Strapped to a polygraph on national TV, I would assert quite confidently that I would strongly condemn thuggish and criminal tactics by a candidate I supported. The ends do not justify the means for me and most other conservatives I know. I wish I believed the same were true for liberals, far too many of whom are deliberately turning their backs on the corruption defining Obama's campaign.

It would be bad enough if the Stalinesque stench engulfing the messiah's campaign were limited merely to its efforts to elect him. But what we fear is that these campaign tactics are of a piece with his policy agenda and his vision for America.

Sincerely intending no melodrama here, it's hard not to conclude that Obama aims to change America in fundamental ways, the common denominator of which would be to diminish individual liberties, the most distinguishing feature of the unique American system. Sadly, most Obama supporters have no clue what Obama is ultimately about or how his innocuous-sounding ideas could permanently destroy our freedoms.

It's inconceivable that even a low-level Republican candidate could have Obama's associations and employ his campaign tactics without being driven from the race. And yet we've got a man running for the highest office in the land surrounded with anti-American allies and covert election burglars, all protected by an unprecedented mainstream-media cover-up.

Democrats tell us they place the highest possible value on the integrity of the election process, yet their uniform response to ACORN's systematic assault on the voter registration process is unmitigated indifference and denial.

They also cavalierly dismiss Obama's undeniable connection to ACORN, as detailed by Mark Levin at "The Corner" blog on National Review Online. Obama worked for and represented ACORN and has given $800,000 to it from his campaign. Remember how Democrats were ready to hang Republican politicians who might have gone to lunch with lobbyist pariah Jack Abramoff? You want to talk to me about guilt by association? But Obama's deep associations with corrupt people and organizations don't so much as flicker the liberal eyebrow.

We now know about the investigations of ACORN-related voter registration fraud in 10 states. But have you heard some of the particulars about its nefarious activities in Pennsylvania?

The American Spectator's Jeffrey Lord reports: "'Between March 23rd and October 1st, various groups, including ACORN, submitted over 252,595 registrations to the Philadelphia County Election Board' with 57,435 rejected for faulty information. 'Most of these registrations were submitted by ACORN, and rejected due to fake social security numbers, incorrect dates of birth, clearly fraudulent signatures, addresses that do not exist, and duplicate registrations. In one case, a man was registered to vote more than 15 times since the Primary election.'"

There's no innocent explanation for any of this in Pennsylvania or for similar ACORN activities in other states. Why aren't honest Democrats joining Republicans in crying foul? How can they be so willfully blind to these threats to our system? I guarantee that if you ask, they'll give you their favorite liberal dodge, "Both sides are doing it." Dream on.

Just as alarming as the Obama left's direct assaults on the electoral process are their totalitarian tactics to chill their opponents' political speech. Don't think it's just Democratic attorneys in St. Louis misusing their power and the law as speech-suppressing weapons. Investor's Business Daily's editorial writers bullet point a number of egregious examples.

Lawyers for Obama wrote intimidating letters to television and radio stations that aired National Rifle Association ads in Pennsylvania detailing Obama's anti-gun record.

The Obama campaign complained to the Department of Justice when the American Issues Project had the audacity to run an ad tying Obama to violent revolutionary William Ayers, which scared some stations out of airing the spot.

Obama's army of supporters inundated radio station WGN with harassing phone calls and e-mails to disrupt its interviews of conservative writers investigating Obama's sordid background. This was the Obama campaign's chosen alternative to sending a representative to debate the conservatives, which they were invited to do.

As IBD points out, this is just a glimpse of what's in store for free conservative speech in an Obama administration, starting with the resurrection of the Fairness Doctrine, which is designed to emasculate conservative radio, the last best hope to prevent a full-blown socialist revolution.

It is no coincidence that the alarming tactics of the Obama campaign are compatible with Obama's policy agenda, which he's promised ACORN a role in crafting. The campaign's efforts to steal the election, if necessary, and suppress the constitutionally protected expression of its opponents aligns with its plans for government to subsume the health care industry and to use the tax code to punish success and further erode private property, the backbone of liberty.

If I sound like an alarmist, then mission accomplished. People better wake up before it's too late.

David Limbaugh is a writer, author and attorney. His book "Bankrupt: The Intellectual and Moral Bankruptcy of Today's Democratic Party" was released recently in paperback. To find out more about David Limbaugh, please visit his Web site at www.davidlimbaugh.com. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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