Today, the typical American family is struggling with a poor economy, weak job prospects and high gas prices.

As Americans face a variety of problems around the globe: financial crisis in Europe, mounting debt here at home, tensions in Asia between China and its neighbors over remote islands, threats of war between North and South Korea, violence in Kashmir a troubled region between India and Pakistan, and Islamic violence throughout Africa, and uncontrolled violence in central America, we have to ask ourselves, What is our role in all of this? 

For years we have heard conservative members of Congress say that the federal government has a spending problem.  Now liberals in Congress are saying we have a revenue problem.  Two different takes on the economic mess our country is in and two different positions that will be difficult to resolve.  As a result America continues to sink further into debt and calls continue for additional higher taxes.

After all that talk about falling off the fiscal cliff, you just knew that members of congress would do the right thing, and work out a compromise on the federal budget that would curtail any additional new spending, close generous tax loopholes, reign in entitlements, and take a dramatic whack out of current spending.  Isn’t that what congressional leadership is all about, particularly at times of major financial crisis?

According to Louisiana Treasurer, John Kennedy the state was caught  a little “flat-footed” and  “without a plan” when Congress reduced the amount Louisiana would receive from the federal government for Medicaid.

With the end of the election season many people were hopeful that the politicking would cease, and the process of governing would begin. 

Post-election 2012 Sunday talk show morning featured the fiscal cliff and another type of cliff-David Petraeus jumping off his own official one resigning from government, the CIA after disclosing an affair the country will remember.

The French have an expression: “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.” The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Subtract the results of the Second Congressional District, and it is possible that the votes for Libertarian and no party candidates in all of the other U.S. House contests will exceed those cast for Democrats across the rest of Louisiana, belying the notion that state Democrats are anywhere near a sustained and successful rebuilding effort.

The final qualifying statistics registered Republicans having one or more candidates in all six districts, in five of which they are favored overwhelmingly, Libertarians contesting all but the First, and Democrats competing in just three, and in the Second their Rep. Cedric Richmond is the heavy reelection favorite. Besides those dismal statistics for the state’s former majority party, some others compound recognition of its plight.

By the numbers, the most competitive district for the party outside of the Second was supposed to be the Fourth. Instead, Republican Rep. John Fleming gets the closest thing running to a free ride in the state this cycle with only a Libertarian opposing him. Perhaps the next most vulnerable for the GOP was the Fifth, but Republican Rep. Rodney Alexander almost got off as easily, also facing a Libertarian and a no party contestant who has run for office before and has been treated by voters as a crank.