By Rod Jetton, on Fri Dec 30, 2011 at 8:30 AM ET (Click Here to read Part 1 of Rod Jetton’s 4 part series: “Losing a Good Friend”; Click Here to read Part 2: “Trane McCloud: Putting Duty First”; and Click Here to Read Part 3: “Living, Dying and Remembering”)
 Pray for Maggie and pray for her family as well as all the families who have lost loved ones to this war. Only the Lord can provide them with the comfort, peace and strength to keep going each day. Watching Maggie at the funeral and seeing her strength through a very hard time makes me feel the Lord is already at work comforting her.
Arlington is a moving place. Every American should visit that cemetery. If you ever go to Washingtonand only have time to visit a few things, make sure Arlington is on your list. Yes, the White House and Capitol are important and interesting, but they are not the reason America is strong and free.
 There are thousands of little white stones with some of the most important names from all over the country written on them. Those people and their actions are why America is such a great country. Many of those people died so we could be free. I very seldom go to Washingtonwithout stopping at Arlington to look over the graves and see the Marine Corps monument. I always stop at the Vietnam Memorial too, but Arlington is a special place across the river up on a quiet, peaceful hill that seems miles away from the Capitol and politics.
Trane’s memorial service was held at his home church in Alexandria, VA, which is just south of Arlington. The Marine Corps makes you plan out your will and service before you leave for any deployment. After looking at the program, I could tell Trane had it all planned.
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Rod Jetton: Remembering a Hero, Part 4: A Final Farewell to a Real Hero
By Rod Jetton, on Wed Dec 28, 2011 at 8:30 AM ET (Click Here to read Part 1 of Rod Jetton’s 4 part series: “Losing a Good Friend”; and Click Here to read Part 2: “Trane McCloud: Putting Duty First”)
So far, I have told you a little bit about Trane’s military career and tried to give you an idea of the kind of person he was.
I know we all say nice things about those who have passed on, but with Trane it’s all been true. The worst I can say about him is he was headstrong, but he was always headstrong at the right time for the right reasons.
This is a guy who prayed before every meal, never lost his cool, always had good advice, and never had to be the center of attention. He is the kind of person who makes the very best kind of friend. As I talked to others at his funeral that had served with him, they all felt just like me, that he was their best friend.
 As good of a Marine as Trane was, he was an even better husband and father. He loved kids. Cassie and I used to take our kids over and let Trane and Maggie watch them when we were at Camp Lejune. The both loved kids and we were always happy to have someone take them for a few hours and give us a break back then.
He and Maggie had three children; Hayden, Grace, and Meghan. Every minute he was not doing something for the Corps, Trane was with his family. He applied the same work ethic to his family as he did to the Marines. I only wish I had the wisdom to find the balance between career and family like Trane did.
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Rod Jetton: Remembering a Hero, Part 3 – Living, Dying, Remembering
By Rod Jetton, on Mon Dec 26, 2011 at 8:30 AM ET (Click Here to read Part 1 of Rod Jetton’s 4 part series: “Losing a Good Friend”)
I remember an old Colonel giving a speech to all the young officer recruits back in boot camp. He told us about the Marine Corps and what being a Marine was all about. This talk always stuck in my mind because he said, “There is an easy way and a hard way. Marines always take the hard way. Marines don’t take shortcuts; we work harder, fight harder and think smarter.”
This was new to me and seemed wrong. High school and college was about finding a better and easier way to do everything. Our teachers and society pushed taking the path of least resistance. I didn’t know exactly what he meant at first. The colonel gave examples using past wars where U.S. Marines made tough decisions, and won battles that changed American history. He pointed out that many times their decisions made it harder on those Marines. Sometimes, they even lost more lives when faced with a tough choice, but they always accomplished the mission and followed their orders.
I can’t remember the name of the Colonel who gave us that talk, but it might as well have been Trane. He never took shortcuts. He always knew what the Marine Corps rules and regulations were, and he always kept us on track. He was calm and cool in all situations and nothing ever seemed to ruffle his feathers.
In time, I came to understand better what the Colonel was saying, but I have always been a rebel. The Marine Corps is hard on rebels. They want team players that will work hard, follow orders, be smart and do their duty. That’s why the Corps was so good for me. I learned to depend on other people. I learned that, no matter how good I was, if I worked with others I could accomplish much bigger things. By myself, I was helpless on the battlefield.
 By the time I met Trane he already knew these things, and he is a big reason I learned some of these lessons. Now, I don’t want to paint a picture of Trane as some robot that just said, “Yes, sir.” He was far from that. His last name is McCloud, which is Scots-Irish, and he was VERY stubborn. If you were doing things right he never said much, but if he thought you were not doing it the best way he would calmly give you his thoughts.
The thing we loved about Trane was he didn’t care if you were a fellow lieutenant or the commanding general, he wasn’t afraid to speak up and correct you.
We had this captain who wasn’t a very good commander. This drove me crazy, because, back then, I always had a better idea of how to do things and I liked being in charge. This guy made following orders very difficult for all of us.
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Rod Jetton: Remembering a Hero, Part 2 – Trane McCloud, Putting Duty First
By Rod Jetton, on Thu Dec 22, 2011 at 8:30 AM ET Watching our military personnel return from Iraq was very heartwarming. I appreciate so much all they did to end a military dictatorship of Saddam Hussein and free the people of Iraq, but having them home and out of harm’s way is a relief.
Five years ago this month I lost my best friend from my Marine Corps days. We were in the same company as young lieutenants and we traveled the world together. He helped me raise my kids, and I watched him find a wife and start his own family.
Sadly, five years ago I was in Arlington Cemetery in one of the saddest days of my life. I was there as a good man who gave his life for our country was laid to rest. I did my best to comfort his wife and children but there is really no way to explain the loss we all felt that day.
 As the war has dragged on most of us Americans have enjoyed our lives and faced very few hardships. We clap when they announce appreciation for our servicemen and women on a plane or at a sporting event, and we are sad when we hear about a bomb killing some of our troops. But really there are many days when my trivial problems crowd out any time to think about the troops who are taking risks and enduring hardships, while I enjoy my friends and family safe at home.
I have a small cameo bracelet I made out of 5-50 cord that I have worn since December 2006. Each time I see it I think of Trane and his family. This year when I went to Hawaii I toured the U.S.S. Missouri and looked at the 5-inch gun turret that Trane served in. I thought of him and Maggie that day, but there is not a day goes by that I don’t think of Trane and wonder why someone as good as him had to leave us so soon. I don’t understand his loss or the loss of so many other heroes, but I do appreciate their sacrifice and pray for their families.
This Christmas I thought you might enjoy learning about a man you unfortunately will never get to meet. As you read about his life and sacrifice, please take a moment to remember all the families who have lost a loved one in these wars and say a special prayer of safety for those still in Afghanistan fighting to keep the terrorists at bay.
This is a copy of a four part story I wrote after Trane’s death in December 2006.
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Rod Jetton: Remembering A Hero, Part 1 — Losing a Good Friend
By David Snyder, on Fri Dec 16, 2011 at 8:30 AM ET  I am not involved in the political arena – never have been, never will be. That doesn’t mean I don’t follow what is going on, take an interest in the issues and exercise my constitutional right to vote each year. Of course I do all of those. So from one outsider’s position, I can offer these thoughts about how I view the state of our political system.
It seems to me that most of our country resides near the political middle – some leaning left, some leaning right, but basically the majority of our country is not so fanatical to realize the real value of compromise and the need for proper discourse of the issues to reach workable resolutions. So why is it that the extremes control our political culture? Clearly the loudest voice seems to get the attention these days and it is those extremes who have raised their voices. Because of this loud voice, it feels to me like the extremes are a much bigger contingent than is truly the case. But I honestly believe the middle has the power, but perhaps simply does not know how to use it. To put it mildly and bluntly, something is really screwed up.
Do you think our country’s forefathers thought that our Representatives and Senators would constantly be concerned with re-election, and therefore always pandering to the loudest voices who appeared to be the ones with power to keep them in office. I don’t. I believe they had much loftier goals in mind. Clearly the Senate was to have more power, given the 6 year terms, but the House was to be the voice of the people. So what went wrong?
 Look at the Constitutional Convention – some of the most respected and opinionated individuals our country has known were in attendance, and it was quite clear there was no love lost between many of these men. Further, there was a huge difference of opinion over most, if not all of the issues; yet what resulted was a well debated, true compromise that created a governmental system that has shined as an example to many a nation over the past 225 years (not lost on this author is the fact that clearly these men did drop the ball and showed the lack of vision on the issues of slavery and gender equality).
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David Snyder: On the Outside Looking In
By RP Staff, on Wed Dec 7, 2011 at 12:30 PM ET  As we remember today those who lost their lives at Pearl Harbor 60 years ago — as well as all of those who perished battling the greatest force of evil in world history — we have a special recognition at The RP.
Jerry Wurmser, a loyal member of the RP Nation, an occasional contributor to this web site, and a personal hero of the RP, was awarded the Legion of Honor by the French government for his brave service during World War II.
Reports theLexington Herald-Leader:
Jerome “Jerry” Wurmser risked his life flying fighter planes over France in World War II, helping drive out German forces that had occupied the country for four years.
In November, France thanked Wurmser by awarding him the Legion of Honor, a medal that recognizes people who have served the French nation in various ways. The decoration was established by Napoleon Bonaparte about 1801.
“I feel very honored, but there are thousands of other people out there who are a heck of a lot more deserving than me,” Wurmser said with the modesty typical of WWII veterans.
Wurmser, 88, of Lexington, flew 66 combat missions in a P-47 as a member of the Army Air Force’s 324th Fighter Group in 1944-45. The unit’s primary assignment was strafing and bombing German airfields, truck convoys, supply trains and essentially anything else that might support the Nazi war machine. Other times they supported U.S. troops on the ground, dropping bombs right ahead of them.
Click here to read the full story of Jerry’s heroism and his deserving honor.
By Zac Byer, on Tue Nov 8, 2011 at 12:30 PM ET Prediction: Herman Cain will make it through this week, and those coming, without losing ground in the polls because of his past inappropriate advances. And he won’t even have to give out free slices of pizza to remain near the top of the Republic field. Now, please realize that I make this prediction without condoning Cain’s behavior. If he did it, it was wrong. Seriously, who are these guys’ mothers? Power corrupts, I guess.
But back to my thoughts on Cain’s polling position. Here are the reasons why I think the Hurri-Cain will weather this storm.
1) The Right’s Undying Mistrust of the Left: I don’t think a Republican would trust a Democrat to make a peanut-butter and jelly sandwich these days. What, you put the jelly on first? Preposterous! All kidding aside, as bad as the Cain campaign has been at responding to these sexual harassment stories, the crew has been GOP-good at blaming it on the mainstream media (read: Politico, Washington Post, and the rest of the liberal elite). If Cain can continue to frame this issue as a left-wing media attack on a rising, serious Republican challenger to President Obama, expect the money to keep pouring in to the Cain coffers. Plus, Gloria Allred got involved. As good as Allred is at getting women a soapbox, she is just as bad at preserving her “clients’” credibility. Again, Allred’s participation makes for the perfect fundraising e-mail and speech line.
2) We are Still in Primary Season: If this was 4 months before the general election, I wouldn’t be making this prediction (note: I don’t think Cain will win the Republican nomination anyway. But, I don’t think these harassment issues will be dispositive. . .Cain’s candidacy is plagued by other problems that I’ll try to address in a later column.). But, as we haven’t had our first primary yet, Cain can rest easier. Yesterday’s announcement about sexual harassment from 1997 – 14 years ago – is highly unlikely to push any Cain supporters away. I think it is just as unlikely that these reports are the straw that breaks the Independent voter’s back (that is, the Independent voter voting in a Republican primary). They’ll vote for someone other than Cain for a different reason, not because of this. With Democrats still sitting on the sidelines waiting for November 2012, Cain’s poll numbers won’t suffer at their hands. If these stories had to come out at all, this is a good time.
3) Cain’s Malfeasance Pales in Comparison to Some of his Republican Counterparts’ Bugaboos: Conservatives still don’t trust Mitt Romney. The GOP wants health care to be a keystone of its general election attack on President Obama. Obamacare will still be relevant if Romney wins the nomination, but the attacks won’t be as biting because of Mitt’s Massachusetts’ Plan. Plus, nobody knows what he’s going to do about abortion. That scares a lot of Republicans. Rick Perry is as unpredictable a candidate since Howard Dean…and things didn’t turn out too well for him. Newt Gingrich cannot deny his moral missteps. In a lesser-evils look at the GOP front-runners’ personal problems, Cain slips by.
4) Cain is a Black Republican: His fellow candidates won’t hit him on these harassment stories. Fox News and other Conservative media outposts want to be the cool kids embracing the new cool thing, so they will lay off, too. And Republican voters are looking for a demographic answer to not only President Obama, but also to the race and national origin gaps between the two parties. Marco Rubio is that answer, but Cain is the fill-in for this election cycle.
5) Cain has Nothing to Lose: Think about it. Cain is running for President of the United States. His poll numbers show him right up there in the top-tier of GOP candidates seeking their party’s nomination (note: We all know that national poll numbers aren’t the gospel during primary season. Still, Cain’s numbers are good signs for him.). He is in his mid-60s and likely won’t be running for national office again. He is still trying to sell his book. And each extra week he spends on the campaign trail, he may be able to raise his speaking fee by a few thousand dollars. Wouldn’t you fight through this week, too?
By Artur Davis, on Tue Oct 4, 2011 at 8:30 AM ET  Last weekend, a horde of dignitaries and operatives gathered in Little Rock to mark the twentieth anniversary of Bill Clinton’s entry into the 1992 presidential race. The affair, which in substance and tone easily could have been dubbed “the Making of the Last Successful President”, will contribute to the wave of Clinton nostalgia that is alive in the Democratic Party. And well it should: the Clinton saga is one of triumph on multiple levels, from a victory that broke the Republican hold on the electoral college map, to a presidency that recharged the economy, balanced the budget, faced down Serbian genocide, and ended with a 65% approval rating.
All of this is still sensitive, touchy territory in some Democratic circles. The left of the party has not forgiven the deregulation of Wall Street or the retreat on health-care reform that happened on Clinton’s watch; Rachel Maddow’s jibe that Clinton was “the last great Republican president” resonated with the ideological rivals in his own party that Clinton thrashed but left embittered. And then there is the Barack Obama/Bill Clinton interpersonal dynamic, a dance laced with ambiguity, the mutual wariness of two self-made men with a strong sense of their own gifts. Sometimes, the tension spills into plain view. Clintonistas recall the pointed barbs—candidate Obama’s unfavorable comparisons of the “transformative” powers of the Reagan and Clinton presidencies—and the more subtle intimations. If you saw the glare in Obama’s eyes when Clinton stole the show at their White House press avail last December, you know what I mean.
 How this story ends is indeterminate, and even when the political book is closed, historians will still pick over the bones. But it is undeniable that Obama’s presidency is at its lowest ebb, stymied in Congress and stuck around 40 percent in the polls. It is worthwhile, therefore, to reflect on exactly how Clinton wore down a Republican opposition that was as fierce and contemptuous as anything Obama has faced, and how he regained the center of the debate both substantively and politically—two events that have heretofore eluded his Democratic successor.
I have a theory that the most discernible distinction in the Clinton and Obama mode of leadership is rooted in their respective paths to the presidency. Clinton rose to power in Arkansas, a conservative state trending toward Republicans, and his survival depended on convincing a trove of Reagan and Nixon voters that he was neither the spend-thrift nor the permissive cultural elitist that they generally believed national Democrats to be. Obama climbed the ranks in Illinois, a state with a progressive tradition moving inexorably toward Democrats, and his ascension required him, principally, to win over liberal leaning primary voters. Clinton, on one hand, lost a statewide race to Republicans, and came uncomfortably close to losing another in his last campaign in Arkansas. Obama, in turn, lost one intra-party primary that nearly wrecked his career but was not even grazed in winning a laugher over a hapless Republican in 2004.
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Artur Davis: What Bill Clinton Left Behind
By Michael Steele, on Wed Sep 14, 2011 at 8:30 AM ET
 Ten years later, President Obama has carried on President Bush’s mission to keep our homeland safe.
Sept. 11, 2001, 8:46 a.m. You remember where you were. You remember what you felt. American life would never be the same again — how we boarded a plane, how we viewed our neighbors. The images of hijacked planes slamming into skyscrapers, streets covered in ash, a scorched field in Pennsylvania, people running — but not knowing where to — are etched in our memories. Our friends, neighbors and family members — 2,977 of them — are gone. And within hours of realizing that a new enemy had emerged, defiant, we, too, became resolved: Never again.
Ten years later we are wiser, smarter and safer; our homeland security is strengthened. The American people have adapted to the new normal, and life, as they say, goes on. But we have paid a price. From the streets of Baghdad to the caves of Afghanistan, America’s blood and treasure have been spilled. To date, 6,234 men and women in uniform have made the ultimate sacrifice to preserve the very freedoms and liberties that have defined this nation.
The decade since 9/11, however, could have been very different if not for the leadership of Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
Often the answer to the question, “What happens next?” can be a heavy burden for leadership to bear. Every decision matters and carries with it consequences. So in those hours and days immediately following the attack, decisions were made that would define very clearly for America what happened next.
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A President’s Grasp of the Post-9/11 World
By Jason Atkinson, on Tue Aug 2, 2011 at 12:00 PM ET
courage |ˈkərij; ˈkə-rij|
noun
the ability to do something that frightens one : she called on all her courage to face the ordeal.
• strength in the face of pain or grief : she fought her illness with great courage.
Weclome back Gabby. Your timing last night was perfect and put it all in perspective. America missed you.
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Pray for Maggie and pray for her family as well as all the families who have lost loved ones to this war. Only the Lord can provide them with the comfort, peace and strength to keep going each day. Watching Maggie at the funeral and seeing her strength through a very hard time makes me feel the Lord is already at work comforting her.
There are thousands of little white stones with some of the most important names from all over the country written on them. Those people and their actions are why America is such a great country. Many of those people died so we could be free. I very seldom go to Washingtonwithout stopping at Arlington to look over the graves and see the Marine Corps monument. I always stop at the Vietnam Memorial too, but Arlington is a special place across the river up on a quiet, peaceful hill that seems miles away from the Capitol and politics.
