President Obama named 18 corporate executives to his export council, a panel established in March to help advise his administration on how to double U.S. exports, now totaling $1,046 trillion, by 2015. Though economists find it unlikely that such a rapid increase will be achieved, emphasis on expanding exporting industries is well intentioned and will contribute significantly to U.S. economic recovery.

Opinionated MAMA (O-MAMA) encourages ALL moms, regardless of race, religion, region, political affiliation or sexual orientation, to participate in politics through discussions and forums posted on their website. They believe that as educators of their children, mothers raise the next generation of leaders and thinkers in this nation- a very important role that has been largely unacknowledged, particularly in Washington.

Proposed here is a relatively simple plan that conservative and moderate Republicans, main stream Democrats as well as Independents could all rally around.  It is a plan that would  tackle the health care crisis in America in a responsible and affordable manner.  This plan gives coverage to all citizens, reduces overall national medical expenditures from current levels, and keeps our free market health care system intact.  

President Obama has expressed an overwhelming desire to pass healthcare reform before the August congressional recess, but this artificial deadline limits the ability of the American people to fully give their input on the legislation.  If the plan is as good as they profess, then Members should be able to lay it out for constituents while they are in their districts in August and gain widespread support.  While the public can certainly contact their representative’s offices to comment, there is no comparison to having a series of town hall meetings around the country that give

I had the opportunity to ask Minnesota Party Chair Tony Sutton a few questions about the role of moderates and progressives in the party along with his opinion on how to broaden the party's base. 

RLC-MN: Do you feel there is room for moderates & progressives in  the Republican Party of Minnesota?

I find myself often torn between wanting to work within the Party apparatus or to rebel as an outside critic of it. As tempting and self-righteous as working as an outsider may be, to truly create positive change, one must get involved in their local party structure.
As a moderate, I know the challenges involved in many local GOP precincts. Many of these precincts are run and dominated by hard core right-wing activists bent on advocating for a very narrow and exclusive party doctrine. It's not unusual to be shouted down or ignored for having dissenting views as well.

By Aren Cambre:

Extreme social stances are a losing strategy for two reasons.

1: They are paradoxically liberal. If we fully legislated my state platform's social stances, we would make the government the moral compass, usurping the proper role of the church and individual wisdom.

2: They turn away mainstream conservatives and moderates. This is proven by two polls:

This past weekend the Minnesota GOP elected Tony Sutton the new chair of the Party. Michael Brodkorb was elected Deputy as well. Sutton previoulsy served as Secretary/Treasurer. Brodkorb, more famously know as heading up the blog minnesotademocratsexposed.com served as Communications Director for the Senate Republican Caucus.

By Aren Cambre:

Texas’s 2010 gubernatorial primary is a key battle for the Republican Party's future.

My name is Pat Lobejko and I am the state captain of the Republican Leadership Council for the Great State of Minnesota. I live in Hastings and am currently in Afghanistan serving in the United States Navy. I'm excited to be part of this organization to promote Republican core principles of fiscal responsibility and personal freedoms.

As Americans and Republicans, we share in the loss of a great patriot in Jack Kemp.  A beloved father, congressman, cabinet secretary, and vice presidential nominee, Kemp was one of the original champions of the idea that lower taxes fuel the economy, bring higher tax revenues.  As those who have benefited from his tireless pursuit to give families more control over their own lives, we should all be grateful for his contribution to the national dialogue. We at the RLC honor his legacy and offer our most heartfelt condolences to his family at this time.

Today was a day for those who felt left behind by their parties to speak out.  The government is getting out of hand with $11,000,000,000,000 of spending.  There is no way to pay this off.  We have set ourselves up for the greatist grab of power by the government in history.  We thought the Republicans spent a lot under Bush and the Republican Congress (WE DID).  But they look like amatures compared to this crowd.  The Republicans are making some good points now, but why didn't they do it when the held the deck??? 

While Richard Viguerie keeps blaming John McCain's failed White House bid on the senator's alleged disrespect for "The Base," the political intelligentsia are heaping more scorn on the Republican Party and people like Viguerie in particular.

This is the kind of objective thinking a moderate like me appreciates.

Senators Byron Dorgan (D-North Dakota)  and Carl Levin (D-Michigan) deserve some credit for being smart enough to go to the GAO and ask a sensible question when they commissioned a <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/bondsNews/idUSN1249465620080812">recent study</a> on why more than two thirds of foreign corporations and about half of the domestic companies doing business in the US get away with not paying corporate taxes in any given year.

In my years living in DC and watching American politics I've had plenty of chances to observe political opportunism, legislative neglect and pure partisan idiocy at their worst.  Yet I'm not sure that I've seen anything to match the pure spite and arrogant irresponsibility of the current crop of Democrats in Congress.

The supply siders had it right with the lower of taxes.  With the lower rates on income, dividends, and earnings, the economy grew faster.  With that, dividends, income etc grew.  The rich invested less in tax shelters and taxes grew.

Former Senator and McCain campaign advisor Phil Gramm has obviously spent too much time out of office and in the private sector, because this week he committed the ultimate political crime. He told the truth. In an interview with the Washington Times he is being quoted as having said:

<a href="http://electionlawblog.org/archives/011095.html">The Election Law Blog</a> has a helpful summary of today's Supreme Court decision against limits on campaign financing.  The Court ruled that just because a candidate is wealthy does not justify increasing the fundraising limits on his opponent. This follows previous court rulings that frown on limiting the fund raising of candidates.

In an effort to maximize his fundraising potential Barrack Obama has  announced  that he will finance his campaign entirely with private contributions. While his campaign presented this as a populist move based on his large number of small contributions from individual donors, it was no coincidence that he made the statement while sitting at a roundtable with leaders of Democratic PACs and the president of the AFL-CIO.