Searching for the New “Maggie” Thatcher
Will it be Hillary or Joe? Jeb or Rand? Pundits on both sides are working feverishly to unmask the candidates willing to leap into the 2016 presidential campaign firestorm. Despite being early in the game, every statement by a potential candidate is parsed ad nauseam by journalists in hopes of achieving that “aha” moment of “Yes, they will!” or “No, they won’t!”. That being said, it would be disingenuous to readers to imply that I am not interested in that “aha” moment, as well. So, while waiting patiently for this administration to say “bye-bye”, I have a simple request to make.
Dear Republican Party,
As you determine your slate of nominees to be offered for our consideration–please find me a Maggie.
Many loved her- many hated her. Whether you agreed or disagreed with all of Margaret Thatcher’s policies, she could be counted on to stand by her convictions unflinchingly, unwavering, and unashamedly.
“We will stand on principle, or we will not stand at all” Thatcher brilliantly said. So where is the man or woman who will acknowledge that policies driven by popular opinion are not always the right course of action? Who is willing to lead the fight in protecting the guiding principles that our country was founded on?
Mrs. Thatcher also made the following two statements:
“To me, consensus seems to be the process of abandoning all beliefs, principles, values and policies. So it is something in which no one believes and to which no one objects.”
“There are those who would say ‘hold back.’ There are those who would make us retreat. But we shall never give in to them. We shall never waver — not for a second — in our determination to see this country prosper once again.”
Does anyone vaguely remember having a sense of security that our homeland was truly secure from foreign and domestic terrorists? I do and I want to feel that way again. Not only do I need to feel that I am safe-I need to know that I am safe without government chipping away at my individual liberties.
Thatcher said:
“And what a prize we have to fight for: no less than the chance to banish from our land the dark divisive clouds of Marxist socialism.”
“Democratic nations must try to find ways to starve the terrorist and the hijacker of the oxygen of publicity on which they depend.”
“All attempts to destroy democracy by terrorism will fail. It must be business as usual.”
I need “my Maggie” to understand that a vibrant economy is not created by spending our way out of debt. I need someone who is not interested in “managing the decline of a great nation” but rather restoring the individual dreams and freedoms of all American citizens that makes this country exceptional.
Thatcher certainly understood this concept when she said, “Gentlemen, if we don’t cut spending we will be bankrupt. Yes, the medicine is harsh, but the patient requires it in order to live. Should we withhold the medicine? No. We are not wrong. We did not seek election and win in order to manage the decline of a great nation.”
Republican Party, I want to support you-but you have to give me someone to support. I understand that I really don’t understand politics, nor do I want to. If I did, I might never vote again. However, let me assure you that, in light of these past few years, I do understand leadership, or the lack thereof. In less than four years, our country may have its final opportunity to change the trajectory of disaster that is looming over our heads. In the meantime, I will continue my search for Maggie.
“Watch your thoughts, for they become words. Watch your words, for they become actions. Watch your actions, for they become…habits. Watch your habits, for they become your character. And watch your character, for it becomes your destiny! What we think we become. My father always said that, and I think I am fine.”-Margaret Thatcher
