"...and the next...President of the United States..."

I always hate it when people say that too early in campaigns.  But I always like it when the nomination is locked up, after the conventions, when I start thinking of all the things a new President could do.

If things continue the way they are, and there is no reason to believe things would change for the good when the government keeps doing bad, an Obama victory would be historic...not because his father was from Africa, but because nobody has ever been re-elected (save FDR) with things this bad.

So.

Who will his opponent be?

Chris Christie...not now.

Paul Ryan...I guess not now.

Newt...done.

Rick Perry? 

We already have a Rick Perry running.  His name is Tim Pawlenty.  I have pretty much said, so far, "I like what he says, I like what he has done, but I don't think he can beat Obama." 

Pawlenty gave a speech last week, and par for the course, I didn't hear any of it, it didn't get much MSM fanfare...but like a good movie, its getting alot of traction. 

Unlike Obama, the SUBSTANCE of his speech is what people are talking about.  READ IT HERE.

It starts out, "How are you enjoying your recovery Summer? That’s what the President said we were having. And that was last year. Now, gas is nearly $4 a gallon. Home prices are in the gutter. Our healthcare system — thanks to ObamaCare — is more expensive. And less efficient. Unemployment’s back over 9%. Our national debt has skyrocketed. Our budget deficit has grown worse. And the jobs and manufacturing reports are grim. If that was a recovery — then our President needs to enter economic rehab. And the American people need to stop his policies. Cold turkey."

Pawlenty goes on to suggest...IN THE MIDST OF WHAT HE ACKNOWLEDGES IS A DISMAL ECONOMY...a target growth rate of 5%.  When others refer to 2% annual growth as "the new normal", Pawlenty says that is "not the American way."

He said we could get there by:

Cutting the corporate tax rate from 35% to 15%...when Obama wants to raise taxes on oil companies and "obscene profits"...

NOT taxing American corporation's overseas earnings...when Obama wants to tax them more, to stop 'outsourcing'...

Abolishing the taxes on capital gains, interest, dividends, and estates, saying "Government has no moral or economic basis to claim a second share of the same income..."

Further, in his speech, he took on the fight of Wisconsin and of California, "I cut state spending in real terms for the first time in our state’s history. We did it with priority-based budgeting. We did it by setting a record for vetoes.  It took a government shutdown. And a long government union strike. But we got it done. We didn’t close our schools. Or empty out our prisons. We cut spending where it needed to be cut. We can do the same thing in Washington..."

He even suggests privatizing the US Postal Service, Amtrak, and Fannie and Freddie...

One thing he hinted on, and I think could be a successful counter point, is to speak of Obama's audacity to speak of sitting down with the leaders of Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Cuba and North Korea without preconditions...and contrast with a willingness to sit down with the leaders of South Korea, Columbia, Panama, and other allied Democracies and discuss free trade agreements.

I guess what I'm saying is, this guy may actually have a chance...