They emphasize that military action alone won't protect us, that this war has many fronts: in courts, financial institutions, in the shadowy world of intelligence, and in diplomacy. They stress that America needs the help of her friends to combat an evil that threatens us all, that our alliances are as important to victory as are our armies.

We agree.

That quote was from the RNC Convention in 2004. Nothing like this sentiment is found in tonight's speech. He said much between the lines of text.

He says he knows how to secure the peace. He says he knows how the military works, how the world works, and that Iran is the biggest sponsor of terror in the world. It sounded like GW Bush saying he had looked into the eyes of Vladimir Putin and found a man he could trust there. Iran is factually NOT the largest sponsor of terror in the world. That distinction would fall to the al-Queda organization now spanning the globe.

Sen. McCain said he knows how to secure the peace; through war! GW Bush sought the same thing with Iraq. And long after the number of years it took to win World War II, we are still engaged and our soldiers are still being fired upon in Iraq. McCain believes invading Iraq was the right thing to do. Now he tells us in nearly the same words, that his knowledge of the military is the way we will secure the peace with Iran.

He says he will prevent another cold war with Russia while saying we must stop Russian aggression in countries like Georgia. And where are the details on how he will accomplish this minor miracle? Absent without leave from his speech.

He has another miracle he will perform. He says he will keep taxes low and cut taxes, and at the same time cut government spending and the size of government, all the while working to insure the American people have more of what they work for, a quality life in America.

He says he turned down the option of leaving Hanoi Hilton because they would use it as propaganda. Yet, he provided his captors a video-taped confession of war crimes to be used for propaganda. He said he was hurt and ashamed but was saved by a fellow soldier who told him to get back up and fight for his country. He said he has the scars of that fight, and Obama doesn't.

All very moving. But, that was more than 4 decades ago. He said he fell in love with his country when he was a prisoner in another country. Did he, like Michele Obama, not love his country before he was a POW as his comment implies, and as Republicans interpreted a similar statement by Michelle Obama about finding pride in America?

He said he will fight for his country as long as he can draw a breath, so help him God. Can anyone doubt that this man is married to the word 'fight', and that fighting is how he will attempt to solve every problem he will face as president? Fight with me, he said, Fight with me. Fight, fight, fight! The man knows no other problem solving strategy and the folks on the Convention Floor went wild with adulation. He used the word 'fight' 25 times in his speech. McCain is a fighting man. We get it, already.

But, is more fighting, war, and conflict what America needs at this juncture in its history? Does America need a Republican president who will fight with Congress and the Supreme Court, or a Democratic president who can and will work with a Democratic Congress to solve our nation's problems? The Congress will be even more Democratic in January, that is nearly certain.

If America wants yet another war, they can have their man in John McCain for president. $9.67 trillion dollars in national debt, and this candidate can't get enough fighting to satisfying him and his need to "fight, fight, fight". Are these the words of Christ? Are these the words of a follower of Christ? Are these the words of a great man? We can visit any hard time prison in America and find this same need for fighting, this same obsession with fighting, this same all in one answer to life's problems: fighting.

His words confessed to his Party's abject failures regarding corruption of government, vast deficit spending and debt and lack of fiscal discipline, and failure in the war on terror. Yet, his words reveal that his role as president will be that of a fighter pilot, all alone, fighting, not as a member of a bomber wing, a team player, but, a Maverick who will follow, not wisdom, not knowledge, not Christ's teachings, but, his obsession for fighting for what he wants to fight for.

He called education choice a right of all Americans. This is a carbon copy of Pres. Bush's charter schools, private school subsidies and home-religious schooling policy promotion. Does America want future generations to have Babel backgrounds in education that prevent them from working with each other through a common language developed through a common education in history, logic, science, and math?

The Republicans may believe it is they McCain will fight for. But, let's be clear here, he wants the power of the American military under his command. That is what he is obsessed with, it is what his "fight, fight, fight" words speak to repeatedly, and this power is what he seeks.

It was truly surprising the way his speech writers damned his party's performance these last 8 years. And in the very same speech he reiterated the Bush policies on cutting taxes in the face of record debt and deficits. On cutting spending in the face of a Democratic Congress, which will result in political gridlock like Bush now deals with, not solutions for the American people.

Despite his ardent attempts to distance himself from the Bush administration in rhetoric, he seeks private health care like Bush which puts insurance company profits between us and our doctors. His plan will provide more Americans with health insurance he thinks. This is nothing more than a continuation of the Bush plan which has left 43 million Americans without health insurance and the emergency room on the taxpayers credit card for care.

The speech worked for the hall crowd he was in front of. But this crowd would have been ecstatic over having anyone tagged GOP speaking before them. That is the nature of Convention hall crowds.

Whether all this Bush policy talk and fight language will resonate with the rest of America remains to be seen. There it is however; the Republican ticket, the Republican methodology, the Republican hopes for power. It is now official. The American people have 3 debates in 4 weeks to assist them if they are still unsure how to vote. But, the choice between candidates, is stark.

One candidate says he will make the difference by asking Democrats to work with him in his Administration. The other candidate says we will make the difference with a Democratic President working with a Democratic Congress. One says elect me and I will fight for you. The other candidate says elect me and we will work with each other. One is a man of color. The other, a man of lighter color. One is young and healthy, the other a 72 year old survivor of two bouts with cancer.

One candidate has a woman VP candidate with a few years of elected office experience in local and state government. The other has a male VP candidate with decades of federal elected office experience in foreign affairs and federal budgeting. One has military in his blood, soul, and heart. The other has 3 years of community service, Harvard law education, and the Constitution in his blood, soul, and heart. One candidate believes we should seek faith, hard work, and Right living to help ourselves or, go without. The other candidate believes we have a responsibility to help those who cannot help themselves, like Palin's beautiful Down's syndrome child if her parents can't fully provide.

The contrast is very stark. The choice is likely to be much easier than the polls and pundits now indicate. On Election day, most American voters will vote for the candidate they believe will best serve their interests and future. Let the debates go forth and election day cometh.

Writer:   David R. Remer on September 4, 2008 9:44 PM