Presidential Consolation

As chairman of the Bastrop County Republican Party, it is fitting for me to be the first to speak to you, the Republicans of Bastrop County, regarding our national loss of the Presidency. I am aware that many of you have reacted with tears, anger, numbness, disbelief, or a sense of resignment that this is what we deserve. I endeavor here to speak to those reactions and give direction for the days ahead.

For those who may read this who do not consider themselves Republicans, let me first briefly articulate why we feel as we do. Our present mortification over the election of Barack Obama as President is based on the conviction that the policies he has espoused will not work and on fear of the result of implementing those policies. We are convinced that peace must be secured, and cannot be won by vacating a present conflict. If we leave a field of conflict unresolved, that field will only follow us unless we fully capitulate. We are further convinced that prosperity does not come through taxation and wealth redistribution. Wealth acquired without work is squandered, and work not commensurately rewarded is abandoned. The result therefore is the extension of misery, not the relieving of it. Look across the globe and across history, and you will not find the economy that flourishes while penalizing the productive so as to reward the unproductive. Based on these convictions, we fear that Mr. Obama's policies will only deepen our present difficulties.

With these convictions and fears in mind, I turn now to console you. If you take Scripture at its word as I do, then let me remind you of these truths:

1. Although we have a duty to vote, it is ultimately God that establishes our leaders, and we are to submit to them. "Let every person be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore he who resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will received condemnation upon themselves." Romans 13:1-2 These words were not spoken by an American Patriot living under the just rule of the Founding Fathers. They were spoken by the Apostle Paul to the Christians in Rome living under the vile and corrupt rule of Emperor Nero. If God has lifted up Mr. Obama to be President, then we can trust He has a purpose in doing so.

2. We are to pray for those in authority over us. "First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity." 1 Timothy 2:1-2

3. Even if our present distress deepens, God nevertheless provides for us what we need. "Do not be anxious then, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'With what shall we clothe oursleves?' For all these things the Gentilies eagerly seek; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these tings. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you." Matthew 6:31-33

If you are a secularist, who puts no confidence in God's Word, then let me console you with these truths:

1. Liberal policies do not work. Governmental redistribution relieves economic strain with the least efficiency. In times of distress, the people will not tolerate failure.

2. The tendency of mankind is toward freedom. Restrict freedom, and those shackles produce hardship. The cauldron of hardship produces a love and strain toward freedom. The hotter the cauldron, the more the shackles are at risk of bursting from the strain toward freedom. Hardship also produces virtue and vigilance.

3. A Presidential term is only four years. "By the frame of the government under which we live, this same people have wisely given their public servants but little power for mischief; and have, with equal wisdom, provided for the return of that little to their own hands at very short intervals. While the people retain their virtue and vigilance, no administration, by any extreme of wickedness or folly, can very seriously injure the government in the short space of four years." Abraham Lincoln, First Inaugural Address

With these consolations, let us now consider the future.

First, let us not be bitter or factious. I am tired of the last eight years of the partisan smearing of President Bush. Let us be better than our opponents have been and continue to treat the office and office-holder with dignity and respect.

Second, let us congratulate our fellow African-Americans who without regard to partisanship, cannot help but view this moment as a significant milestone in their own storied history among us. Any public figure makes a valuable contribution to society who inspires in each of us commoners the notion that we can achieve no matter who we are or where we come from. On January 1, 1863, the Republican Party through its President Lincoln emancipated the slaves. May President Obama's inauguration further emancipate our African-Americans from the notion that they are in some way held back in this society.

Third, with dignity, respect, and clarity, let us continue to advocate for those principles we hold dear: limited government, fiscal responsibility, return to Consitutional restraints, freedom of speech, religion and firearms, and a profound respect for innocent life. If liberal policies fail, as we believe they must by their nature, the people must be hearing that a viable alternative exists.

Lastly, consider and take to heart the closing words of President Lincoln's second inaugural address: "With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations."

Albert L. Ellison, Chairman
Bastrop County Republican Party