A Tribute to Oliver North

Last week Lt. Col. Oliver North spoke at Regent University’s Executive Leadership Series. More than 600 people came to hear him speak about radical Islam and “The Greatest Challenge Facing America.” I had the privilege of hosting and getting to know him.

I remember when North first burst upon the national scene. It was July 1987 when he was called to testify in the Iran Contra hearings. The Democrats on the congressional committee were licking their chops as North was called to testify. They planned to take him down and if they played their cards right—the administration of President Ronald Wilson Reagan.

Most of us over the age of 30 remember watching some of the hearings that summer. North testified in his Marine dress uniform resplendent with row after row of combat–earned medals, short cropped hair—looking every bit the epitome of a clean cut All-American Marine. Making his testimony all the more striking was a two-tiered dais filled with more than 25 representatives and senators, plus staffers, arrayed in a menacing semi-circle about him. They looked like wolves closing in on a kill.

An amazing thing happened during those hearings. Americans watched the proceedings like it was the World Series and were soon cheering for the patriotic, God-fearing, courageous, highly-decorated war hero. An American icon was born.

Since that summer 21 years ago he has run for the U.S. Senate, written 12 books, written a syndicated column, hosted War Stories on Fox, visited the combat zones of Iraq and Afghanistan 14 times since 9-11, and founded the Freedom Alliance, a foundation that provides scholarships to the children of service members killed in action.

Last week I was privileged to observe North up close for one night and nearly a full day. I found him to be noble, generous, caring, kind and compassionate. He made a special effort to greet the family of a Make-a-Wish kid and posed for pictures until they got tired. He took time to pray for our University and our founder during a special 30th anniversary celebration (both of these were unscheduled). He was a true gentleman who treated everyone with respect. He shook every hand offered, signed and personalized nearly 200 books.

Lt. Col. Oliver North became a hero to me in 1987. However, sometimes when you meet your hero in person you’re disappointed.

I was not disappointed. Having spent time with him, he remains a hero to me. Semper Fi, Col. North.

GOP Fired Up!

The race for the White House is on! I know, I know, it’s been going on for the last two years. But now, after the selection of Sarah Palin and a tremendously successful Convention—the GOP is in the game for real.

The nomination of Sarah Palin has completely changed the dynamics of this election. McCain’s selection of her at once energized the conservative base of the Republican Party. Then, at the GOP Convention the rest of the party and the rest of the nation got to meet her. It was love at first sight.

Somehow, somewhere in the waning days of summer, McCain finally got the message that to win the election he had to woo and win over the conservatives. And boy has he ever done it in the past few weeks.

The Republican Convention was the most watched convention on television ever, eclipsing the record set by the Democrats the week before. The Republicans averaged 34.5 million viewers compared to 30.2 million for the Democrats. Surprisingly, John McCain’s acceptance speech drew just as many viewers (42.4 million) as did Barack Obama’s.

Though McCain’s speech was too long (48 minutes) and at times downright boring, in the closing minutes he soared! He challenged us to not just find fault with our country but to make it a better one by working to correct the faults. He offered ways that we could help such as by enlisting in the armed forces, becoming a teacher, entering the ministry, running for public office, feeding a hungry child or defending the rights of the oppressed. He had it right when he said, “…nothing brings greater happiness in life than to serve a cause greater than yourself.”

A New Attitude

I’ve noticed something very encouraging in the past few days - a new attitude developing in conservatives. It’s an “Enough…we’re not going to take it!” attitude. After experiencing the efforts of Democrats, liberal media and political attack dogs doing everything humanly possible to demean, belittle, and diminish Sarah Palin—conservatives are beginning to fight back.

One great example of this was when former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich got very forceful with MSNBC reporter Ron Allen during an interview in which he questioned the resume of Palin.

Gingrich said, "It's stronger than Barack Obama's. I don't know why you guys walk around saying this baloney. She has a stronger resume than Obama. She's been a real mayor, he hasn't. She has been a real governor, he hasn't. She's been in charge of the Alaskan National Guard, he hasn't. She was a whistleblower who defeated an incumbent mayor. He has never once shown that kind of courage. She's a whistleblower who turned in the chairman of her own party and got him fined $12,000. I've never seen Obama do one thing like that. She took on the incumbent governor of her own party and beat him, and then she beat a former Democratic governor in the general election. I don't know of a single thing Obama's done except talk and write." To see the interview, click here: http://newt.org/tabid/193/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/3682/Default.aspx

What Republicans Have Succeeded in Doing

And finally, you have to believe the Democrats are reeling because of what the Republicans have succeeded in doing this week. McCain and Palin have brilliantly gained the high ground on: Reform (Obama calls it change), the women’s vote, the energy issue (drill here, drill now), defense (addressing the real threats that face America and talking about real solutions), family values, tolerance, racial and gender diversity, patriotism, honor and cultural values.

Not a bad week at all for the GOP.