That should be the headline in newspapers around the world this morning. A couple of weeks ago I took off my Vice Presidential hat to act as political commentator and pundit to critique Barack Obama's V.P. choice of Joe Biden. I called it a terrible choice, a bland choice, and strategically, a failure. As a matter of fact, strategically, BOTH parties blew it. If Obama picks Hillary (and her 18 million primary votes) he has a good chance of sitting in the White House. But Joe who? From Dela-where? The guy known for plagiarizing his speeches? After watching last night's Sarah Pallin performance, I can only say, now, that Obama's best shot at victory is if Biden plagiarizes Pallin's speech!

Now, don't get me wrong. McCain and the GOP also made a strategic mistake. Winning the Presidency is all about electoral votes. If McCain picks Mitt Romney, he probably guarantees himself the White House. Nevada (my home state) might be the crucial battleground state in 2008. If the Republicans don't hold it- they lose. PERIOD. Nevada is 25% Mormon (believe it or not). Nevada loves Mitt Romney. He won the GOP Primary here. McCain came in third (behind Ron Paul). 'Nuff said. But even more importantly, from a strategic standpoint, Romney gives McCain a great shot to win Michigan, too (his home state- his dad was Governor). Michigan is the ultimate prize with 17 electoral votes. Take Michigan from Obama's column- that's a 34 electoral vote turnaround. Obama cannot recover from that knockout punch. Bar the door, Katie; game, set, and match for McCain. And, as a bonus, McCain said the economy isn't his strong suit. It is certainly Mitt's (the $300 million dollar man). Weakness solved. But alas, it wasn't to be.

Enter, Sarah Pallin, stage right. Romney no longer matters. He, too, is road kill. Handsome, dashing, smart, but suddenly outed as boring. Huckabee was considered glib, colorful and funny- until last night. Compared to the hockey mom/pit bull Pallin, even he too is road kill. Guliani was considered a vicious New York pit bull, until last night. But, no one can play pit bull better than a beautiful, sweet, Hockey Mom. A pit bull, with lipstick and high heels. Good luck to Joe Biden. He'll need it.

A pit bull Hockey Mom just left most of America's most gifted male politicians (and orators) dead in the middle of the road. She sliced and diced Obama, last night, like a wood chipper. Obama's political career is lying in pieces, in a ravine somewhere in Alaska- with snowmobile tracks leading from the carnage.

Pallin's line about a “community organizer” being about the same as a small town Mayor...”except the mayor has responsibilities” was a hockey puck to Obama's groin. Then, she finished Barack off, by referring to his fake Greek columns being carted back to Hollywood. Ouch! I could hear every guy in Middle America screaming in laughter. With one line she emasculated Barack's entire fake career. Then, the hunter shot him once more for good measure with the line about Obama saying nice things to small town America to their faces...then badmouthing them when he's back in San Francisco. Did the body move on that last shot? Or was he already finished off? Hard to tell.

You've got to admire a hunter who can shoot that accurately in high heels. I could see every hunter, fisherman, gun owner, steel worker, and every working mom and housewife who has ever felt unrepresented or demeaned in Washington D.C., high-fiving and screaming in joy. Sarah Pallin was the star of “9 to 5” last night. The small town secretary gutted her male boss and took over the CEO job…with a smile and a wink.

She not only sliced, diced and embarrassed her political opposition, she defeated the entire media elite and the “Beltway Insiders.” She left them all gasping for air, on their knees, pleading for mercy from the professional huntress. Pallin's speech was a verbal fusillade to the imaginary heart of every elite liberal snob in America.

“The great community organizer” is on life support this morning wondering if anyone got the license plate of that Hockey Mom. About the only thing she left out was a little something with which I would have ended my speech:

“And to you, the elite media and press... Please keep writing lies, slanders, and half truth´s, about me and my beautiful children -- because, let me tell you something about small town people: we don´t live in just Wasalia, Alaska, or Mizzoula, Montana, or Sheep´s Creek, West Virginia…or Lyons, Nebraska. We also live in Detroit and Cleveland and Pittsburgh and Chicago, AND here´s some news for you....we even live in New York City... and every time you sit in your ivory towers and write your vicious, elite, smug lies, you send another thousand voters to me and John McCain. Keep writing; I beg you- keep writing.”

Yes, I think “Mrs. Smith is headed to Washington.” In real life. Sarah Pallin is playing Reece Witherspoon in “LEGALLY BLONDE” - except Sarah's brunette and she's got a hunting rifle. You remember how that ends don't you?

As Don King would say “Only in America.” But, isn't that what makes America great? Sarah Pallin isn't perfect. As a matter of fact, her personal life may be a mess. But who cares? She's charming and refreshing and, as we say back in New York, she has chutzpah! You gotta love her. That was a performance for the ages- with the gossip and rumor mills going at hyper speed, and the vicious D.C. press corp. literally on her heels, she walked onto that stage with ice water in her veins, pulled the trigger and hit the bulls eye. Dead Center! It can't happen in France. It can't happen in China. It can't happen in India (think caste system). It can't happen anywhere else. Only in America can a small-town gal and hockey mom with 5 kids get a chance to slice, dice and humiliate the most powerful men in the political world- and beat them at their own game.

Wasilla, Alaska 10
Washington D.C. and Chicago, Illinois 0
Game on.

From one S.O.B. (son of a butcher), small town boy, street-fighter, small businessman, home-school dad and citizen politician…to another- Congratulations Sarah for serving notice to the Hollywood, Manhattan and D.C. pompous, snobby elite class that it's time for real change. I'll see you in Washington D.C.

Somehow, I think, from this moment on, things will never be the same. Real Americans have served notice: we are taking back America. And, to the Obamas and Bidens and old school boys, I say- “be afraid, be very afraid!”

Wayne Root is the Libertarian Vice Presidential nominee on the Libertarian Presidential ticket of Bob Barr/Wayne Root. His web site is: www.ROOTforAmerica.com.

My name is Wayne Root. I am the Vice Presidential nominee on the Libertarian Presidential ticket of Barr/Root (with my running mate, former 4-term Congressman Bob Barr). I am proud to have no prior experience as a politician and no connection of any kind to government. What I am is a common sense, no-nonsense, “Citizen Politician”- the first small businessman and home-school father on a Presidential ticket in modern political history. The only government check I have ever seen is an IRS refund of my own money and a student loan that I paid back in full. That loan, by the way, helped pay my way through Columbia University Class of 1983, the same graduating class as Barack Obama.

Perhaps most importantly, I am the first Nevadan ever on a Presidential ticket. It is my Nevadan roots (excuse the pun) that I'll address in this column. I believe that it is time for the “Nevada model” to be adopted by the entire country- smaller government, lower taxes, free enterprise, rugged individualism, self-reliance, personal responsibility, individual rights, and FREEDOM- both economic freedom and personal freedom. I am proud to be a Nevadan. The biggest difference between Las Vegas and Washington D.C. is that in Las Vegas, the people gamble with their own money- as opposed to Washington D.C. where the politicians gamble with the taxpayers' money.

In direct contrast to the big-government, big-spending, big-tax, Nanny State career politicians of the D.C. Beltway, Nevada has zero state income tax, zero business income tax, zero inheritance tax, and property taxes limited by law to 3% per year increases (with a citizen initiative underway to lower them further).

Even more important, when you have no business income taxes, you also have less rules, regulations and bureaucracy, as well as no Gestapo-like state tax authority. Therefore it is easy to open and grow a small business in Nevada. That could be why Nevada has led the entire nation in small business creation and “Brain Gain” (college graduates moving to Nevada) for most of the last two decades. How important is the creation and success of small business? Small business now produces 75% of new private sector jobs. Small business is the economic engine of America.

I am proud to have spent my career in the 25 years since graduating Columbia University, creating small businesses, risking my own money, creating jobs, paying payrolls and health insurance for my employees, and pumping tens of millions of dollars into the American economy. It is telling to contrast my choices with those of my college classmate Barack Obama- who graduated on the same day 25 years ago. While I chose low-tax, small government Nevada as my home, Barack chose Illinois- one of the highest tax states in America. A place where big government is king, and runs roughshod over the rights of citizens and taxpayers. Barack in his 25 years since graduation has never started a business, never risked his own money on the American Dream, never created a single job, and never paid any employees' health insurance. Our lives and choices present quite a contrast.

Lower taxes leads to economic freedom - the freedom to keep more of your own money and make your own decisions on how to spend (or save) it. I believe that individuals always make better spending decisions than government bureaucrats. Often that decision is to start their own small business- which in turn creates more jobs, more tax revenues, and fuels the economic growth of America. But politicians like Barack Obama and John McCain wouldn't know a thing about starting a small business or creating jobs- it's something they've never experienced.

In addition to economic freedom, the Nevada Model has created a unique, Libertarian form of personal freedom. In an upcoming issue of Reason magazine, Las Vegas is rated the #1 major city in America for personal freedom (out of 35 big cities examined on a range of issues).

What does Nevada's rare combination of economic and personal freedom really mean? It means remarkable success. Americans are voting their approval with their feet (and their assets). For twenty of the past twenty-one years Nevada has been the #1 population growth state in America and the U.S. Census Bureau projects that trend to continue for the next 25 years. (That is provided, of course, that our own entrenched bureaucratic politicians do not destroy the goose that is laying the golden eggs.)

How has Nevada been able to keep its state government under control? Simple. Our Nevada founding fathers, in their infinite wisdom, limited the damage that politicians can do by creating a part time “Citizen Legislature” that meets for only a few months every 2 years, making it difficult (although not impossible) for politicians to damage our economy, complicate our lives, and violate our freedom.

Want proof that politicians do more damage than good? A new mutual fund called the Congressional Effect Fund proves that the more politicians rule, the more damage they do. The fund, run by Eric Singer, examined the effect of politicians on our economy since 1965- it then invests its funds based on this model. The results are astounding. During the past forty-three years the stock market has been up 1.6% when Congress has been in session. When Congress is out of session, the market is up 17.6%- concrete proof that the more politicians do, the worse it is for the people (especially taxpayers, investors, and job creators). Our Founding Father (and my political hero) Thomas Jefferson, the man who wrote the Declaration of Independence, put it best, “The government is best, which governs least.”

Today your choice as a voter is no longer between a “Conservative Republican” or “Liberal Democrat.” I call Republicans and Democrats big and bigger, dumb and dumber. They both have the same goal- acquiring more power for themselves, and more control over your life. The real choice in this 2008 election is the choice between an “Entrenched Bureaucratic Politician” (both parties fit that bill) or a “Citizen Politician” represented by the BARR/ROOT Libertarian Ticket, who truly cares about the economic and personal freedoms of the citizens and taxpayers of the United States of America.

As Vice President, I want to spread the Nevada model of economic and personal freedom from coast to coast. The ONLY way to make a change from Big Brother and bigger government, to more power for the people, is to elect anti-establishment, anti-status quo, “anti-politicians” from outside the Beltway. We need to elect politicians who understand the best government is that which governs least. It is time to elect politicians who will downsize and dismantle government- politicians not afraid of limiting their own power and influence. The day has come to give power and their own money back to the people. It is time for a political Hippocratic Oath: Above all else, DO NO HARM. Perhaps it is time for a small businessman, home-school dad, citizen politician from Nevada to show the country how it's done- the Nevada way.

Wayne Root is the Libertarian Vice Presidential nominee on the Libertarian Presidential ticket of Bob Barr/Wayne Root. His web site is: www.ROOTforAmerica.com.

Ask any American voter. The two biggest issues in this 2008 election are the economic crisis and the energy crisis. Seldom are there easy answers to such complex problems. But, not this time. The answer is simple- more entrepreneurship and less government!

That means deregulation and decontrol. It means lower taxes and more incentives for private investment. UNLEASH THE FREE MARKET. Government doesn't solve problems- government causes them. American entrepreneurs will solve our energy problem- if only government will get out of the way. And those same entrepreneurs and that same free market capitalism will put America on the road to solving our economic problems as well.

This energy crisis and the economic crisis go hand in hand (and to some extent, the terrorist crisis as well). America's oil purchases abroad account for almost half the U.S. trade deficit. Every dollar we spend on foreign oil is a dollar that could be better spent growing the U.S. economy. How do we find the money to buy all that oil? We borrow it from those same countries, many of whom hate us. What do they do with OUR money? They use it to fund terrorism!

So, how do we stop this vicious cycle? Simple- we get government out of the way. Please, do not get me wrong. There is one area in which I am in consensus with the environmentalists and the Democrats. There is no question that the only long term solution for America's energy independence is to wean ourselves off of fossil fuel (oil) and replace it with clean and renewable energy. The fact is, that process has been underway for years and I am in total agreement that it must be accelerated.

But, the reality is that it may take another 20-30 years to be accomplished. In the meantime, the answer is drill, drill, and drill some more. President Bush took a first step today by lifting the “Executive Ban” on offshore oil drilling. But that is only a small and symbolic start. Congress must throw out the government moratorium on energy exploration and production. Take the shackles off the oil and energy industries. Reduce the draconian bureaucracy that has not allowed the creation of a new oil refinery or nuclear power plant in over 30 years. Get government out of the way and let American ingenuity and entrepreneurship do what it has always done to make America the leading economic power in the world. Stop listening to liberal environmental extremists who want to drive America (by horse and buggy) back to the dark ages. They couldn't care less about the average working American. These radical environmentalists want to keep us all poor and beholden to them for handouts- that is how they buy your vote and keep themselves in power. It is time in my opinion to put the interests of Americans and the American economy FIRST.

Consider the Ethanol mess as “Exhibit A” for why government must get out of the way. Government bureaucrats and politicians always play “big shot” and try to pick winners versus losers. Why? To prove how important they are- to justify their big titles, big salaries and big egos. And, of course, to help a handful of friends and big industry insiders who just happen to contribute to their campaigns. But, what can you expect? They´re just about all lawyers (as well as career politicians), and when it comes to business it´s all lawyers know how to do- screw things it up! It is no coincidence when lawyers become politicians they act exactly the same way. But now, they get to do it with YOUR MONEY!

Take ethanol as an example. Government tried to solve the energy crisis by picking ethanol as the winner. Big mistake. Ethanol has not only done nothing to solve our energy crisis, it has caused a worldwide economic crisis. The corn crops now dedicated to ethanol production have produced a worldwide shortage of corn needed for food (as well as cattle/chicken feed). That has in turn spiked grocery prices, caused shortages at the grocery store, and incited riots across the globe. Yet gas prices continue to rise, because it actually takes more than a gallon of gas to create a gallon of ethanol. And, it turns out that ethanol causes more pollution than gas as well. The result is an energy and economic crisis caused by government.

Despite all this, the Presidential candidates from both major parties are still asleep at the wheel. They both talk change. But, the only “change” they bring to the table is more of the same tired big-government answers. Obama (the man with the most extreme liberal voting record out of 100 United States Senators) stands vehemently against drilling. He thinks government has the answer. He supports more of the same extreme environmental policies, heavy taxes, and big government regulation that got us to this crisis in the first place. John McCain is barely any better. He has just recently decided drilling is okay, but still refuses to allow any drilling in ANWR-- which potentially offers 10 billion (or more) barrels of oil to American consumers. Worse, McCain is a big believer in big-government solutions for global warming. His proposed energy policies will surely damage the American economy, cost millions of jobs, and raise our electric and gas bills dramatically. Make NO mistake- the election of either Obama or McCain will be a disaster for the American economy and consumers.

McCain's Republican Senate colleague John Warner proposes a big solution (drum roll please): lowering the national speed limit to 55 MPH. After 30+ years of inaction, the best Warner can come up with is more draconian federal government control over our lives and a violation of states' rights. It is safe to assume that neither Republicans nor Democrats offer a solution.

The answer is the free market, fiscally conservative principles of the Libertarian Party. We believe in putting American consumers and the American economy FIRST. These same common-sense principals that will work to solve the energy crisis, will also solve our Education and Health Care crisis'. It is this simple- Get government out of the way. Deregulate and decontrol free enterprise. Unleash American entrepreneurship and ingenuity. Encourage competition. Lower tax rates- individual, corporate, and capital gains to the lowest in the world. Then get out of the way. The greatest entrepreneurs in the world will lead this great nation to energy independence and the greatest economic boom in world history.
But first let's drill, drill and drill somemore. Build new oil refineries. Build new nuclear plants. Encourage oil shale exploration and gas to liquid production. Build new clean coal plants. Our country has one of the biggest deposits of coal on the planet earth. Find a way to burn coal without emitting hydrocarbons and we become one of the world's biggest energy EXPORTERS. We can beat the oil producing nations of the Middle East at their own game. We create millions of energy jobs. The trade deficit becomes a trade surplus.

The liberal mantra that removing government restrictions on drilling will not affect prices for 5 years is PURE BUNK! The day- yes the very day- that we truly deregulate and untie the hands of the energy entrepreneurs, oil prices around the world begin to drop dramatically. On that same day, the energy speculators and traders that are undoubtedly partially to blame for sky high gas prices, will have no choice but to sell their oil contracts with both fists. Look for this current “oil bubble” to end not just with a whimper- but a crash of epic proportions. And, this is a ¨crash¨ that every working American can cheer. It's time to let Libertarian free market ideas rule. It's time to elect a Libertarian Presidential ticket.

Mr. Root is a successful small businessman, entrepreneur, author, business speaker and commentator. He is currently the Vice Presidential nominee for the Libertarian Party on the Presidential ticket of Barr/Root.

For more on Wayne Root's views and commentaries go to: www.ROOTforAmerica.com or www.BobBarr2008.com