In 1775 and 1776, the famous pro-liberty, pro-America pamphleteer Thomas Paine produced a work he titled "Common Sense," and it became one of the primary works of philosophical thinking that led to our drive for independence. It contained some real gems on the nature of man's relationship to government, like this:

Society is produced by our wants, and government by our wickedness; the former promotes our happiness positively by uniting our affections, the latter negatively by restraining our vices. The one encourages intercourse, the other creates distinction. The first is a patron, the last a punisher.

Now, in the last days of the 2026 midterm election campaigns, the White House is channeling its inner Thomas Paine on X, where they have put out a few zingers, pointing out some of the more egregious foibles of the Democrat Party. They're calling these zingers "Missed Connections With Common Sense and Democrats."

Let's check them out.

Here's the text from each image:

"Looking for someone who believes there are only two genders. Thought we might have a connection, guess I was wrong." - Common Sense

This one may well have been aimed at James Talarico, the chair of the National Democrats Low-T Caucus. Most people understand that, barring a few very rare and normally debilitating genetic disorders, people have either XX or XY chromosome pairs. And most of us don't want XY types in women's and girls' sports - or in their locker rooms and showers. That's just common sense.

"I believe a nation's borders should be secure, not wide open for criminals to cross. Seems like we're worlds apart on this one." - Common Sense

We are indeed worlds apart here. There have just been too many incidents, too many crimes committed by illegal aliens; in 2024, that was a hot issue. It still should be. A nation without borders isn't a nation. That's just common sense. 

"I showed up with qualifications, experience, merit. You asked me my pronouns and demographics just to check a DEI box. Guess merit was not your type." - Common Sense

The Left seems to be far more concerned about checking off DEI boxes than with hiring actually qualified people, which probably accounts for a lot of the stupidity we saw emanating from the Biden administration. But the Right is more inclined to look at who can do the best job, regardless of demographics. That's just common sense.

"Last time we spoke we were talking about secure elections. I didn't think being a U.S. citizens & having a voter ID was too much to ask for." - Common Sense. 

You have to have an ID to open a bank account or to cash a check. You have to have an ID to buy a bottle of hooch. You have to have an ID to survive, to interact in any way in our modern world. It stands to reason that, when you are exerting the greatest power the citizenry have, the franchise, that you should be required to prove you are who you say you are. That's just common sense. 

"It was once common sense the American Government's first responsibility was to the American people. You lost the way." - Common Sense

The primary role of government, any government at any level, is to protect the liberty and property of the people. The Left, today, in this election, seeks to remove the liberty and tax or confiscate the property of the people. We can't allow this to happen. That's just common sense.

"Remember when supporting law enforcement, putting criminals in jail, and wanting safe communities wasn't controversial? I miss those days. — Common Sense

Speaking of protecting the liberty and property of the people: A primary aspect of that is keeping crime under control. That means arresting, vigorously prosecuting, convicting and jailing criminals. That doesn't mean revolving door justice systems; that doesn't mean shoving suspected crooks back out the door with a slap on the wrist. That's just common sense. 

I'm not sure if Thomas Paine would have worded things quite this way, even if he may have been gob smacked at some of the issues we face today. But, even in our modern era, it's a pretty safe bet which side he would have chosen. But the only problem with all this is, as my Old Man used to say, common sense, isn't common.

https://redstate.com/wardclark/2026/10/28/guess-merit-was-not-your-type-white-house-trolls-democrats-make-thomas-paine-proud-n2208730