Let me ask you two hypothetical questions. Would you put your wife and children on an airplane piloted by Barack Obama? Would you put your spouse and children on an airplane piloted by John McCain? If you answered “yes” to either of these questions, I must question your commitment to the continued survival of your family. We know that Obama has no experience as a pilot and although McCain was once a pilot, I seriously doubt that he is current in flight proficiency.  

I remember the comedic movie “Airplane” where the pilots of an airliner in flight become disabled by food poisoning and a former pilot riding as a passenger is summoned to the cockpit to bring the plane to a somewhat safe landing. Innumerable jokes and gags permeate the story but one gag that isn’t explored is to ask a non- pilot to the cockpit to bring the plane in safely.   In the sequel to the movie “Airport” titled “Airport 1975”, which is an unintentionally funny movie, the pilots of an airliner are disabled by a midair collision with a light aircraft. Unfortunately there are no pilots aboard and a ridiculous air to air transfer of a pilot is accomplished to bring the plane home safely. In both cases, a real pilot is written into the story to bring the plane home safely. The reason for this is obvious: Even in a comedy, no one in the audience with half a brain is going to believe that an inexperienced non-pilot could bring a big airliner into an airport safely.

What if the above situation occurred in real life and the pilots of your flight were disabled. McCain and Obama are the only ones on the flight available to fly the airplane.  You must choose one of the two to pilot the plane. Who do you choose? Would anyone in his right mind choose Obama?  He’s never flown an airplane. He wouldn’t have a clue as to how to safely put an airliner on a runway. McCain was a Naval Aviator and a proficient pilot in his past. Although he has no experience flying an airliner, he could at least keep the plane right side up and would have a decent chance of bringing the plane home safely. Experience here is the key to making your choice.

One of the primary jobs of the U.S. President is Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.     What kind of experience do the two candidates have with respect to the Armed Forces?

John McCain

 McCain grew up in a military family. His father and grandfather were both four star admirals in the U.S. Navy. He lived the Navy life from birth to his retirement from the Navy in 1981. McCain spent 23 years in the Navy as a commissioned officer and retired with the rank of captain which is equivalent to a colonel in the Army. He was a decorated naval aviator and a prisoner of war. He was the commander of a naval training squadron that won a Meritorious Unit Commendation. He attended the National War College.   He served as the U.S. Navy’s liaison to the U.S. Senate. McCain is the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Much more can be said about McCain’s military experience but it is indisputable that he has a well rounded perspective having spent more than 45 years on the inside of the military as a navy dependent and a member of the navy, and more than 26 years as a civilian legislator participating in crafting legislation and reviewing policies affecting the military. 

Barack Obama

Obama serves on the Senate Veteran Affairs Committee. Obama has no direct or indirect military experience.

Some say that McCain has an edge in this category. This isn’t just an edge; it’s more like the New York Yankees against the worst middle school girls softball team in the country.  It’s difficult to understand how anyone in their right mind could say that Barack Obama is remotely qualified to be Commander-in-Chief of our armed forces. Obama and his supporters may talk about how smart he is and what a quick study he is and what a great organizer he is, but when it comes down to experience, he is less than a neophyte on military matters. Generals like Wesley Clark may endorse him but he is still stuck with a deficient background.  Our military service is an all volunteer force but he chose to serve elsewhere. I might say that if you had a non-military person who had served in the houses of Congress for twenty-five or thirty years on military oversight committees, you might make an argument for that person for the position of Commander-in-Chief. Obama hasn’t even completed one term in the Senate. His bid for Commander-in-Chief is a bridge too far and a potential disaster. I don’t care who his Vice President is or who his Defense Secretary is. The President will be the commander and the last word on all things military. The Democratic Party has irresponsibly nominated an incompetent person for the job. We cannot allow this man to become Commander-in-Chief any more than we could allow him to fly an airliner with our family aboard.

The United States economy is heavily dependent on energy. It is imperative that the US government not stand in the way of our ability to produce affordable energy to run our industries, our infrastructure assets, our commercial and residential real estate assets, and our individual and corporate transportation systems. I noticed on your website that a component of your long term vision is to "Lower energy prices, create hundreds of thousands of new 'green' jobs, provide incentives for clean, renewable energy and fight potential energy price gouging and price fixing by OPEC". I believe that your long term goal to lower energy prices is commendable but I believe that we need some short term relief right now from the escalation of energy prices. The goal of new "green jobs" is a good one also but many of your constituents in the airline industry, the travel industry, the automobile industry, and the trucking industry are quite concerned about the jobs that they have right now. The high price of all types of transportation fuel is causing increasing layoffs and business failures. Many working class folks are unable to even afford getting to work. I'm all for development of alternative, clean, renewable energy sources but that is a long term vision that will not affect our energy problems for some time to come.

What we need from you and the Congress is an energy policy that includes alternatives like solar, wind, nuclear, geothermal, clean coal and coal to liquids, and also increased domestic oil production. I keep hearing from your caucus that we cannot drill our way out of our energy problems. That argument disregards what I have already said about a comprehensive policy. The production of domestic oil through drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf, ANWR, oil shale in Colorado and other western states, and the eastern Gulf of Mexico is our energy bridge to a future of renewable energy and nuclear energy. Without the drilling, our economy will go into a tail spin. You say on your website that you have "...been working in Washington to make certain the economic challenges facing ordinary people aren’t forgotten." This is your opportunity to put your statement into action. The poor and the working class are hit the hardest by high energy prices. Poor folks spend upwards of 50% of their income on energy. A doubling of prices is devastating to their budgets and their ability to survive. You can do something about that right now.

Twenty-five days ago President Bush lifted the executive ban on Outer Continental Shelf, ANWR, and other oil production. Up to this date Congress has done nothing to lift the Congressional ban on such drilling. In fact neither house of Congress will even allow an up or down vote on such drilling due to the obstruction of Speaker Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Reid. I am personally unhappy that the Congress went on vacation for five weeks without taking a vote on this vital issue. A growing number of members of the House of Representatives has called for Speaker Pelosi to reconvene the House for the purpose of allowing a vote on increasing American-made energy. Human misery is not acceptable when we have the resources in the ground to enable a smooth transition to sustainable energy. I urge you to take a courageous stand apart from the obstructionists in your party for the people of Missouri and the people of the United States. Take a step toward the liftng of the ban on drilling by calling on the Speaker to reconvene Congress for a vote on a comprehensive energy plan. This could be the most important vote you ever make for our economy and our national security.