Posted on 07/24/2008 6:57:21 AM PDT by ZakCarter
My reasons for leaving the Party that I’ve felt at home in since I became politically aware are numerous. I will start with quoting countless conservatives who feel as I do - I didn’t so much leave the Republican Party, it was the Party that left me. The elected Republican officials failed to implement a conservative agenda, despite having the Presidency and both houses of congress. No Child Left Behind, Prescription Drug Entitlements; they even tried to force Amnesty for illegal aliens upon us. They have given us a government that would make even LBJ blush. Our businesses and land have more regulatory red tape to deal with than ever.
Where is the Republican Party that stood for limited government, personal responsibility, a strong national defense, and against being the world’s policeman? As recently as the 90’s Republicans railed against a foreign policy of “making the world safe for democracy”, (which is historically the Democrats foreign policy, ala Woodrow Wilson) when Bill Clinton was President and he took us to war in Bosnia and Kosovo.
From its inception, the Republican Party advocated a humble foreign policy in line with our founding fathers recommendations, now, with John McCain as the leader and voice of the GOP, we are told to get behind his idea for a “League of Democracies” which sounds terrifyingly similar to Wilson and his Progressive Democrats “League of Nations” almost 100 years ago.
We are also being told by McCain that we will have to Cap and Trade our liberty and our pursuit of happiness in the fight against global warming, essentially that if we don’t give government more money and power, utopia will never be reached.
Some have told me that I should support him because he will appoint conservative judges, but I ask these questions - 1. Who’s definition of conservative are we talking about? And 2. Why would I trust the man on this issue when he is one of the “Gang of 14” who was blocking President Bush’s conservative lower federal court and Circuit Courts of Appeal judicial nominees? His long-standing, but little-noticed association with left-wing donors such as George Soros and Teresa Heinz Kerry is receiving new attention among his Republican critics and definitely troubles me. I would also remind you of his historical propensity to appease those even more liberal than himself. His version of “reaching across the aisle” looks more like a group hug when he crafts legislation like the McCain / Kennedy and McCain / Feingold bills. McCain / Feingold happens to be the reason McCain should not get the NRA’s endorsement, the NRA spent years fighting this trampling of our 1st amendment rights. McCain has not been the solid 2nd amendment supporter he would like you to believe he is - he cosponsored legislation which could require registration of attendees at gun shows and even ban such shows. Add to this the barely passing “C” grade from the NRA in his last senate run in 04‘, the “F” grade the Gun Owners of America gives him today and reflect on the work he did in 2000 with Americans for Gun Safety, an anti-gun group with a deceiving name, and you get a very different picture than the one he wants us to see.
The differences between McCain and Obama are minimal, when you consider that both believe big government can save you from yourself, and that we can save other nations from themselves as well. Given McCain’s track record of conciliatory dealings with Democrats, I fear what this man would do with a Democratic House and Senate. I will not play along with the game of lesser of two evils, as I believe that is part of what has plunged this nation into the mess we find ourselves today.
Once upon a time the Republican Party stood against special interests, corruption and abuse of power. Today their candidates campaign is “ of the lobbyist, by the lobbyist, for the lobbyist.” A man who admits Washington’s corruption has tainted him. Google Keating 5 and read all about it.
The Republican Party today would be unrecognizable to my favorite Republicans of yesterday, such as Barry Goldwater, who said “ A government that is big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take it all away.” President Eisenhower, who warned us of the Military Industrial Complex, and one whose party membership is a surprise to many today but shouldn’t be, Martin Luther King Jr. The party is just as unrecognizable to myself and others of my generation.
I had to draw a line in the sand, and the Republican Party wasted no time in crossing it, when they and the President pushed for “economic stimulus checks.” The only problem is this, the money isn’t money that we have, its money we are borrowing, and our excessive borrowing becomes a tax on future generations, as we wont be paying it off any time soon. Want to try to sell this as economically conservative? Excessive borrowing and spending has the added affect of devaluing our currency, so it acts as a hidden tax on us today. As I heard one of the presidential candidates say in regards to these stimulus checks, “ Whose economy are we stimulating here? Ours or Chinas? We are borrowing more money from China so everyone can go buy more stuff made in China.” I get it, others in the GOP get it, so why doesn’t the party leadership?
I can’t take anymore disrespect for conservative values, and unless the Republican Party wakes up and gets it’s head on straight real soon, I will be taking my vote, my time, energy, money, and passion from the GOP and taking it to the Libertarian Party to send a message to the Republican leadership that I will not be taken for granted. I believe that it is solid conservatism that wins the day and elections - limited government, individual responsibility, and a strong national DEFENSE (secure the borders!), not conciliation and surrender to Democrats to the point that our differences become blurry.
The Libertarian Party seems to be a perfect temporary home, the GOP has its work cut out if its sincere about winning me back, even President Reagan said “Libertarianism is the very heart and soul of conservatism.” I will be doing everything I can to sway like minded conservatives to join me in this exodus and vote for Bob Barr for President and Wayne Root for Vice President on the Libertarian ticket. Both of them were recently Republicans, and are among those countless conservatives I‘ve heard myself say “ It wasn’t that I left the Republican Party, it was the Party that left me.”
Thanks and God Bless, from Zak Carter
Never said I wouldn't vote for him.
I just call 'em like I see 'em.
Thanks for the tip. The orifinal GW is now on the top of my write in short list. Even a dead guy in a white powdered wig is a better pick than McCain. At least he has a legacy of conservative principles in action. McCain doesn’t have that.
O.K. I’ll flush my conservative principles and vote for McCain since he has an R by his name.
What kind of idiotic statement are you trying to make? Or just saying “Hey, look at me, I support McCain!!! That makes me conservative.” It doesn’t.
McCain is a liberal on many issues and conservative on very few.
Frankly, I don’t know who I’m going to vote for because with either “major” party, it is a disaster. The only difference is the speed in which the foot is on the accelerator!!
Name me ONE single department, organization or federal entity that McCain has proposed cutting. He hasn’t.
Try telling me he’s conservative, and there are MANY here who will laugh at you.
Paul
Yes. And when the Republicans controlled Congress, they spent money like it was water.
Frankly, I’m all for tax cuts. But, I favor spending cuts a LOT more. We had a Republican congress. Both houses and a Republican president. Did ONE SINGLE DEPARTMENT GET CUT?
I’m not talking about reductions in departments. I’m talking about getting rid of the massive bs we call our government.
I want someone in there who will say “Enough is enough folks, and we’re going to fix this.” If we decided we wanted to trim the fat from a a dozen or so programs, and got rid of departments, organizations and other overlap, and ensured that the majority was going towards its intended target, we could finance all the liberal programs that we currently have on the books and still have our government work.
We have WAAAAY too many lines in our tax code. We need a simplified tax solution. We won’t ever get it the way the two parties are. They use it to punish their enemies.
We support illegal aliens. Our weak-spined Republican congresscritters have no compunction about saying “O.K. Let’s make a token fight, but to appease our base.” The Dems are much worse.
So, your comment about Dems controlling congress, well, guess what.... We had Republicans controlling it, and they made a mess of it.
Not to say Bella Pelosi and crew are doing better....they’re not, but until the Republicans can start to get their act together and stop spending like that, they’re not going to get my vote. Keep acting like Democrats, then why vote for you?
Paul
And WHAT part of this board is labeled a REPUBLICAN board? This is a CONSERVATIVE FORUM. That means we're ALL allowed to be here. You seem to want to forgive the excesses. Some of us don't. Paul
Same here, FRiend.
Great! I’m glad I could help!
Sounds like a good plan to me - park yourself in your basement, scream at the wall.
Well then, you should vote for a guy with unswerving conservative credentials, who also has military experience (with a great deal of combat time) and eight years of federal executive experience: George Washington.
That way you can be sure you’re voting for the perfect candidate, instead of merely voting for one who is the best qualified of those who might actually take office.
So...can George count on your vote this fall?
So who do you think is more conservative, McCain who founded the liberal Reform Institute that receives funding from George Soros’ Open Society Institute and Teresa Heinz Kerry’s Tides Foundation and several other prominent far left non-profit organizations?
That’s the same Reform Institute that employs the McCain campaign’s Hispanic outreach director, Juan Hernandez, as a senior fellow of its Comprehensive Immigration Reform Initiative. It’s the same Juan Hernandez who holds “dual Mexican-U.S. citizen, he was a member of former President Vicente Fox’s cabinet, representing an estimate 24 million Mexicans living abroad. Hernandez, with a “Mexico first” message, has argued aggressively against building a fence on the Mexican border, insisting the frontier needed to remain wide open so illegal immigrants could easily enter the U.S.”
“In 2006, the Arizona senator was forced to sever his formal ties with the Reform Institute after a controversial $200,000 contribution from Cablevision came to light. McCain solicited the donation for the Reform Institute using his membership on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. In a letter to the Federal Communications Commission, he supported Cablevision’s push to introduce the more profitable al la carte pricing, rather than packages of TV programming.” He got away with this just like he did in the Keating 5 scandal where he was the only one of the 5 to profit personally from helping Keating.
John McCain of McCain/Finegold fame and of Bush/McCain/Kennedy amnesty fame?
“The Reform Institute regularly has supported McCain in various legislative efforts, including on campaign finance reform, global warming and “comprehensive immigration reform,” all efforts widely opposed by many in the party’s conservative base.
Arianna Huffington, syndicated columnist and creator of the HuffingtonPost.com, has served on the Reform Institute’s advisory committee since the group’s inception.”
Give me a break. Barr may not be perfect, but he’s far and away more conservative than McCain or Obama. But you’re free to vote for one of them if you really want one of Soros’ minions in the Oval Office.
You again prove yourself incapable of reasonable discourse.
You are like an Obambi supporter. Completely beholden to your God McCain.
You are like a Global Warmist, trying to claim those who argue that anything other than your two party duopoly is a “denier” and would only vote for the “purist” candidate. I’m not saying the “purest”. I’m saying give me someone who is slightly above average and I’d be happy.
McCain is a HORRIBLE candidate.
Obama is even worse.
I choose to say that neither of the candidates has done anything (nor could Obama ever do anything) to earn my vote.
I may give my vote to McCain because I really don’t like Obama. But, frankly, that’s my choice. Not yours. And for you to try to take away my choice by saying “anything but the way I believe is a vote for Obama”.
Paul
Um...you're the only person in this conversation who has posted any insults, and you are also assuming that just because I support McCain I regard him as some sort of Reagan clone and as a idol I should worship. None of those things is "reasonable discourse," so please remove the plank from your eye.
I’m not saying the “purest”. I’m saying give me someone who is slightly above average and I’d be happy.
Wow, and you couldn't have said that earlier instead of posting insults and stamping your foot like a six year old? Jeeeeez.
But, frankly, that’s my choice. Not yours.
So...you say I'm incapable of reasonable discourse, yet you appear to be so unclear on basic intellectual concepts that you believe that the very act of questioning your ideas somehow is the same as controlling your vote.
I think it's quite reasonable that I'm not impressed.
Well, George Washington isn't perfect (apparently he owned some slaves) but he's better than Barr, with extensive military experience and executive experience at the federal level. So I can't imagine why anyone would vote for Barr when they could vote for Washington.
Can George count on your vote this November?
You have to understand John McCain and go back to the 1999-2000 Republican nomination campaign.
That John McCain is still in the mix. And its up to us to bring him out.
When you bail, do so quietly. You just don't have major cojones, and are weak minded.
Maybe, just maybe, the Libertarians will let you blow their balloons.
You are another idiot who writes like the Republican Party is its own entity, with its own thoughts and beliefs instead of an agglomeration of people with distinct voices.
You complain about amnesty, but we shut it down.
It is an example of how conservatives still CAN control the Republican Party.....when we unite and become vocal.
You are just a lazy slug who does not want to invest any time into the party and then gets upset when it doesn’t follow your ideals.
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