SPRING HAS SPRUNG After weeks of rain in Maryland, the sun has emerged bringing the welcome green of a new season. Now that spring has sprung, what is really happening?

Recent news has been infected with nasty headlines, proving that raw politics can still dominate the internet and front pages of the "good ole" print press: “Cheney Denies Colin Powell” and “John Edwards Denies Elizabeth Edwards”.

In a "Face the Nation" interview, former Vice President Dick Cheney stated, "In terms of being a Republican, I'd go with Rush Limbaugh ... my take was that Colin Powell had already left the party. I didn't know he was still a Republican".

Having known both General Powell and Dick Cheney, here's my blunt reaction: The former V.P. is losing objectivity. Colin Powell and I both served White House Fellowships at the Office of Management & Budget. If he had decided to run for President during that "draft Powell" movement, I would have volunteered to help. Dick Cheney is not helping the Republican party nor authentic bipartisanship by speaking negatively about a fine American who also served as Secretary of State during an extremely difficult period. Rush Limbaugh? Get serious, Dick Cheney!

Another sad imposition is the holier than thou, self-serving presidential candidate John Edwards who put his wife, Elizabeth, through hell as he pursued his ambition. As an aggressive, anti-doctor trial lawyer, Edwards has personified the worst elements of political ambition: greed and deception. He is not alone; but where was his consideration for a loyal wife facing terminal cancer? Her recent interviews have underscored her decent and forgiving character, making her husband appear the worst of scoundrels.

From Headlines to Serious Problems: Social Security and Medicare Pressures

The global trend in government spending as a percentage of gross domestic product keeps going up,up.up. In blunt assessment of "The GDP Question", former Senator and moderate Republican Bob Packwood observes a reality: " Even if tax increases are limited to the so-called ‘rich’, Obama's plan, compounded by state and local taxes, could slow the overall economy." Packwood reaches a rational conclusion of only two options: raise taxes on the middle class, or demand that federal, state and local governments spend less.

A "choice of the horribles"? Yes...but, in grim reality, on the mark. In yesterday's Washington Post, the front page headline was "Alarm Sounded on Social Security. Report Also Warns of Medicare Collapse" .

The report is not an ordinary one. It is a product of the trustees of a Federal agency that monitors these two massive entitlement programs for the elderly. Specifically, the nation's economic downturn has added to the fragility of Medicare and Social Security because worsening employment means that fewer workers are contributing to the two trust funds through payroll taxes. Since the recession began in December 2007, the U.S. has lost 5.7 million jobs."

Is There an Answer? Yes, It is the "Vital Center".

One of Washington's most thoughtful analysts is David Broder. This point is proven in his recent commentary, "Why the Center Still Holds".

In this commentary, Broder gives the cold truth: despite partisan divide on the recent Obama Budget Resolution (NO Senate or House Republican voted for the Resolution; NO Democrat voted for the Republican substitute), voters see reality and a need for solution. Proof of this fact is borne out by the Pew Research Center's May 2009 research report's finding: Since January of 2009, the percentage of voters who think that Democrats and Republicans are bickering more than necessary has increased by 14 points.

The independent voters are going to drive the outcome of the big policy debates. This is a trend of hope, and reflects the value of competition between the two major political parties.  10:20 AM •