Presidential hopeful has big plans for ’16

Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., made an announcement Monday about his political plans for the 2008 presidential campaign. He said he and his family would make a decision “later this year.”

Gripping words.

Some will tell you Hagel is doing the right thing, focusing his efforts on our current issues instead of a campaign that wouldn’t end for another 21 months.

I disagree. The faster your word gets out, the better. That’s why I am announcing my candidacy for president of the United States in 2016.

I can’t run for president until I’m 35, and 2016 makes perfect sense. Even if I could run in 2012, I would be hard-pressed to beat an incumbent candidate. My best chance is to run in an open race as an outsider, not beholden to any previous administrations.

I’ve been working on my campaign speech for the ’16 campaign season. I appreciate your support:

“I start fresh in 2016, offering a change from the monarchy system of government we’ve brought on ourselves by electing a Bush in 1988, a Clinton in 1992, a Bush in 2000, and a Clinton in 2008. That’s 32 years of two families running our government. We can do better, we will do better.

“I’ll be honest with the American people. We have problems, and they might not all be solved during my presidency. There’s the issue of Iraq. We must create a timetable for getting out before 2018, and I’m willing to work with the 970-member Congress to get us out. Some government critics said doubling the number of House of Representative members would only lead to twice the gridlock, but I am confident it will lead to twice the consensus.

“But military obligations aren’t all we must worry about. American companies have also got to change before we can change our standing in the world economy. I was against the Google/Youtube/Nike/Apple merger in 2012, as I am against it today. American obesity can only get worse when we rely on a shoe that stores music and video and receives e-mail.

“We stand on the threshold of an America our parents could never have imagined. Our two-party system is gone due to internal riffs, and is now replaced by a four-party system. As the Progression Party nominee, I wish to take this country forward in a way the other three parties cannot. No disrespect to the candidates from the Christian Coalition Party, the Academy Party of Hollywood or the America First Party, but progression is the answer.

“I won’t promise a chicken in every pot. That would be strange, because we never had a chicken in our pot in my quaint childhood home in Montana. My brother Justin was allergic to poultry, so chicken wasn’t a choice. It’s not my administration’s policy to force anything into the pots of Americans.

“Over the coming months, I’ll let people know what they can expect in 2016. My agenda is far too broad to introduce at once, but I promise that Vice President Seacrest and I have every intention to make this a better country for all of us.

“Thank you for your vote, and may Oprah bless us all.”

Kevin Wilson is a columnist for Freedom Newspapers of New Mexico. He can be reached at 763-3431, ext. 313, or by e-mail:

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