RUSKIN, FLA. – Doug Hughes, the man most of the country knows for his Washington, D.C. gyrocopter stunt protesting the corrupting influence of money in politics, is taking action in a new way: he plans to run for Congress.

His opponent? U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D), who serves as chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee.

In the wake of the 14 terrorism-inspired murders in San Bernardino on December 2, 2015, and other recent terror attacks, some Americans altered their travel plans. They were worried about their personal safety.

When Sir Thomas Malory compiled all of the tales of King Arthur and his knights into the Le Morte d'Arthur, it was an epic tale of the destruction of Camelot, and the downfall of many of the political figures of the day.

Likewise today, we see the Bush dynasty beginning to crumble. What was once seen as an inevitability is now seen as a long-shot, even by party insiders.

The fact that Virginia’s Republican Party wants voters to take a Party loyalty oath as a condition of voting in the publicly-funded and administered presidential primary shouldn’t surprise anyone.

In Utah, the Republican Party recently closed their previously open primary through a legal challenge.

The last 15 years since 9/11 has set into American minds a very narrow view of what terrorism means. A fitting standard definition is:

[T]he use of violent acts to frighten the people in an area as a way of trying to achieve a political goal.  -- Merriam-Webster

This definition both fits our current battles with Islamic extremism, yet it also encompasses most historical acts of terrorism.

On December 16, Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO) blasted out a picture on social media that was both humorous and troubling at the same time. It depicts a frazzled Polis hidden behind a two foot pile of paper on his desk. The 2,342 page document sitting in front of him was the Omnibus Bill.

With the polling decline of Ben Carson, Texas U.S. Senator Ted Cruz has emerged as the presumed conservative choice in the Republican presidential primary.

Christmas time, that wonderful time of year when we can pause and reflect on the first Christmas in America, with the Pilgrims exchanging gifts with the Indians in snowy New England.

After all, the Pilgrims came to America to avoid religious persecution, right?

Unfortunately, this view of American history, as well as the modern belief in a so-called 'War on Christmas,' are totally in err.

Otto von Bismarck famously stated, "politics is the art of the possible," yet in today's climate very little seems to be possible.  With two parties ensconced in demonizing each other and blocking virtually anything the other tries to do, common-sense solutions are hard to come by.