Republicans, the British, and the OC

Republican Party of Orange County Chairman Emeritus Tom Fuentes did a masterful job as the emcee for the British American Business Council dinner I attended Friday night in Costa Mesa. Congressman John Campbell, who chairs the US-UK Caucus in the House, was featured prominently and discussed the importance of maintaining the "Special Relationship" the United States and the United Kingdom enjoy.

The featured speaker was Dr. Liam Fox, the British "Shadow" Minister of Defence. In the British parliamentary system, the minority party names a "would-be" minister for each department, thus preparing that person for ascension to full Minister status if and when the minority party wins the next election. Dr. Fox is a Conservative.

Dr. Fox gave an incredibly clear and compelling assessment of the current global security situation, touching on Iraq, Afghanistan, and the global war on terror. Dr. Fox explained quite well that liberal claims that our presence in Iraq and Afghanistan are the causes of anti-Western terror are false, noting that the terrorists are not against us so much for what we do, but who we are -- our values, our traditions, our form of government, our culture, etc.

Congratulations to OC Republican leader Jo Ellen Allen, who did such a masterful job promoting the event among OC Republicans that the event could easily have been confused for a Republican committee meeting, with so many GOP leaders, including CRP Treasurer Keith Carlson, in attendance.