A Troubling Influence [about Grover Norquist]

Front Page Magazine ^ | 12/9/03 | Frank J Gaffney Jr., with introduction by David Horowitz

[Akula]

I have known Grover Norquist for almost twenty years as a political ally. Long before I myself was cognizant of the Communist threat – indeed when I was part of one of those Fifth Column networks – Grover Norquist was mobilizing his countrymen to combat it. In the early 1980s, Grover was in the forefront of conservative efforts to get the Reagan Administration to support the liberation struggles of anti-Communists in Central America, Africa and Afghanistan.

It is with a heavy heart therefore, that I am posting this article, which is the most complete documentation extant of Grover Norquist’s activities in behalf of the Islamist Fifth Column. I have confronted Grover about these issues and have talked to others who have done likewise. But it has been left to Frank Gaffney and a few others, including Daniel Pipes and Steven Emerson, to make the case and to suffer the inevitable recriminations that have followed earlier disclosures of some aspects of this story.

[Protagoras]

I disagree.

I expect you do. Oh well. We're even.

[beckett]

Norquist began to emit a bad smell immediately after 9/11. In the intervening months the stench has only gotten worse.

In my book the man is thoroughly and irredeemably lost.

9/11 has lashed America to the Jews, and to the protection of the Jewish State. Some of us who may have had misgivings about that project at one time can no longer afford to have them. The Muslims glued us to Israel with the paste of American blood.

Norquist already had made his bed with CAIR and other Islamic special interest groups years before 9/11. It is the measure of the man that he chose to rebuke us in the wake of 9/11, rather than them. To hell with him.

[William McKinley]

Mainstream right?

Start with me.

But I assume you want higher profile people. That's fine. John Ashcroft. Lifetime ACU rating: 98. President George W. Bush, noted mainstream conservative Republican (unless you are talking to a leftist, in which case he is a fascist). Rich Lowery, editor. Rick Santorum, Senator from Pennsylvania with a lifetime ACU rating of 87. Lindsey Graham, Senator from South Carolina. Lifetime ACU rating of 91. As a matter of fact, most conservatives in Congress backed it, even though some would like to see some updates to fix some problems (a position I do not object to at all). Those include names like Crapo and Sessions and Sununu. Charles Krauthammer, political commentator. Sacramento activist and head of the Patriot Defenders Network, Dave Jenest.

You see, when it comes to conservatives, there is divide on the issue. Some think it went too far, some think it didn't go far enough, some think it was needed, some think it wasn't, some think it was needed but could be improved. Temperment-wise, this makes sense. Conservatives by nature learn from history. History has shown we need to act to prevent the spread of terrorist networks within our country; that was a lesson of 9/11. But history has also shown that power will eventually be abused. It is only natural, therefore, that there would be a debate and lack of unanimity within conservative circles on the matter.

Libertarians and assorted leftists, however, are universally opposed to it.

[KC Burke]

Toleration in regards to religious convictions, affiliations and likewise the absence of same is certainly part of the American tradition respected by conservatives.

Such toleration, however, never turns a blind eye to fananticism or unlawful behavior just to show an openess to other faiths. Party hacks, forgeting conservative principles in the promotion of party futures, can error in this regard.

Coalition building is a fine political goal as long as you carefully examine your new-found allies. Failure to do so in a prudent manner will leave you under question for your motives, or much worse, dammned for your outright disregard for bad partners.

If Norquist ignores this, or simply attacks back without a thorough amount of comming clean, he deserves the emnity of all brands of conservatives including those both for, and against, the Patriot Act.

Thanks for the ping.

[JohnGalt]

I see gubmint employees and Charles Krauthamer? Are you serious? LOL

Do you really not get politics at all?

You may well be a Mainstream Rightist who supports the Patriot Act, but that hardly means you speak for the Mainstream Right at large.

I am a Far Right Conservative who happens to support Bush; I am in a minority position amongst my Far Right friends.

You mentioned one group (in a round about way) the American Conservative Union, who is somewhere between skeptical to being outright against the Patriot Act.

So again can you name any organizations Mainstream Right or futher Right that support the Patriot Act?

I have never herd of the Patriot Defenders Network or Dave Jenest but nothing on their web site speaks to being conservative or even rightist. They claim to be simply a reactionary activist group to anti-war leftists-- but that does not make one conservative by default, of course.

[William McKinley]

Yes, mine was a stand alone comment, but it was thrown out to counter a rhetorical trick by JohnGalt:

The Eagle Forum and the Free Congress Foundation are both against the Patriot Act, so if you are to the left of them

John Kerry and Howard Dean are now in opposition to the Patriot Act, so by the logic JG used, they occupy the same sphere on the left-right continuum as the Eagle Forum and Free Congress Foundation.

I did make a mistake though. I said that opposing the Patriot Act doesn't make one conservative, it makes one leftist or libertarian. What I should have said is that opposing the Patriot Act doesn't say if you are conservative or not, since libertarians and leftists universally oppose it. My phrasing was poor.

[William McKinley]

I have read your positions for a long time on this website, and I cannot think of a single conservative position I have ever seen you take.

[William McKinley]

I see gubmint employees

Your implication that politicians cannot be conservatives since they are 'gubmit employees' is about as sensical as your usual positions.

You can have the last word; I certainly am not going to spend another moment worrying about you.

[JohnGalt]

Seriously?-- you must not have read many of my posts then.


I believe abortion is murder.
I believe sex outside of marriage is immoral.
I believe Western civilization to be superior to all other civilizations.
I believe immigration (legal an illegal) should be curbed.
I believe fiat money and debt financing is immoral anti-liberty. I prefer a gold standard.
I believe George Washington's Farewell Address is the only foreign policy document one need ever study.
I believe the income tax should be repealed.
I believe in 'state's rights.'
I believe in the republic desired by the forefathers and the original architects of the US Constitution.
I believe the United States government should not direct one penny in the education market.
I believe the United States should leave the UN.
I believe the United States government had no authority to regulate the purchase, sale or exchange of firearms.

What do you believe in?

[JohnGalt]

Your belief that politicians are something that they are not, is naive.

[Protagoras]

What I should have said is that opposing the Patriot Act doesn't say if you are conservative or not, since libertarians and leftists universally oppose it. My phrasing was poor.

If you had said that, it would have been incorrect. Many lefties love it. They can't wait to get their grubby little paws on it's provisions when they get back in power. Many of it's provisions were Democratic initiatives which were defeated by conservatives and other concerned Americans before being embraced by them after the Republicans co-opted them.

And I have never found anything that libertarians universally agree upon. Organizing them is like herding cats.

[Protagoras]

Good list. But why hide your true feelings? LOL

[William McKinley]

I believe abortion is murder. - so do I.
I believe sex outside of marriage is immoral. - so do I.
I believe Western civilization to be superior to all other civilizations. - so do I
I believe immigration (legal an illegal) should be curbed. - curbed? As in stopped completely? I disagree. I do think it should be curtailed. And if there is a difference there between what you are for and what I am for in this regard, I am not willing to cede that your view is more conservative.
I believe fiat money and debt financing is immoral anti-liberty. I prefer a gold standard. - I think that is pretty loony, and I also reject that as a conservative position (although it may have been back in 1890). There is a big difference between reactionary and conservative.
I believe George Washington's Farewell Address is the only foreign policy document one need ever study. - I think that is loony too, and I again reject the premise that yours is a conservative position. Conservatism is based on learning the lessons of history. Your view is that history since the founding of the country should be ignored. The world is different now.
I believe the income tax should be repealed. - in a perfect world, absolutely. I am for apportionment. If the states want to collect their share of the federal budget by income tax, that should be up to the voters of that state.
I believe in 'state's rights.' - so do I.
I believe in the republic desired by the forefathers and the original architects of the US Constitution. - so do I. How to get there is a big matter of debate.
I believe the United States government should not direct one penny in the education market. - see the response to states rights.
I believe the United States should leave the UN. - I think we should use it when in our interests and tell it to pound sand when it is in our interests. If you want to say yours is a more conservative position, then I'll point out that you are saying we should act against our interests at times just for the sake of the matter.
I believe the United States government had no authority to regulate the purchase, sale or exchange of firearms. - I think they have the right to regulate interstate commerce. Within a state, I think the United States government should have no ability to control firearms.

Good to know there is some room for agreement.

[William McKinley]

Many lefties love it.

I sure would appreciate if you could point me to some. I look at DU, I see no such examples. I go to the pages of radical left groups like the CPUSA, and I see no such evidence. I look at the anarchist left, and I see no such evidence.

What I see when I look at those places, is universal opposition.

Then I look at this forum, and I see a split verdict; some support, some opposition. In other words, I see what I described above- conservatives can come down on either side of the issue, while leftists oppose it.

[JohnGalt]

It sounds like you are Mainstream Right in contemporary definitions, but that you are not particularly conservative in deference to the institutions of old or on issues of monetary policy.

If my ideas on liberty and government seem anachronistic to you, that is all well and good, but that puts you distinctly to the Left of me, just for the record.

[William McKinley]

but that you are not particularly conservative in deference to the institutions of old or on issues of monetary policy.

That's fine. You think in these matters I am not conservative, and I think in these matters you aren't.

Glad we cleared that up.

[Protagoras]

You have left out the authoritarian left. Which is the biggest group of lefties.

Splinter groups of far out whackos like DU are irrelevant even to Democrats.

For proof, look at what the ones who matter DO, not say.

"Know your customer" and the like were Democratic initiatives.

[William McKinley]

Oh, and your assertion "but that puts you distinctly to the Left of me" is absolute hogwash.

[William McKinley]

have left out the authoritarian left

Pretty hard to get more authoritarian left than the Communists, who I mentioned.

I'd love to see some examples of this 'biggest group' of lefties who are salivating over the Patriot Act. As far as I can see, they must have no web presence, anywhere.

[Protagoras]

I love it when people argue over who is more to the right. It's so much better than when people try to out left each other, which was the case for so long in this country.