Keyes ponders country's future

Republican politico addresses status of political process

By: Hunter Courtney

Posted: 2/13/08

Republican presidential candidate and conservative commentator Alan Keyes spoke Tuesday at the Texas A&M College Republicans meeting.

"I feel sorry for you young folks," he said. "Where this country is headed is a place that leaves me wondering, by the time you're my age, I wonder whether you will still be living in a free country, or whether you're still living in a republic right now."

Apart from the forthright and candid countenance for which he is known, he hosted a talk show on MSNBC, which was canceled in 2002, and worked in the Reagan Administration as assistant secretary of state for international organization affairs. He served as an Ambassador to the United Nations, and is running as a presidential candidate for the 2008 election.

Keyes spoke about the state of liberty in America. He said that nothing like the United States had existed before in the history of humanity. He contrasted governments of dictators scoffing at the common man - where, he said, some people counted for everything and others for nothing.

The difference, Keyes said, lays in the Declaration of Independence, where it explicitly states certain inalienable rights endowed to us by our Creator and none other.

"This fact uplifts every human to a status of dignity," Keyes said. "If the richest man in the world runs you down in the street, the government will bring him to court and hold a just trial with a just sentence, ensuring he pays for his crime against you."

This divine right, Keyes said, is the defining characteristic of America's peculiarity and the source of its liberty.

"He stated the hard facts," said John Farmer, a sophomore philosophy major. "Our democracy is under assult.

"As college students, we represent a crucial voting block and must become more involved in the political process."

"The fact that Keyes is running for president despite insurmountable odds is noble," said sophomore political science major Payton Kane. "He's showing a strong commitment toward restoring America."