If It's Not Close, They Can't Cheat
Crushing the Democrats in Every Election and Why Your Life Depends on It
By Hugh Hewitt
Nelson Books
HC, 259 pg. US$19.99/C$28.99
ISBN: 0-7852-6319-5
Teaching the choir how to sing
By Steven Martinovich
web posted August 9, 2004
"What you don't about politics in America could get you killed. In fact, it could get me killed. It could get tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands or even, yes, millions of Americans killed." According to nationally syndicated talk show host and constitutional law professor Hugh Hewitt, this November's election carries enormous stakes. The most important issue of the day is national security and whom Americans choose at the polls could make the difference between an effective policy and another major attack on American soil.
Hewitt's entertaining If It's Not Close, They Can't Cheat: Crushing the Democrats in Every Election and Why Your Life Depends on It is meant as a clarion call to Republicans with a simple message: it is absolutely essential to elect as many Republicans as possible. George W. Bush must be reelected and the Congress must stay in the control of the GOP. Anything less is to risk national security and invite future attacks.
Hewitt bases that controversial belief on the notion that the Democratic Party "has lost its collective will and collective ability to take the national security of the United States seriously." He contends that the party has been irresponsible when it comes to issues like the size and use of the military, national missile defence, national security policy and other related issues. "The great majority of Democrats are wrong, not rotten, but their errors on these crucial issues are so huge and their indifference to the threats surrounding the U.S. so pronounced that they cannot be trusted with the defense of the U.S. for years and probably decades to come."
The first few chapters of If It's Not Close, They Can't Cheat hammers away that theme and that the Democrats will do anything to stay in power. In concise chapters Hewitt lays out a history of Democratic Party fraud on Election Day, how party operatives have used corruption to stay in power and why it's necessary for the Republican Party to win big at the polls to avoid the possibility of losing an election through irregularities. With the stakes so high this time around, Republicans must concentrate on only one goal: winning the election convincingly.
From there Hewitt shifts gears from justifying why Americans should vote Republican to strategies for ensuring that as many as possible do exactly that. Hewitt explains the basic makeup of the two major parties and the type of people who make up the ranks. A delicate balance is typically needed to satisfy the various constituencies in a party and also gain the support of undecideds and those in the other party open to switching. Hewitt counsels Republicans to overlook their personal preferences -- such as those dedicated to a single issue like abortion or guns -- and choose candidates most likely to deliver a majority.
The strongest aspect of If It's Not Close, They Can't Cheat is Hewitt's insightful look at the psychology of the parties and its members. Although he explores a wide range of interesting issues, such as the role of money in politics and why you should donate as much as possible, it is his study of people that makes the book so valuable to anyone involved in the political process. Hewitt imparts lessons that typically can take years to learn through activism.
Ultimately this all serves a purpose. As Hewitt writes, "If you don't really believe that the United States is in a war, then this book will make no sense to you, and you are well advised to put it down." Its raison d'être is a massive Republican victory in November and for elections to come. Until the Democratic Party rids itself of its far left and can be trusted with national security once again, not to mention with the lives of Americans, it must be denied office. "There is no rational case for the Democrats because the Democrats are going to get you killed. It is that simple."
It's often said that the choir needs the most preaching to and Hewitt serves as an able minister. If It's Not Close, They Can't Cheat is refreshingly blunt about its objective and why Hewitt believes it necessary to achieve. Although some would quibble with his argument that only one party is to be trusted with the lives of Americans, Hewitt nonetheless has crafted one of the more engaging and insightful books of this political season. It is one that should be of interest to both sides of the political divide, particularly to those who need to be convinced of the importance of every election. 
Steven Martinovich is a freelance writer in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.
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