Newt Gingrich has challenged Herman Cain to a 90 minute "Lincoln/Douglas" Style debate tonight which will be televised on
C-Span--5PM--6:30 PM E.D.T. This debate will be divided into three parts, with each part focusing on one entitlement program--Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security--with no moderator.
This format changes the "debates" from something between the "Wheel of Fortune" and "Jeopardy" game-show "got-cha" debates we have become accustomed to; to a more productive format whereby, we might actually learn some constructive things about our Republican Presidential candidates.
There is one event which predictably has not received much attention in the MSM.
That is an article by Newt's daughter entitled "
Setting the Record Straight". It turns out that all of the stories about Newt's first wife being served with divorce papers on her deathbed were false, on three counts.
One, Jackie Battley Gingrich is very much alive! The tumor was benign.
Two, it was Jackie who sought the divorce.
Three, Newt did not abandon his wife. In fact he took his children to the hospital to visit their mother.
I bring this to your attention so that you might look at Newt with a more open mind than you might have, otherwise. This does not remove all of Newt's skeletons but I think it does remove some of the most egregious ones.
"Progress not perfection" should be the order of the day in order to defeat Obama.
In preparation for this event, I thought it might be useful to go back and read what was actually said at the Lincoln /Douglas Debates. Therefore, I have gone back and read the transcripts of the last two of the Lincoln Douglas Debates on the theory, that there was no point in reading them all since, Mr. Douglas and Mr. Lincoln would have distilled and fine tuned their arguments from information gained during the five previous debates.
The Sixth debate was at Quincy, IL on October 13
th, 1858 and the final Debate at Alton, IL on October 15
th, 1858.
Here is a link to the actual text of the
Debates:
I hope that you will take the time and trouble to read them for yourselves. (See purposeful MSM misinformation above.)
If you do you will see that the bulk of debates revolved around the "Dred Scott Decision" and the issue of "allowing" Slavery in the Territories.
Here is the
link:
I hope that you will read all of the Justices' opinions, particularly Chief Justice Taney's and Judge Curtis' opinions, even though his brother, George Ticknor Curtis, was an attorney for Mr. Scott. It should be noted that this was a 7-2 Decision in favor of the Democrat Mr. Douglas' position and that it
has never been over turned.
There are a few other things to keep in mind.
One: The Northwest Territories, originally an Indian Reserve, originally belonged to Virginia who gave them up on July 17, 1787, under the Articles of Confederation to help settle the Revolutionary War debt. It ceased to exist in 1803 by virtue of Ohio becoming a State.
Two: The Constitution gave Congress the ability to define exactly what a citizen was by virtue of the 1790 Naturalization Act which was discarded and
amended in 1795. The very first sentence remained unchanged from the earlier version:
"United States Congress, "An act to establish an uniform rule of Naturalization; and to repeal the act heretofore passed on that subject" (January 29, 1795).
For carrying into complete effect the power given by the constitution, to establish an uniform rule of naturalization throughout the United States:
SEC.1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, That any alien, being a free white person, may be admitted to become a citizen of the United States, or any of them, on the following conditions, and not otherwise: --"
Three: The "Territories" were by definition of "Union" and the Constitution (Article VI) jointly owned by all of the States.
Four: Stephen Douglas was elected to the Senate from Illinois, which had been a "Slave Territory" thanks to the "Compromise of 1818" came into the Union as a "Free State".
(Note: Slavery was allowed to continue to exist in the salt mines until 1825.)
In light of the 1795 Naturalization Act, two things should become clear both sides must have wanted the conflict. Although, I doubt that anybody envisioned the actual horror of the Civil War.
Two: The Thirteenth & the Nineteenth amendments to the Constitution would have been unnecessary if Congress had inserted a few words to further amend the definition of "
Citizen" to the 1795 Naturalization Act.
Mr. Cain, IF you really want to create some Buzz take the Conservative position of "Popular Sovereignty".
I'll be watching tonight and hope you will also.
Sources:
Jackie Gingrich Cushman's Article:
Dred Scot Decision:
1790-95 Naturalization Act:
