Earlier today, Alison Lundergan Grimes, the Democrat candidate for Senator in Kentucky, released an open letter to the 40% of Republicans in the Commonwealth who voted against Senator Mitch McConnell in this week’s primary election.  In it, she expressed the following items as places where she has common views with those of us who aren’t in her party but are sick and tired of the status quo:

I, too, believe Washington, D.C. is not working for Kentucky.

I, too, believe that the federal government should help or get out of the way.

I, too, want Republicans and Democrats to work together to cut spending and to help Kentucky businesses create jobs.

I, too, believe we should close the tax loopholes that encourage big corporations to ship our good-paying Kentucky jobs overseas.

I, too, believe that we should balance the budget, protect our veterans, and work to leave the next generation a better country than the one given to us.

She asked us to keep an open mind, learn about her positions, and then make our own decision as to whether or not to support her election bid.

So, in the interests of finding common ground, here are the things I need Mrs. Grimes to do in order to get behind her campaign:

1. Publicly repudiate President Obama’s efforts to circumvent the Constitution by governing through executive fiat and changing what the law means and requires without Congressional action.
2. Fully support repeal of the Affordable Care Act.  I’m willing to discuss replacement of the act once it’s gone, but first it must go.
3. A commitment to fully and impartially investigate the misuse of our countries intelligence organs to indiscriminately and unconstitutionally gather data on the communications and lives of law-abiding citizens without a warrant.
4. A public affirmation that the Constitution is the highest law of the land, that it is a limiting document on the government and not the people, and that she will block any legislation that seeks to abridge the rights guaranteed by the Constitution.
   • This should come with a commitment to block the nomination of any person who does not demonstrably support this position.
5. A commitment to work to balance the budget by cutting the fat out of entitlements and government waste, not by raising taxes on those of us who bother to roll out of bed in the morning, put on our game face, and work to keep the wheels on.
6. A commitment to only seek reelection once.

If I can get these things from Mrs. Grimes, we’ll discuss whether or not I’ll consider voting for her.  Until then, all I can do is wish her luck and ask her to look elsewhere for support.