BOTTOM LINE: If you have knowledge of specific departments, agencies or offices in the U.S. Government that you think need to be eliminated or closed, click into this Website and submit your ideas.

Technical note: To choose more than one option in a list, you will have to hold a function key (on my Mac it is the "command" key) as click offices. I recommend you test it on the first few options so you don't waste your time.

DETAILS: The Trump Administration is soliciting input from citizens about what parts of the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government we want it to close or restructure. Is it just a gimmick? We don't know*, but assume it's legitimate. At the very least, it will provide the President with a survey of public opinion.

Scrolling through the lists may stagger you. With the breadth and depth of the federal (too often national) government it is no mystery why every aspect of our lives is (or is subject to) manipulation by unelected, national bureaucrats. The vastness of the structure is literally beyond the capacity of any one person to comprehend.

What are your targets? The Department of Education (aptly abbreviated "ED")? The National Labor Relations Board?  The JFK Center for the Performing Arts (yes, it's there!)? The EPA? Make your comments!

From your personal experience, do you have personal insight you can share with the White House? Then comment!

Scott Pruitt and Jeff Sessions — Right men for the right jobs

Action: Call our senators' offices and politely let tell his staffers just how important this vote is to you.

Pruitt: One of PEOTUS Trump's unquestionably great nominations is Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to run the EPA. AG Pruitt has been a chronic champion of liberty and thorn in the side of the EPA, suing it for one violation of our rights after another. Word has gotten to to MTC that Sen. Burr has is making noises that make us question his intent.

Sessions: Sen. Jeff Sessions, contrary to the blatant lies being spread by shameless politicians like the chronically-lying Sen. Corey Booker (D., NJ), is a highly principled, rule-of-law conservative who sent a Klasman to his death in Alabama and desecrated schools.

Sen. Richard Burr
Washington DC: (202) 224-3154
Winston-Salem: (336) 631-5125 or (800) 685-8916
Wilmington: (910) 251-1058​ or (888) 848-1833

Sen. Thom Tillis
Washington DC: (202) 224-6342
Raleigh: (919) 856-4630
High Point: (336) 885-0685

Clip the testicals off a power, male horse that competes fiercely with other horses and you have a horse with no drive to compete at all. ​The story on PJ Media, reports that a petition on Change.org, asked "What message does this send to our daughters and granddaughters? Our sons and grandsons?" We suspect the message at Frederick Douglass High used to be "Win!" Now is seems more likely that it is "Have fun but don't offend!"

That is the really issue, isn't it? There can and will always be someone offended by virtually everthing. So if "offensiveness" is the standard, then arbiters are required; someone to rule for the crass masses what is acceptable and what is not. Invariably, only that approved by the Left is correct, and that is soul of the plan of PC: Shut down and silence anything that does not conform to the "top-down, iron-fisted" rule of the Left.

Trumpmania has two absurd sides. One amounts to paranoid fantasy and the other to magical thinking. It is what happens when one ignores objective facts.

The nutters end of the extremist spectrum is illustrated by the group that is pushing transsexuals to change their names and genitals before Trump is sworn in. They seem to believe that the man who said Caitlyn Jenner was welcome to choose which restroom to use in his building (Jenner actually did use the ladies' room with no opposition from Trump Tower employees) will use the unconstitutional Obama Pen to outlaw transsexualism.

On the psychic end of Trumpmania are the descendants of Nostradamus who confidently pronounce "Trump is going to ____ [fill in your own superlatives about the grandiose things you want to see]. Try to suggest to these mouth-frothers that their pet issues are decided by Congress vs. the President, or that they are economically damaging (eg., tariffs), or are 180º from what Trump said in even the recent past. They will respond with rationalizations or the much worse Nationalist-Populist declaration that (for the good of the nation, of course) Trump should roll over Congress like Obama did. That is, we must abandon the constitution to save the constitutional system! (Thank you, G. W. Bush.)

So what is the rational position for those of us who cherish liberty and the through-and-through wisdom of the Declaration of Independence and it's completing document, the U.S. Constitution? Cautious, watchful, optimistic skepticism.

Donald Trump has a mixed history. He raised his children to be seemingly good Americans who love and respect him. He opposed banning abortion at any stage. He earned billions in business. His business declared bankruptcy, defaulting on obligations several times. He's done wonderful things for people. He's vindictively gone after people. He's apparently willing to speak honestly; without a PC filter. His company dragged out payments to many subcontractors and never paid others. He's made some good nominations and appointments to his Executive Branch.

Donald Trump may be a great President. He might be an OK president. He might be disastrous. We don't know because his history is a mixed bag; he's been all over the political map. Filling that place of anxious uncertainty with cult of personality worship is, at best, naive and erodes one's credibility as an open-eyed rationalist. At worst, it is dangerous, trading skepticism for blind allegiance and the rationalizing away of evil. We must hold to our principles and judge the man by what he does, not by what you want him to be.

—Matt Horsley

Telling us what Trump "is going to" do is like telling us how good the brownie in the vending machine will be because of the superlatives on its wrapper. We hope it's so good that that it shames what Auntie Reagan used to make; we'll be thrilled if it is half that good; and we'll be satisfied if it, at the very least, isn't terrible.

​However, unless your name is Stan Nostradamus, prophetic claims are little more than wishful ("magical") thinking. It is possibile the vindictive Trump will sit in the oval office and vengefully wield the power of the office like a club. He may try to expand the extra-executive power that the corrupt and feckless Congress (both parties) allowed Obama to initiate, and act as The Boss wherever and whenever he chooses (separation of powers be damed). The Framers warned us this would happen. George Washington was towering exception to the nature of Man.

The point? We must now all be Missourians and resolutely tell President Trump, "Show me." We must stay vigilant. We must actively hold Hudson, Burr, Tillis AND our state politicians accountable for holding the President accountable and confined within the limits of his constitutional authority.

​In the movie “The Empire Strikes Back,” Jedi Master Yoda instructs young Luke Skywalker to raise his X-wing fighter jet from the swamp. Skywalker says, “All right, I’ll give it a try.” Yoda instructs, “No! Try not! Do or do not. There is no ‘try.’” We conservatives should follow Yoda’s advice.
 
In 2016, we have an historic opportunity to elect constitutional conservatives at all levels of government, from the White House to the State House to the Court House. We also have the opportunity to drive the debate on issues we care about. We cannot “try” to do these things. We must do them. We cannot falter or fail. Our freedoms and liberties depend it.
 
This year, MTC will hear from many candidates asking you for support. We will evaluate them wisely and carefully. We will also hear from many conservative grassroots groups like Americans for Prosperity and FreedomWorks asking us to partner with them. We will also evaluate them wisely and carefully. We recommend you do the same.
 
However, once we all are done examining the candidates and groups, we need to put our efforts into action in order to achieve success. Our efforts do not begin and end with just voting. Our votes will not be enough. Our action steps must include, among other things, the following:

• Making phone calls to targeted voters
• Knocking on doors of targeted voters
• Mailing letters or post cards to targeted voters
• Greeting voters at the polls with candidate lists
• Putting together and placing yard signs
• Talking to your friends, neighbors, coworkers, relatives, and others about conservative candidates and groups
• Writing letters to the editor on behalf of candidates or drawing attention to conservative issues
• Using email and social media to spread information about candidates and grassroots groups
• Making sure conservative-minded people are registered to vote
• Helping registered conservative voters obtain absentee ballots
• Making sure conservative voters have rides to the polls on Election Day
• Making financial contributions to candidates and/or grassroots groups

 
These are but a few of the things all of us – and each of us – must do in 2016. We cannot “try” to do them; we must DO them. Granted, everyone is not equipped to do each of these tasks. We extroverts are great at making calls and knocking on doors. For the introverts, maybe you can take the lead on doing mailers or posting on social media. Those who are retired or who stay at home during the day can give out literature at the polls and give voters rides to the polls on Election Day until those of us who work can leave the jobsite and assist. People like me with strong backs and weak minds can set out yard signs, while the great writers can flood local newspapers with letters to the editor. And all of us can chip in financially, whether it’s four pennies or four figures.
 
If all you’re planning on doing this year is voting, we thank you. However, we need more from you. Your children, your grandchildren, and the future of this country need more from you. James 1:22 admonishes us to be “doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” This applies to the conservative movement, especially this year. We cannot merely watch Fox News, listen to Rush, read the Drudge Report, hear the great speakers we have at the MTC monthly meetings, and deceive ourselves that we’re “doing something” about this country. We cannot merely try to win this year. Yoda is right. We can either do or do not. There is no “try.” We must DO. Join us. Now.

Neil Oakley
​Programs Chair