INGA BARKS: Predicting an unforgettable 2010 in politics
| Friday, Jan 01 2010 12:00 PM
Last Updated Friday, Jan 01 2010 12:00 PM
Images
Inga Barks
In Hollywood versions of the American Revolution, rebellious freedom fighters defeated the British using different rules. While red coats marched in rows, drummers drumming and piccolos playing, the American colonists lay in wait behind a rock, catching their enemy by surprise. But in truth, the colonists didn't depend on nontraditional fighting entirely and had to integrate conventional warfare as well.
So too it has become with American politics, in which the conventional and nontraditional both play a role. Consider California, where since 2000, we've been asked to go to the ballot box some 14 times. Putting aside the unconventional revolution that recalled a governor, can we say that the other 13 times we've gone to the polls we've marched in a row with drummers drumming?
And our politicians have definitely been the old guard. White wigs and powdered faces, one and all! Then came 2009. We voted once again, but we weren't conventional at all. I believe what happened in 2009 is going to set the stage for an unforgettable 2010, and following are a few of the commanders and generals I'd look for behind rocks and trees in the next year.
KEN METTLER: High school board trustee and homebuilder. Mettler's belief that government CAN be good enables him to be a conventional warrior (as State Chairman of the California Republican Assembly and as a high school trustee). But it was his passionate beliefs that recent California tax increases hurt California families, and that traditional marriage needs protection, that have made him the centerpiece and often organizer of rallies and protests. His reputation as a fighter for valley values has been earned, not inherited or manipulated. Ken is just...Ken!
CONGRESSMAN DEVIN NUNES: Devin is a congressman and farmer out of Visalia, but can easily be described as the best congressional warrior the valley has. In his quest for water and jobs in the San Joaquin Valley, he has been conventional in his bipartisan efforts, and he's also been a grenade thrower, fearlessly challenging the governor and president in ways that have caused them to act. While his colleagues throw expensive fundraisers, and send out daily press releases, Congressman Nunes can be found in local restaurants with constituents and friends. Nunes has become that congressman whose name other congressmen like to drop.
TEA PARTY FOLK: If they keep their momentum, Tea Party activists are the reason 2010 will be a fascinating year, and the elections will be a battleground worth being on. Despite the stereotype of wacko right-wing extremists, I have met thousands of them from every political persuasion who believe in one thing: FREEDOM. They are accidental leaders, reluctant but willing warriors, not interested in fame, fortune, political gain or power. They just want government to stop being an obstacle of liberty and start once again being a facilitator of it.
It's my hope that the conventional fighters in both parties are inspired in 2010 to get their fingernails a little dirty. Because I believe Americans are getting really bored with that same old drum beat. Here's to 2010!
-- Inga Barks, who hosts a talk show on AM 1180 KERN, is one of four conservative community columnists whose work appears here every Saturday. These are the opinions of Barks, not necessarily The Californian's. You can e-mail her at ibarks@ bakersfield.com. Next week: Ric Llewellyn.
