Early assessment

Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have. -- Ronald Reagan

There are elements on this planet that are actively seeking weapons of mass destruction for the purpose of using them. They speak as openly as Adolph Hitler did about their desire to kill us and we should honor them by believing they're sincere. -- Newt Gingrich

For most of the years I have been watching politics (and it started with my reading of Robert J. Ringer's "Restoring the American Dream" in 1976), I have seen hopeful tendencies only twice. One was my slowly dawning realization of the beauty of Ronald Reagan and his policies. He used the twin weapons of commitment and communication. Every time he said "There they go again" I realized there was someone in charge who was on our side. When he said "Tear down this wall", you know he had 'that vision thing'.

When everything he called for came to pass without so much as one missile launched; you knew he not only had the right approach, he had the confidence of the world.

The second time I saw hope in action was Newt's 1994 "Contract with America" revolution. He had the Reagan-like commitment and the communication. As a history professor, he can cite chapter and verse where we went wrong. In case you don't know where that was, read the book.

The enemies of the people had no effect on Reagan, because Reagan was right for the time and for the state of the world. He, nor the people, would be swayed by the enemies of the people.

Gingrich has inherited that banner. He is quite probably the only one out there we can trust with the job. This is why you will see the enemies of the people pulling out all the stops early and often.

Those enemies miscalculated on Reagan. Tried to frame him as a shallow actor. The world saw him as a leader.

The enemies of the people will characterize Newt as a megalomaniacal hayseed. The people will see Gingrich as a leader.