It has been a tough week for President, perhaps one of the most difficult of his Presidency apart from 9—11 and the Iraq War. However, like a true conservative and red blooded American its time to cowboy up, dust off, and get back to business. Liberals often mope around feeling sorry for themselves, but conservatives take responsibility and make things happen.

Winston Churchill said, "The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." Conservatives have a history of optimism and foreword thinking. No one embodied this more than Ronald Reagan and it is time to follow in his footsteps by making the best of a difficult situation. President Bush is now faced with the opportunity to refocus his administration, take stock of what he has accomplished thus far, and pursue what he hopes to still accomplish in the remaining 3 years of his presidency.

Second terms are always filled with tremendous difficulty for Presidents.

Presidents Wilson, Truman, Eisenhower, Reagan, and Clinton all had far more difficult second terms in comparison to their first four years. Sometimes the difficulty is the result of increased scrutiny by the press and the public, other times it is a result of laziness, apathy, pride, carelessness and a lack of focus. The President and all conservatives should keep in mind that throughout the whole Plame affair, the indictment of Mr. Libby was not the original reason for the investigation. There is no evidence right now that Rove, Libby, or anyone else deliberately outed Valerie Wilson to get back at Joe Wilson. The special prosecutor made that quite clear in his press conference last week. That in itself if a victory for the administration.

When President Bush's second term started, he was intent on reforming social security, winning the peace in Iraq, and tackling the deficit. There is no reason why these objectives cannot be pursued vigorously. Social security is not a sexy topic, but it is an important one. It is a wasteful and inefficient program that is in dire need of reform. It is irresponsible for the Democrats to claim that nothing should be done now because the problem can be fixed later. There is no time like the present, and with the economy showing strong signs the time to act is now.

The deficit needs to be eliminated this year. Ronald Reagan stated that deficits do not result because the people have not been taxed enough, rather they are the product of too much spending on the part of the legislature.

President Bush should be prepared to use his veto if waste and pork is not dramatically cut from the budget and if the deficit as a whole is not slashed substantially. Republicans in Congress seem to have forgotten what fiscal conservatism means and the President would do well to lead on this issue. It is a winner with the electorate and simply the right thing to do in comformity with our principles.

The Iraq War and the War on Terror are intricately linked despite that Democrats would love to be able to draw a line between the two. We are fighting Al Qaeda in Iraq as well as in Afghanistan. We are fighting a movement, a totalitarian ideology that has many members and many names. Although it is not a cohesive unit, it is a cohesive mentality, that of Islamic fascism. The terrorists all seek a Caliphate from the Middle East to Central Asia and even Europe. Casualties on the battlefield are always a tragedy but always a reality of war. In the days shortly after 9—11 the President warned that this would be a long drawn out war that would not be without cost. He was right, and we must continue to fight the war vigorously to keep the enemy on their heels. Abandoning our responsibilities or objectives now would only bolster the spirit of the enemy. This occurred after the withdrawal from Somalia, and that now serves as a rallying cry for Al Qaeda and Islamic terrorists everywhere.

The President's administration must also be vigilant in our defenses against the threat from China and Iran as well. Our preoccupation in the Middle East should not be perceived as an opportunity for advantage in Asia or elsewhere. Investing in new defense technology and shoring up our intelligence and counter—intelligence assets is vital.

Conservatives must stand with the President now. Despite his shortcomings, President Bush has achieved much in his Presidency and this is no time to abandon him as he faces further antagonism from the Democrats. If conservatives hope to see a conservative Supreme Court Justice be confirmed, they must stand with President Bush shoulder to shoulder.

Time to cowboy up, there's 3 years to go.

Jonathan D. Strong, Esq. publishes The Strong Conservative.