According to the Center for Religious Freedom of the Hudson Institute and their published report entitled ‘Saudi Arabia’s Curriculum of Intolerance’ (download or read), it has become quite clear that extreme Islamist ideologies have been gaining adherents throughout the world. Where they are implemented as governing ideologies, we see a brutally enforced hierarchy of group rights, favoring Muslims over non-Muslims, men over women, and a dominate Muslim sect over other Muslims, with individual rights and freedoms subordinated for all. (See YouTube video “Shariamerica: Islam, Obama and the Establishment Clause”) Such extreme rule lies at the heart of the Islamist terrorists’ radical agenda and it is equally clear that much of this extremist religious thought is originating from and being spread by the Saudi Arabia’s Islamist sect known as Wahhabism....Read

     One of the five greatest Senators in U.S. history, the State of New Hampshire placed his statue in the U.S. Capitol's Statuary Hall.

     His career spanned almost four decades, serving as Secretary of State for Presidents William Harrison, John Tyler and Millard Fillmore.
His name was Daniel Webster, born JANUARY 18, 1782.
From a New Hampshire farm, he attended Dartmouth College and became the highest paid attorney of his day.
He fought the slave trade and negotiated the Webster-Ashburton Treaty, which set the nation's Northeast boundary....Read

     An ongoing argument over modern political and social issues centers on whether the U.S. Constitution is relevant in today’s world. With all the advancements in technology, communication, transportation, commerce, and in the medical field, some argue that the Founding Fathers could not have foreseen what would be necessary for the United States to remain a healthy society 224 years in the future.

     Such arguments are generally connected to an agenda for social entitlement and the redistribution of wealth. The original intent of the U.S. Constitution stands in the way of advancing their agenda.

     In spite of arguments over our Constitution’s modern relevance, the Founding Fathers did consider our constitutional republic form of government in an advancing world of diverse breakthroughs. For example, Benjamin Franklin articulated how quickly the world could change based on inventions and personally proved it with the success of his own creative experiments...Read

     The response to my evaluation of the candidates on our TV show and in a previous Bulletin was far more than I was expecting. After having received many requests for an update, this is it.

    Of course, these are my personal perspectives, and we “see in part, and know in part,” so I do not claim to have the complete picture. The following is what I see at this time concerning the 2012 Presidential candidates, and then I will address the campaign itself. 

    Michele Bachmann

     This could be the best year of our lives. It will also likely be the most challenging. It’s not either/or, but both. Many ultimate issues will be determined this year. They can be determined in a way that gets us back on the path of greater peace, stability, and prosperity. They could also be determined in a way that leads to the worst economic and political meltdown in history. Even if this is the case, if we’re prepared to resist the tyranny that always seeks to gain entrance in such times, this could be a reset, a kind of jubilee that enables us to return to the foundations of our greatness and strength.

     One thing is for sure: We may die of a lot of things, but boredom will not be one of them! The Mayans saw 2012 as the end of the world. In a way they may be right—it could be the end of the world as we know it. Key civilization markers are pointing to this year being one of the great demarcation points in history....Read

     As you know, if we can change a person’s mind, we will change their actions. One of the most powerful tools a Christian has is the power to pull down strongholds or change beliefs and thereby change actions of people.

     I have found that the interpretation of Romans 13 repeated at the OAK Initiative and in many Christian circles is not helpful to the cause in America currently. In fact, it doesn’t differ much at all from the interpretations used in Germany under Hitler. Hitler considered the following his favorite verse.

     'Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God' (Romans 13:1).

     He was able to use this belief to influence and eventually control the church. I have also found this belief to be a hindrance when endeavoring to mobilize church leaders against ungodly immoral or unconstitutional acts or laws of the government...Read

     What I am about to tell you is something you've probably never heard or will ever read in history books. I believe that I am an eyewitness to history.

     I cannot tell you that Hitler took Austria by tanks and guns; it would distort history. We elected him by a landslide—98 percent of the vote. I've never read that in any American publications. Everyone thinks that Hitler just rolled in with his tanks and took Austria by force. In 1938, Austria was in a deep depression. Nearly one-third of our workforce was unemployed. We had 25 percent inflation and 25 percent bank loan interest rates..

     Farmers and business people were declaring bankruptcy daily. Young people were going from house to house begging for food—not that they didn't want to work—there simply weren't any jobs. My mother was a Christian and believed in helping people in need. Every day we cooked a big kettle of soup and baked bread to feed those poor, hungry people, about thirty daily. The Communist Party and the National Socialist Party were fighting each other. Blocks and blocks of cities like Vienna, Linz, and Graz were destroyed....Read

     The end of America as we know it is near. This can be a good thing or a bad thing. We are at the place where we will return to the remarkable and wise foundations on which the nation was built, or we will cease to be a Republic at all. Which it will be will likely be determined in 2012.

     This is not to say that this will happen next year, but the choices we make over the next year will determine how we end up, and then we will get there very fast. Remember the saying, “If you do not change your direction, you will end up where you are headed”? We are now headed toward an ultimate collapse and meltdown of America as we know it. If this happens, we will not just morph into some European style socialism. As we can see, that is failing too. The alternative is the worst kind of totalitarian tyranny.

     The 2012 elections will no doubt be the most important of our lifetime and maybe our history. Even so, all of the choices that will determine our future are not just about the elections. Our government is in crisis, and if radical change does not come next year, we will not survive as a Republic much longer.   ...Read

     It was a historic brain freeze. It was so dramatic that it eclipsed the sexual harassment allegations being made against Herman Cain and child sex abuse charges that have rocked Penn State University.

      There never may have been a brain freeze in history more extraordinary or embarrassing than Gov. Rick Perry's at the November 9 Republican Presidential Debate when he could not remember the third department of the Federal Government he would eliminate as President. It is very likely that this clip will be played over and over for as long as we have Presidential campaigns. It is already being assumed that it cost Perry any hope of capturing the Republican nomination. Has it?    ...Read

     Both the American and the French Revolutions had a significant effect on the history of mankind but in very divergent ways. The American Revolution was the first time in history that men created a government based on the principles that God was sovereign over man and man was sovereign over government. The Declaration of Independence placed before mankind a language so simple that any could comprehend that all mankind was equal in the sight of God and therefore had a right to expect equal treatment from their government. It explained that rights were given by God and not by government, and certain rights were inalienable, including those foundational rights of life, liberty, and property.

     The French Revolution was based upon the cry of liberty, equality, and fraternity! Equality in this case meant something very different than in the American context. It did not mean equal in the sight of God or the equal distribution of legal justice    ...Read

     I received a good number of emails with questions about Herman Cain’s recent statement, or misstatement, on abortion. In an interview he claimed to be prolife, but then took the basic pro-choice position that it is the right of the person and the family who is involved to decide whether to have an abortion, not the government. This implies that there should be no laws made by the government restricting the taking of human life. This is a very wrong position on a most crucial issue, but it did not come as a big surprise to me. Why?

     I’m not surprised because I had such a superficial and misguided understanding of abortion myself for a long time. Even after I had been a pastor for more than a decade, I still held the same position and did not see the contradiction in it. I’m not justifying this, but using this to illuminate something that could be the key to turning the whole tide to the prolife cause    ...Read

     The debate in Las Vegas Wednesday night obviously caused significant alarm among Republicans. The bickering and fighting among most of the candidates hit a new, and very discouraging low. As David Gergen said afterwards, President Obama was the biggest winner of that debate. There was no doubt much rejoicing in the White House as they watched this one.

     Though this debate may not have been fatal to any one candidate, it was no doubt a major setback to all of them, and to the Republican Party. As a conservative, and a Republican, I was deeply grieved by this debate, and I do not doubt that we will be seeing video clips of this debate from the Democratic Party and Obama campaign in ads through the election. Even so, there is hope!...    ...Read

     In just over a month from now, on November 10, 2011, many of our neighbors will remember a painful day from their past – to them it is known as 'Kristallnacht' or 'Crystal Night'. As Edmond Burke stated, “Those who do not know history are destined to repeat it.” What took place on November 9-10, 1938 brings the story of Crystal Night into our present and it is now our responsibility to remember. The horrors it released across Europe carried Western Civilization into some of its most uncivilized times. This must never be forgotten so that it may never be repeated.

     On "Crystal Night," or "The Night of the Broken Glass," Jewish homes, shops and synagogues were ransacked across Germany, and many were burned, as storm troopers and civilians attacked Jewish property with sledgehammers, rocks and anything with which they could cause damage. Ninety-one Jews were killed and 30,000 Jewish men were taken to concentration camps, beginning the atrocity that would eventually lead to the murder of six million Jews - one of the darkest times in human history...    ...Read

     The most frequently asked question that I receive is for my opinion of the Republican Presidential candidates. There is much evidence that people are more engaged in the process this time and have a resolve to know the candidates. Many believe that President Obama did not get vetted by the media or even his challengers, and there is good evidence the citizens of the U.S. will not allow that to happen again. This engagement is cause for hope.

     The following is a brief personal perspective of the present candidates. This is personal, and may or may not be the view of the other leaders or members of The Oak Initiative. I hope you find them useful, and I will give them in alphabetical order.

Michele Bachmann

     I first met Michele Bachmann at a lunch that Gen. Boykin and I had with about twenty conservative congressional leaders in early 2009. At the time, I had never seen or heard of her, but after the lunch I told Gen. Boykin that she and Mary Fallin (now Governor of Oklahoma) had more leadership than...    ...Read

     It was Rosh Hashanah, the Feast of Trumpets, and the day I first heard North Carolina Democratic Governor Bev Perdue suggest that constitutional elections should be suspended. The reason being floated for suspending the elections was so that politicians could concentrate on the seriousness of the national problems rather than putting effort into being reelected. Even to suggest such an idea is chilling and ought to be sobering. While it is not unexpected considering the people who are currently in power, it is none the less disturbing.

     “I think we ought to suspend, perhaps, elections for Congress for two years and just tell them we won’t hold it against them, whatever decisions they make, to just let them help this country recover, I really hope that someone can agree with me on that.” Governor Bev Perdue. (article)

     This is nothing to joke about. In the first few months of the present administration many conversations were already being held about the next election and the presidential election of 2012. I recall hearing one prophetic voice,    ...Read

     Already, many candidates and major media are moving into full swing for next year’s elections. We must first understand what must be done before we can identify who can best help do it. Perhaps as important as any time since our founding, those who believe in divine providence and eternal principles must become well-informed and actively involved in the political process. Christians, pastors, and all church leaders must totally reject the lie that “separation of church and state” means people of faith must remain silent, uninformed, and uninvolved. Those who recognize truth and stand for it can turn the tide.

     Our nation’s founders knew that the limits of the Constitution were placed on the government, not the people or religion. The right to stand up and support first principles is both a privilege and a responsibility. True freedom grants citizens the right to choose and we have a responsibility to choose right. The Bible declares, “Righteousness exalts the nation”1 The psalmist affirms, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.”2 “When the righteous increase, the people rejoice.”

     The only solid ground on which individual lives, families, communities, and nations can safely build is the foundation consistent with unshakable biblical truth. When the weight of God’s kingdom impacts planet earth...     ...Read