It's election season, in the midst of a prolonged economic meltdown, so it's not surprising to hear presidential candidates making superhuman claims about the miracles they can do for the economy. But in a truly free market system, and under the Republican form of government Americans inherited, in which the president's powers are limited, a chief executive's real influence over the economy should fall somewhere between modest and minimal.

It’s a bit disconcerting, therefore, to see self-styled conservatives playing a game of Job Creation Derby with the President, given that the Right has traditionally been far less interventionist, and far more laissez faire, than the command- and-control, pump-priming Keynesians on the other side.

We're not sure about you, but we've grown tired of hearing the obnoxious, misinformed, unruly left-wingers of Occupy Wall Street arrogantly presuming to speak for the “99 percent,” since they sure don’t speak for most Americans we know. Now, however, we don’t have to just take this verbal (and sometimes physical) assault in silence, thanks to a rally this Saturday, Dec. 3, on the West steps of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. The event will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., rain, snow or sunshine, and will feature a variety of liberty-minded, solutions-oriented speakers.

It’s there that the voices of America’s real 99 percent will be raised above the OWS din, in defense of limited government, fiscal responsibility, regulatory restraint, free enterprise and other ideas rarely heard inside OWS camps.

AFP’s Cut Spending Now tour rolled through Colorado Tuesday, making three stops in the Front Range cities of Colorado Springs, Highlands Ranch and Loveland before heading east, across the Great Plains, on its way to a November date with the Congressional Supercommittee.

All the rallies held and petitions gathered – you can still sign it online! -- during the cross-country trip are intended to help convince Supercommittee members that cutting lard from the bloated federal government and instituting real budget reform should be the top priority, not squeezing financially stressed Americans for new revenue. Americans are in no mood to surrender more of their hard-earned dollars to Washington, judging from the passion and sentiments seen and heard at the events.