ACTION

The word "Mandate" is thrown around a lot today.  There is the individual Mandate, the unfunded Mandate, the regulatory Mandate, and several more.  Most of these stem from legislation passed in response to a "crisis" or a shortfall.  The legitimacy of these mandates is dubious, at best.  The constitutional "clause" that allows them must always be accompanied by lengthy logic, and emotional pleas.

There is one mandate that is legitimate, beyond question.  It is rare, but it is done on purpose when it happens.  It happens when a candidate lists clearly what he wants to do, what he wants to do can be traced to legitimate powers of government, and the people elect that candidate.  It is the electoral mandate.

It is not enough to list the steps.  The list must be simple enough that there is no question what is being voted on.  The candidate must also stick to his list during the campaign.  He must tell the public.  This requires character and discipline.  The candidate that says one thing to one group, and the opposite to another, destroys his mandate, even if he gets elected!  The more a candidate keeps to his message, the stronger the mandate.

The public then has to agree.  This is indicated by a large "margin of victory" in the popular vote. The last time a true mandate occurred was in 1994.  It was called the Contract With America.  Newt Gingrich was its architect.

In the current campaign, Newt has another "Contract With America".  He is telling his crowds that he will execute proper executive orders.  He is telling his crowds that he will work with congress to pass the changes that require congressional approval, and how that will work.  His steps are well within the limits of the Constitution of the United States.  In every speech he is staying on message!

The hard part about staying on message is that others must accurately represent what is said in order to get that message to the masses.  One man cannot meet a portion of the American population significant enough to win the Presidential election.  Perception is reality in the Presidential arena, and there are many voices adding to the din.

Part of the din is the other candidates.  In the three man race, Newt currently faces a volume of distractions on the order of seven to one, or more.   There is a lot of opportunity to twist the facts and mischaracterize the issues in that much opposition.

But those who dig deep will find a ten point legislative plan, and six executive orders.  They will watch videos that seem to be repeats of each other.  It will begin to get tedious.  But that is how a mandate is established!

Then we, the voters, must consider where we are, and what made this country what it is today.  The honest will see that pervasive private property and capitalism has covered this nation in the current infrastructure.  As more and more "wealth" was redistributed, funds to maintain that infrastructure diminished.  The level of effort required to recover our productivity is very high.  We look for a man who is capable of making the changes we need.  There is only one candidate who has made changes on that scale.  That candidate is Newt Gingrich!