RNC in the "Census" business

CLEVER BUNCH, THOSE operators at the Republican National Committee. They've sent out a notice described as "2010 Congressional District Census" that was handed to me by a friend who was not fooled by its official bearing even though it was dressed up with a Census tracking code of #A10PD302 and looked quite authentic. . Fully profiled by now by the RNC, I didn't get one. Some of the questions were as you might expect from the non-partisan RNC.

Here's No. 7: Do you worry that the Obama Administration is committed to greatly expanding the government's role in your Life? Or No. 11: Do you think that all Americans should be required to have some form of health insurance even if it requires the federal government to underwrite the costs? Or how about this one on national defense: Do you believe the Obama administration is right in dramatically scaling back our nation's military?

There are others suggesting, in a questioning sort of way, whether Obama is a weakling on international policy.

I now own the document and plan to respond with my friend's copy with one answer. It will be for the one asking me whether I am a Conservative Republican, Moderate Republican, etc.etc. etc. I will answer BONOBO. I hope I'm not too late for today's mail.

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Colin Powell gave President Obama passing marks in his talk to a capacity audience (2,955) in E.J. Thomas Auditorium, while suggesting that Obama should have been less ambitious in his major goals the first year. However, Powell, who said he meets with the President regularly, said there was no time to delay the economic ballouts and stimulus plans when Obama arrived in office because the economy was heading into a Depression. The former Secretary of state and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff also again expressed his own resiliency in his support of ending the military's "don't ask, don't change" policy for gays and lesbians, which became law in 1993. "Attitudes change," he said. His appearance was sponsored by the Dorothy Garrett Martin Memorial Delta Gamma Lectureship on Values and Ethics and the Honors College at the University of Akron. It also reflected the rising cost of attracting speakers with star- power: $125,000, a ceiling-crashing six-figure fee that was set by Rudy Giuliani ($100,000) when he spoke to a full house in Thomas Hall shortly after 9/11. Earlier in the week, Newt Gingrich was much less successful in drawing a crowd of fewer than 300 in the same hall. His speech was sponsored by the Northeastern Ohio Health Underwriters Assn., which simply translates into health insurers.

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Have you heard about the latest fringe group? They're called "The Oath Keepers" and their founder, Stewart Rhodes, says the military need not obey the president if he is engaged in unconstitutional (illegal and immoral)acts. Rhodes even put off Bill O"Reilly by his defense of military rebellion in the U.S. Rhodes believes that the use of the military to enforce stability after Katrina was unconstitutional.

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Shouldn't one of John McCain's close friends quietly taken him aside and tell him, "John you've had a hard life. Why don't you take a year off from politics and smell the roses?" That seems so necessary as he continues to invent the history of his presidential campaign, only to be corrected immediately. It's happening quite often these days. Not funny any more.