Res Publica 2005

I've been reading a lot about security moms in the news and op-eds lately. A lot of the feminist writers try to pretend they don't exist or castigate them for being traitors to the women's movement. But the fact that people like me would be putting security first is not a bad idea...we have seen what the enemy can do, would like to do and tries to do. We have seen 9/11, the beheading tapes, the fate of women under the Taliban, and the results of the dark side of Shairia "justice"...women sentenced to be raped because a male in their family misbehaved, women who offended some degree of male honor stoned, beheaded, killed by their own fathers. And those are just the women's issues.

I am not alone at being nervous.

In the Opinion Journal today, they run an article that shows the nervousness in people is just not me.

We've all met lifelong Democrats who quietly admit they support Mr. Bush this year, and the polls now appear to be opening up in the president's favor. The first sign that many would-be Democratic voters are hoping for a Bush victory probably came in New Jersey. Al Gore won the Garden State by nearly 16 points in 2000, and this year Mr. Kerry leads it by 20 points on when voters are asked who'd do a better job on education, job creation and other domestic issues. But because the issue of national security is on the table, the Democrat's lead in many polls has been in single digits, and several polls have shown a tie race. Republicans are so confident that the state is now in play, Mr. Bush spent yesterday campaigning there.

The president is looking for voters like Carol Del Tufo, a middle-aged teacher and lifelong Democrat. "Look, I'm voting for Bush," she told Washington Post reporter Michael Powell in Holmdel, N.J., last week. "He's very strong, and there's no 'maybe' in his voice." Her neighbor's husband was one of the 700 New Jersey residents murdered in the Sept. 11 attacks. "It was so scary," she said. "I've got kids. I don't want another attack."

The same sentiment can be found in other swing states. Sue Crawley, a social worker who works in Florida placing foster children for adoption, told the Associated Press that she's supporting Mr. Bush because of the threat of another terrorist attack. "I think he's doing the best he can with what he walked into and what he needs to accomplish here. You know sometimes you just can't do it in four years."

These voters aren't alone. A recent AP poll shows that 55% of Americans rank national security as paramount in this election, up from 43% in April. If this election were a referendum on jobs, health care or education, Mr. Kerry would probably be in better shape. So it is not good news for the Democrat that as voters have started paying more attention to this race over the past couple of months, they've increasingly come to see it as a referendum on national security policy.

The question really becomes: Can a man who's made it his professional career to be anti-war, anti-military, and anti-defense lead us in a time of war?

My answer will be, has to be, a resounding NO!!!!!