This is Amanda Read’s weekly brief review of current events.
OHATCHEE, Al. February 18, 2013 — Readers, It’s Presidents Day (actually designated “Washington’s Birthday” by federal law), which takes place in the birth month of four American presidents (George Washington, William Henry Harrison, Abraham Lincoln, and Ronald Reagan).
Last week, President Lincoln and British naturalist Charles Darwin would have turned 204 on the same day (February 12th). As of late, I’ve seen more Americans obsessing over Darwin. Some Democrats in Congress wanted to officially designate February 12th, 2013 as Darwin Day to recognize “the importance of science in the betterment of humanity.” Well, perhaps that’s the case as long as science has a moral check and balance, if they had the nerve to specify (read more here).
Thirsty? Saturday Night Live had fun with Senator Marco Rubio’s long reach for and swig from a little water bottle during his Republican response to the State of the Union address. Rubio was a good sport about the awkward moment, tweeting a photograph of the bottle and telling the Twitterverse afterward, “Picked up over 13,000 followers on #twitter since last night! Im going to start drinking #water in the middle of all my speeches!” A water bottle is part of Rubio campaign gear.
In the midst of the silliness you might have lost the substance Rubio’s Republican address and Senator Rand Paul’s Tea Party address (and probably missed Dr. Ben Carson’s independent response on Fox & Friends). That’s what happens when it makes for easier headlines to say a senator’s political career could be ended by an animated gif image moment than to discuss our overcomplicated federal government.
Speaking of headlines…Trite as it may sound, be sure you remember to read past headlines before drawing conclusions. Conservatives were flustered with former Florida Governor Jeb Bush after seeing the February 15th Breitbart News headline that said, “Jeb Bush: I Would Govern Like Lyndon Johnson as President“. But as columnist Tony Lee explained, this had nothing to do with Johnson’s big government, “Great Society” policies and everything to do with his governing style, particularly in relation to the Senate.
Bush admires the personal engagement that Johnson - who had experience as a Senate Majority Leader and Vice President before becoming president - used to accomplish things in Washington.
Until next time…
Amanda Read is a political columnist for the Communities at The Washington Times. A professional writer and researcher, Amanda is also a Christian homeschool graduate, unconventional college student, military daughter, and eldest of the nine Read children at Fair Hills Farm. Find more of her work at www.amandaread.com.
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