After comfortable wins in Virginia and New Jersey, Republican voters once again are energized and ready to work hard so that Republican candidates gain traction nationwide, setting the stage for the 2010 midterms. 2009 was just the beginning.

Conservatives must recognize that what is at stake in elections Tuesday goes beyond the usual results: The outcome will be viewed, rightfully, as a voter referendum on President Obama, the Democrat-led Congress, and their progressive agenda.

The Obama administration's lack of response on a request for more troops in Afghanistan and its inability to decide what to do with Guantanamo Bay show that decisive leadership is woefully absent in Washington these days.

So much already has been said and written concerning President Obama’s startling receipt of a Nobel Peace Prize. But with so many commentators and pundits, on both the left and right, raising questions . . . well, it’s gotten me thinking.

As our healthcare system is debated, I want to remind all of us of a vulnerable segment of our population: the thousands of children in need of adoption by loving families who are instead consigned to a struggling foster-care system.