Like a trip to the movies

Rep. Glen Casada lets fly with a double barreled shot across the bow of the Democrats. In doing so he showed a great difference in how the two parties argue and why Republican win in Tennessee. It got me to thinking of how elections are like a trip to the movies on a date.

In the article were some of the Republicans solid agenda items, ideas and goals. In all my years in the legislature I can honestly say I have never heard of a Democrat caucus agenda package.

Never.

Occasionally they will say "this or that is a part of the budget" and they want to pass it or they "don't like this or that" but that's about it. No solid goals, ideas or ideals. Just once I would like Democrats to come out and say "This is what we want to do for Tennessee this year and this is how we want to do it, here is how it will be measured"

Simple stuff. Set a measurable goal, create a plan to achieve the goal, measure the results before the next election.

What we usually get is some nebulous plan of "We want to help education so we are going to increase spending for the kids"

Lets break that down shall we? When ever I hear the words "Help", "Better" or "Improve" then I question if there is a solid measurable goal behind the rhetoric. When I hear "for the kids" I think it is a play to emotions to overpower the reality of a lacking goal.

Spending may be a plan but it is not a goal. I am looking for something like "We want to make sure all Tennessee children have the ability to participate in a non failing school as measured by federal standards. Here is where we are. Here is where we want to go. Here are our ideas and plans to do that. If we don't see results of X,Y and Z by the next election we have failed in that goal and our plan does not work. We will then be open to other ideas then."

If the plans first step of measurement is farther away then the next election then flags should go up as well. The classic liberal "plans" have failed so many times they had to change the script to cover when it happens. Having seen it in action what happens now is, when the bogus plan does not work they go to the old fall back of "Things changed after the election". If it is a true long range plan then it is should have benchmarks in place and multiple solid studies that have substantiated the goals and steps over a period of time.

These are things the Tennessee Republicans have offered people on a regular basis. We showed people the current deficits, showed our goals and plans, what we want to do and how we want to do it and the people went with us.

How is that like the movies you may ask?

Like most movies, the left takes a bunch of money from you, they will tell you a tale and will uses emotional rhetoric that leaves you temporarily excited about a smokey illusion up on a screen. The flashy car or the hero that runs through a hail of bullets without a scratch. The pretty girl who has no flaws. Occasionally it will be class warfare or trotting out the lone exception to the reality of an idea that is good for society 99.99% of the time. But like the illusion on the screen you can never seem to get hold of it. Even in 3-D you can reach out for it but it isn't really there. It may be entertaining on the surface but in reality its not that realistic or well thought out. Not real.

Republicans on the other hand are what you have when the lights come up. Same steady boyfriend or girlfriend, a nice walk in the parking lot to the same solid car and back to work on Monday. Pay on the house, plan for retirement. We use facts, figures, solid ideas, plans and histories that let people draw their own solid steady conclusions as to what they really want to do and and where they want to go in life. It is not always as flashy as the big screen, the changes aren't huge or fast, but they are real and measurable.

In Tennessee people may be entertained at the movies. They may even go back and see a sequel. But at the end of the night people want to kiss a real person. In Tennessee Republicans get the girl.