his promises ; increasing drone strikes, shutting do"n investigations into enhanced
interrogation techni!ues, and not closing +itmo). *ore than that, he used the fiscal crisis as an e6cuse to force through, at a time "hen his party also controlled the /ouse as "ell as the (enate, hugely e6pensive, unsustainable, falsely7costed, and massively unpopular social "elfare programs that only increased the deficit and further diminished gro"th. 9n the pursuit of ideology and partisan advantage, the President has promoted policies that have contributed to a recovery7that7"asn?t and unemployment figures that shock the conscience. And in three and a half years no", he has neither engaged @epublican budget proposals nor submitted his o"n or had his
(enate majority do so. $or "ill he detail in any "ay his actual intentions, economically, for a second term ; almost certainly because to do so "ould guarantee he?s not given one. /is attitude to"ards regulatory burdens and getting government out of the "ay of American ingenuity and accomplishment is notably demonstrated in his "illingness to grant subventions to foreign governments and companies to drill for oil and gas "hile being openly bent on "recking domestic )( coal and petroleum production and transshipment ; despite the obvious fact that many of the )nited (tates? diplomatic problems abroad, as "ell as threats to American prosperity at home, "ould vanish overnight as America approached energy independence. At the same time, his administration as "ell as the Bed (and most other central banks) has pursued a savagely deflationary policy against a non7e6istent threat of inflation. his, "ith the certainty of his addiction to spending and regulation, and the uncertainty of "hat further destruction he intends to visit upon the "ealth7creating sectors of the economy, is the greatest threat of all. Business and household budgeting is ; as is the reasury?s ; fro3en in a stasis of uncertainty. he crisis is not one of monetary supply. 9t is not even one of credit. 9t is a crisis of velocity. +ro"th ; and the ta6 revenues that are the proceeds of gro"th ; is stifled by uncertainty and by this president?s past record. he e!uation of e6change ; the connection
bet"een the general price level that the market derives and the monetary policy that a government pursues ; is simple: *5 Q Py. hat is, the monetary supply, M, multiplied by :, velocity, the number of times in a year that the average buck turns over in final purchases, is e!ual to the general price level 3$4 times the real income of the economy, y (e.g., +8P J +$P). his is a useful formula for inflation measurement, but it also points to the bottleneck that has this country in a hole right no": velocity. $o one "ho is not a fool or a government employee spends freely ; creates the velocity that gives thrust and lift to get the economy airborne ; in the atmosphere that this administration has created and seems to be proud of. #ven if the market might prefer another set of plans to those of the @omney7@yan campaign, any plan is preferable to no plan, or a refusal to tell the public the plan until after the election. +overnor @omney "ins this, hands do"n.
Domestic policy
2bama @omney
hen all is said and done, the basic freedoms that the )nited (tates and her citi3ens enjoy are clearly set out in the -onstitution, and not even the (upreme
are not supine. his does not mean that the ne6t round of (upreme -ourt appointments "on?t be important. Additionally, persons of good "ill can legitimately disagree both upon measures and policies, and upon the "eight and importance to be given to these. Ruite frankly, "hen the American primary author of this paper sees, as he has seen in the past year, 0activists< shrieking that their pet cause ; say, 0marriage e!uality< (that being the 2r"ellian label used by advocates of e6tending the legal bundle of rights and responsibilities, evolved over centuries of legislation and the common la" and called 0marriage,< to partners of the same se6) K or 0reproductive rights< ($e"speak for abortion, for ta6payer funding thereof, and for forcing poor people to pay for the contraceptives of upper7middle7class professional students) ; he feels rather as he does "hen he hears of the 0obesity epidemic among the poor.< Are these issues deserving of careful considerationO -ertainly. Are these 0Birst ,orld problems<O 2h, hell yes. ,hen your poor are fat rather than starving, your country is rich indeed. ,hen you have leisure to "orry about these issues, you have solved the graver and more immediate issues. And America has not 0solved the graver and more immediate issues< ; not for sour apples, "e haven?t. +overnor @omney does not appear to be a "ild7eyed ideologue4 if there is an ideologue in this race, it is President 2bama. And the tea7partisan tendency in his party is very adamantly not interested
K he authors support civil unions where these have been enacted by the people and their elected representatives rather than by 8udicial ukase.
in social issues right no", save as they cause social programs and spending on social programs. he economic crisis, "hich also
hampers the projection of America?s military and diplomatic po"er, is by far the most important issue. But if there are issues of rights and freedoms that are e6plicit in the -onstitution, universally ackno"ledged by Americans, and currently under threat ; and there are ; they are threatened by *r. 2bama, his administration, and their mindset. he .eftist
philosophy of cut7rate academics is hostile to free speech ; see our prior Position Paper ; and this administration, particularly "hen it invokes the false gods of 0hating Hhate speech? and not tolerating intolerance,< "hen it asserts that 0the future mustn?t belong to those "ho insult the prophet of 9slam,< and "hen it calls for restrictions upon free speech and free publication, is a government of cut7rate academics, by cut7rate academics, and for cut7rate academics, that really must soon perish from the earth. he foundational principle of American freedom can pretty "ell be e6pressed by saying that the future had damned "ell better belong to those "ho are free to insult the prophet of 9slam, the Blessed 5irgin, 2ur (avior, *oses, the Buddha, 5ishnu, @ichard 8a"kins, and anyone else an American damned "ell pleases. And this government of cut7rate academics is as hostile to the free e6ercise of religion (save for those "ho revere the prophet of 9slam) as it is to free speech. *r. Pyle is ; like *r. ,emyss, and "ith apologies to ,ill @ogers ; not a member of any organi3ed religion: he?s an Anglican. And *r.
Pyle freely confesses that his opinion of *r. @omney?s religion is ade!uately summed up by the statement that he is hard pressed to remember to put the second 0m< in 0*ormon.< But this is about an American election, and he takes as his te6t the only holy "rit that matters: Article 59, the third paragraph, 0no religious test shall ever be re!uired as a !ualification to any office or public trust under the )nited (tates.< /ere endeth the lesson. +overnor @omney may, as he is free to do, believe any number of damned7fool things4 President 2bama does, as the irreverend @ev. *r. ,right?s theology demonstrates. 2f the t"o, perhaps +overnor @omney is more likely to pursue religious indifference in government, as members of off7brand religions are "ont to do. But in any case, it is abundantly clear "hich of these men is "orthier of our trust as a defender of e6plicit constitutional freedoms, and it is not the trimming, apologi3ing *r. 2bama. And it is like"ise evident that President 2bama, as a .eftist ideologue ; indeed, ideolater ; in a second term "ith no re7election to concern himself "ith,'& is far likelier to meddle "ith non7essential domestic issues (and implicating ackno"ledged rights) than is *r. @omney, "ho grasps the essential truth that free contraceptives paid for by the Bederal government are meaningless even "ere they desirable if the +overnment +oes broke while everyone farts around fi+htin+ a :ulturkampf. President 2bama began his term by choosing to drop a civil
'& After all, this is the very suspicion as to forei+n affairs that inevitably arises from his incautious remarks to *r. *edvedev about 0fle6ibility< after the election.
rights case ; for voter suppression, against the $e" Black Panthers ; that 'o; had already won in a default 8ud+ment. /is 8epartment of >ustice and his Attorney +eneral have become notorious for the naked partisanship "ith "hich they prosecute and defend, or decline to prosecute or to defend, the la"s, and violations of those la"s. Perfunctory defenses of statutes the constitutionality of "hich has been challenged and "hich do not reflect an administration?s philosophy ; a failing sadly not confined to any one president, party, or administration ; has given "ay to "holesale refusal even to go through the motions (and briefs, and pleadings.... (orry. .a"yer humor). And the t"in ; and dangerous ; tendencies of the 2bama administration in the la" have been an ever7increasing reliance upon regulation, ukase, e6ecutive order, and, frankly, rule by decree, coupled "ith an overtly partisan issuance of "aivers, e6ceptions, protections, opt7outs, and loopholes to and in favor of favored groups, loyal cronies, "ard7heelers, rent7seekers, and campaign contributors. he 2bama administration habitually e6ercises its legal discretion to grant states a pass on not getting ballots to American servicemen, "hile taking a laisse37faire approach to voter fraud that shades into open hostility to"ards any attempt to prevent it. he 2bama administration is hostile to the e6ercise of un!uestioned constitutional rights of free speech and free e6ercise even as it en+a+es in attemptin+ to create new <ri+hts) taken from 9eftist le+al theory.
he 2bama administration, in sum ; and in contrast to +overnor @omney?s e6ecutive record ; is actually a peculiarly la"less one, in that it is inimical to the rule of la", partisan in applying the la", and increasingly inclined to ignore the la" as "ritten for political advantage and the pursuit of favoritism. here are as al"ays many motives for this, some or most of "hich might separately seem harmless and indeed amiable, but "hich together mean simply a preference for the rule of party and partisanship in place of the e!ual and detached enforcement of the la"s as they stand, la"s passed by the representatives of the people. And this is of a piece "ith the 2bama administration?s overall record. President 2bama promised fundamentally to transform the )nited (tates. )nfortunately, he seems to have meant it, and the direction in "hich he "ishes to transform America is, to anyone "hose vie"s are not those of an aging boomer "ith tenure at some co"7college best kno"n for its pro"ess in intramural agit7prop and the reek of stale bong7"ater, the "rong one.
"onclusion
2bama @omney
or the foregoing reasons, it is the opinion of *r. Pyle as an American, and of *r. ,emyss as an ally and admirer of America, that the only responsible choice is +overnor
@omney4 and *r. Pyle, an old 8emocrat himself of a dying breed, urges Americans to vote accordingly. Both candidates are, naturally, politicians4 each has to some e6tent flipped, flopped, and fishtailed, and the e6tent to "hich this has represented legitimate changes of mind in +overnor @omney?s case is uncertain. ( here is no uncertainty as regards President 2bama?s changes of position, almost all of "hich, from 0gay marriage< to gun control, are simply reversions to the positions he al"ays in fact held, held openly in the hothouse "orld of -hicago .eftist politics in the $e" Party days, and concealed only for tactical purposes in his national ascent. 9t is less dismaying, politicians being politicians, that he has chopped and changed, or that he has held the positions he holds, than that his first instinct is al"ays and every"here, "hen confronted "ith the possibility of not making the sale, to lie about it.) ,e cannot presume to say "hat are the relations bet"een the soul of each man and his *aker. ,e can ho"ever discern the obvious. *r. 2bama is not a believer in American e6ceptionalism. *ost of the "orld is, "hich is "hy they as "ell as Americans e6pect more of America and hold it to a higher standard. *r. Pyle is a believer in American e6ceptionalism. (o is, in his "ay, *r. ,emyss, "ho reminds all concerned that the )nited (tates is, after all, eligible for -ommon"ealth membership (and
notes that the -ommon"ealth is "earisomely familiar "ith politicians of *r. 2bama?s kidney). *r. 2bama?s vie" is that Americans, as a sort of !uaint foible, believe in American e6ceptionalism as 0+reeks believe in +reek e6ceptionalism and the British believe in British e6ceptionalism.< (Bor all his and his supporters? assertions to the contrary, *r. 2bama remains invincibly and irremediably provincial.) ,ell, +reeks can be proud of great predecessors from Pericles to (ophocles. And the nation of (mith and *ill, $e"ton and Brunel and Berners7.ee, ,ellington and $elson, 8rake, Alfred, *ilton, (hakespeare, Burns, (ha", homas, and -hurchill, needs yield place to none. But the )nited (tates is indeed e6ceptional. o be a +reek is a matter of blood and soil. o be or to become British is to give allegiance to the -ro"n, as a symbol, yes, of liberty, but one freighted "ith particular history. But anyone "ho assents to certain propositions ; themselves, *r. ,emyss insists, evolved by colonial #nglishmen "ho created a country that is the legacy of .ocke and the conse!uence of -oke and the common la" ; may become an American, "hatever his birth, creed, ancestry, or skin tone. +overnor @omney clearly believes this. President 2bama.... President 2bama does not believe in American e6ceptionalism4 it appears, frankly, that the only e6ceptionalism in "hich he believes is the e6ceptionalism of Barack 2bama. his is not simply a matter of his overreaching rhetoric or his failure to discourage, indeed his "illingness to indulge, the really repellent cult of personality that
his acolytes have created around him. 9t is, rather, implicit in his preference for rule by decree, his belief that a government "ith him in it should and can and ought to say "hen America has too much po"er, "hen Americans have made too much money, ho" far American?s constitutional rights may e6tend, "hich Americans may be dealt summary e6ecution from the skies "ithout hearing or "arrant, and ho" and to "hom he shall redistribute po"er, money, right, and even life. Bor all "e kno", +overnor @omney secretly sees himself in his deepest fantasies as such an arbiter of mankind4 but "e kno" perfectly "ell that *r. @omney kno"s too much about basic economics not to kno" that this is a "ild fantasy at best, and "e kno" also that the press and both parties "ill not indulge *r. @omney in any overstepping of bounds such as the press and the 8emocratic Party do indulge in *r. 2bama ; the e6ecutive assassination by drone of American citi3ens "ithout any process of la", let us say ; acts that they "ould scream the house (and the (enate) do"n over if it "ere anyone else pulling that stunt time and again. hat in itself is reason enough to boot Barack 2bama, for the good of the country. But of course the better reason is this: +overnor @omney is "illing to submit his plans to the judgment of the electorate and not simply run as if it?s a tiresome ritual for one predestined to be the ne6t face on @ushmore, and +overnor @omney?s plans clearly contemplate adherence to the la", respect for the -onstitution, a foreign policy conducted in pursuance of American interests, and
economic freedom leading to economic recovery. ,e have seen little of *r. 2bama?s second7term plans4 "e have seen his ; utterly deplorable ; record4 and the combination of those factors impels the conclusion that he dare not tell us "hat he intends ne6t because it is at best no better than the complete pig?s breakfast of the past four years, and !uite likely a program that "ould send Americans into the streets "ith pitchforks, feathers, and tar. hat, surely, is enough.
his Position Paper does not represent the vie"s of Bapton Books, as a firm and as an imprint4 it does represent the vie"s of the authors, "ho happen to be the partners. Because the issue is so important a one, this Position Paper is being made available free even of a nominal charge. hose "ishing to sho" a lively sense of obligation to the authors in gratitude for this Paper and this stance may do so by purchasing their Bapton Books titles:
-hen That .reat #hip -ent 'own: The 9e+al and $olitical /epercussions of the 9oss of /M# itanic <&ools, 'runks, and the (nited #tates): *u+ust 1,, 1 !1 #ensible $laces: essays on place, time, and countryside The Confidence of the House: May 1 !" #ensible $laces: essays on place, time, and countryside The *nnotated ,ind in the ,illo"s, for *dults and #ensible Children 3or, possibly, Children and #ensible *dults4 The Complete Mow+li #tories, 'uly *nnotated The Transatlantic 'isputations: 1ssays and Meditations The Bapton Books #ampler: a literary chrestomathy