Cell phones... What is the LaHood agenda?

I'm not one who buys into conspiracy theories, but I'm beginning to smell a rat. Transportation Secretary, Ray LaHood, is proposing the complete ban on cell phone use while driving, even with a hands free device.

Now, I fully understand the dangers of texting while driving. I even think holding a phone presents some issues, as well. But let's get real here, talking to someone on the phone, while using a hands free device is no more dangerous than talking to one of your passengers.

I don't want to believe this, but could it be that LaHood, who is a former Republican Congressman, may be trying to sabotage this president's push to maintain the legislative majority needed to move his agenda forward? Why else would he make this announcement 3 weeks before the mid-term election?

If there is something most people agree on, regardless of their political ideology, it's the convenience and productivity afforded to us by this one little electronic device. It can be argued that the cell phone may be the single biggest invention in the last 50 years. This transportation secretary wants to set us back to the dark ages of productivity.

I promise you, Republicans are already licking their chops, ready to present their case to voters on how we have become a huge nanny state, and how the LaHood initiative only cements the legacy.

I would hope President Obama will rein in his transportation chief on this issue until after the election. Then LaHood needs to do a ride along with someone that relies on their cell phone as an integral part of their work, to make him understand that his plan is just too outreaching.

That is if safety is his real agenda...