The Democrat convention just ended with president Obama's acceptance speech. It was an amazing speech. What was amazing was watching to folks in the convention hall get swept away with emotion as Obama spoke. The cameras showed the crowd repeatedly and they were rapt. Strangely, I see that very rapture as a sign of the vapid nature of today's Democrats. Obama spoke for more than a half hour. He told America that the road forward with him would be hard but we could take it together. He told us how he is hopeful. He told us about supposed Republican positions that he apparently made up; for the most part, Obama's description of the GOP proposals had no truth to it. He told us annecdotes about folks across America who gave him hope. But here's the key: in all of the oratory, no matter how well delivered, there was no plan. There was no information how Obama would move forward during the next four years. We heard his goals at least in part, but we never were told even the slightest detail about how he would lead America to those goals. In my mind, it was an extremely well delivered total failure as a speech. We have seen Obama in action for close to four years now. Day after day, month after month and year after year the condition of America has not improved. If anything, things have gotten worse. Millions have lost their jobs; millions have given up hope of ever getting another job; millions have lost their life savings and all Obama has offered is oratory. The problem, however, is that speeches are not jobs, speeches do not support home values, and speeches do not provide economic growth.
The real truth is that Obama demonstrated again tonight that he truly does not understand what to do to help the economy. Obama seems to think that if he says there will be growth, then magically there will be growth. But it takes more than speeches even if they are well delivered.
In 2008, Obama gave many speeches like the one tonight. Back then he was full of criticism of the Bush administration and he spoke in general terms about where the country needed to go. Those who listened believed then that Obama knew how to reach the goals of which he spoke. After all, he was untested, without a record and without even a competent opponent. But it is now 2012, not 2008. Obama does have a record which can be reviewed. Obama has never been able even to explain how he would get to the goals of which he speaks so ofter. Obama has an opponent who is the epitome of competence, Mitt Romney, a man who clearly knows how to get difficult things done. Even so, Obama is still delivering (albeit in a very great style) the same tired rhetoric. That's just it; it is nothing but rhetoric.
Hopefully, those who watched the speech saw it for what it really was: empty words. America does have a choice this year. On one side, we have a competent leader, a man who knows what needs to be done, a man who has a record of achievement throughout his life, a man who understands the economy and how to get it moving. On the other side, we have Mr. Cool, a man who can give a speech about nothing and make it sound great, a man who has failed miserably for four years to achieve economic growth, a man who has ignored the desires of the American people in order to push through unpopular laws like Obamacare, a man who has no clue what to do now to make things better in America. That is the true choice, not the phony comparisons that Obama laid out. The decision is an easy one. Anyone who is paying attention and understands reality can only choose Romney.
For what it is worth, Joe Biden also spoke at the convention. As I listened to his "speech", I found myself wondering if Biden actually had a speech writer or if he was just making the stuff up as he went along. I have to admit that I missed the first few minutes of Biden's speech, although I suspect that he probably repeated it later during the 45 minutes that he spoke. For much of the speech he reminded me of the psychotic news anchor in the movie Network who had a breakdown and began yelling "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore!" That was it. Biden was the angry old coot who just kept getting more and more shrill. It made me thankful that Obama seems healthy. It also made the contrast between Paul Ryan and Joe Biden all the stronger. A few weeks ago, there were rumors that Biden might get dumped from the ticket by Obama. After watching tonight, everyone has to agree that Obama made a mistake by keeping Joe.
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