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The Legacy of Compassionate Conservatism [Rush Limbaugh on the Campaign Reform SCOTUS fiasco]
http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_121003/content/truth_detector.guest.html ^ | December 10, 2003 | by Rush Limbaugh

Posted on 12/10/2003 8:57:47 PM PST by Lazamataz

The mainstream media is protected from the campaign finance law. Yes, Congress has limited the right to free speech of "We the People," but left the media's power intact. In fact, it's actually enhanced the media's power by letting them dominate the airwaves 30 to 60 days before an election.

But let me ask you a simple question: "If the Supreme Court can limit free speech today - under, I cannot believe, a GOP president, House and Senate - why can't it limit freedom of the press tomorrow? Once you amend the Constitution this way, anything goes!

Those who don't respect liberty - and by that I mean the left, these phony political reformers, most editorial pages and five Supreme Court justices - can't have it both ways. If the Constitution can be amended on the fly like this rather than through the 3/4ths majority in both houses of Congress and the states, then no aspect of the Constitution is safe from this kind of manipulation. All it's going to take is somebody in Congress to write a law saying, "We're going to put some regulations and restrictions on the broadcast and print media," and bingo...

Will that ever happen? No. The Congress is afraid of the media, but they are not afraid of you. Thus they felt free to pass a law taking away your most basic freedom: political speech. Why? What did you do wrong? Why, you corrupted the process! Yes, the way this ruling came down and the way the law was written, your rotten, dirty money is corrupting out courageous and brave elected officials. Why, as soon as they take a dime, they turn from angels into corrupt monsters! You're ruining their morals! So if you try to buy an ad, well, now there's a law to stop you rotten jerks!

I took some calls on this story, which you can hear below. These came from the same sort of people who were so sure Bush would veto the bill, or that the Supreme Court would overturn it, "So why fight it?" Frank in Auburn, Maine asked, "How long do you think it's going to be before we have a midnight session to overturn this in the Congress?" I gently told Frank that the very Congress that passed this abomination, and that is now insulated as incumbents from the annoying voices of you idiot voters, is not going to now right what it did. Hello?

They're overjoyed about this! So is the media - which debunks another caller's claim that the press would miss the ad revenue they'll lose from political ads. They'll still get the cash from all these other groups who've weaseled out of this law. This is worthy of more than a "whine," folks. After all, members of the House and Senate can easily get face time on TV. That's why I called this the "Incumbent Protection Act." This is a day of darkness, folks. We may as well be Hobbits, with dark cloaked figures looking for our rings.

Michael Barone, a brilliant guy, wrote the other day that this president is redefining conservatism from limited government to a government of choice and accountability. I disagreed with Mr. Barone for the first time in my life about something. Not only are we not advancing limited government, we are now limiting choice and accountability by restricting freedom of speech. We're not expanding anything that's conservative, here. We're not expanding liberty or expanding freedom - which is choice. That is the antithesis of what happened in the Supreme Court.

When all is said and done, when it comes to domestic issues, it looks to me like the legacy of the Republican control of Congress and the presidency for the first time in 50 years is going to be the largest entitlement in modern times, the greatest increase in domestic spending in modern times and one of the greatest set-backs for liberty in modern times. That's the legacy of Republican control of government. This may be "compassionate" conservatism, but it's not "conservatism" at all.


TOPICS: Announcements; Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Editorial; Extended News; Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events; Philosophy; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: bushscotuscfr; cfr; mccainfeingold; rush
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To: Lazamataz
the "Incumbent Protection Act."

The FatCat Empowerment Act

241 posted on 12/11/2003 10:25:41 PM PST by thesummerwind (like painted kites, those days and nights, they went flyin' by)
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To: Lazamataz
So the "media elite" is "empowered" by this ruling, what's changed about any of that? What's the difference with the "elite media" pounding on Bush 6 days before, 60 days before, or even 300 days before the day of the mid-term election? NONE. Flashback to September of 2002, the "elite media" was busy siding with Howard Dean and the UN, being very critical with Bush's call for France, Germany and Russia to "get on the train before it leaves town", because Howard Dean, France, Germany, Russia and the elite media were bashing Bush's Iraq policy. Now CFR passes through all 3 branches of Government, Howard Dean endorses Al Gore, the UN; Germany, France and Russia were given the finger.

The ones shouting that the sky is falling seem to grasp at the belief that this only damages Bush and the Republicans, why is that? I just told you.

This won't make CNN or MSNBC or the left leaning hosts on FNC any less liberal than they were today, yesterday or 12 months ago or even next year on Election Eve.

Let's not forget we're involved in a war on terror, and the last thing I'm going to do is "sit at home" or "screw Bush and vote for Dean".

Thank God we're all free to do as we wish. If that means with my deep personal wholehearted respect of disagreeing with you, staying loyal to MY beliefs, and keeping Socialist kooks out of the White House who want nothing more than to ditch the War On Terror and get sidetracked on cozying up to countries torqued off they didn't jump on the bandwagon after Bush gave them 2 chances, I'll do that. This idea that we (collectively) should be torqued off over this piece of legislation ignoring the fact that Democrats are already using loopholes built into it, isn't my idea of individualism. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west.

242 posted on 12/11/2003 10:26:16 PM PST by BigSkyFreeper
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To: No More Gore Anymore
Conservative T'anks from da Burgh!!! Well, almost the Burgh.
Used to be da Burgh. Far enough out not to have to watch Pittsburgh decay from the inside out since Caligiuri, thanks to a million years of idiot dems gulping up entire neighborhhoods and leaving them as slums. There are TWO THOUSAND city officials in Pittsburgh. Can you even imagine what a disease the left has become???
Potholes as big as Lake Erie. I tell you. I don't know how Santorum did it. Yes, I do. But that's another story.
Here, we worked our tushes off and got the first elected Republican Commissioners in over a hundred years. 19,000 registered Republicans. 65,000 registered rats. And we WON!!!
Oh, yeah. I believe in omens.
243 posted on 12/11/2003 10:27:11 PM PST by Nix 2 (http://www.warroom.com QUINN AND ROSE IN THE AM)
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To: BigSkyFreeper
If there is anyone to blame, it's Tom Daschle and the Democrats for logjamming this horsesh** from making it to the floor of the Senate. Yes, that's right, there were items in the original CFR that I would have just loved to have seen pass, it would have put stronger binds on this elite media we're all used to seeing and hearing about.

Bush didn't get his way, so we ended up with the watered down compromised version because Daschle has some b**** over the first incarnation.

244 posted on 12/11/2003 10:33:22 PM PST by BigSkyFreeper
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To: Howlin
Is George Soros mentioned in this article?
245 posted on 12/11/2003 10:45:32 PM PST by thesummerwind (like painted kites, those days and nights, they went flyin' by)
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To: Howlin
Well, that'll teach me to try and be nice again.

*poof*

246 posted on 12/11/2003 11:03:02 PM PST by Lazamataz ("With an Iron Fist, We Will Lead Humanity to Happiness." - Translation of sign at Solovki Gulag)
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To: Mad_Tom_Rackham; Lazamataz
We are now governed by socialists, weaklings, fools, and cowards.

And please don't forget narcissists (Hillary etc.)

247 posted on 12/11/2003 11:15:22 PM PST by thesummerwind (like painted kites, those days and nights, they went flyin' by)
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To: Wilhelm Tell; Lazamataz; Mad_Tom_Rackham
If this country were salvageable, millions of people would descend on Washington, demanding that those responsible for banning political speech be tried for treason. What we are witnessing is comparable to when the Roman Republic became the Roman Empire.

And, I am disgusted that the shows on television (and FoxNews included) that should be giving this abomination some light and analysis, are mostly completely silent - just going along. The mainsream media has been successful in keeping Americans somnambulent fools! I am embarrassed at the ignorance, and lack of anger or reaction ... or even just knowledge on the part of the people.

We have fallen so far, when the people aren't even close to reacting. The media keeps everyone comforably asleep!

"Descend on Washington" -- good luck!

I go out in public, and have a hard time looking most people in the eye, for most of them are walking, uninformed idiots! It's shameful, but what everyone should know, it was all planned, and very well planned.

The power of the influential mainstream media is the key! They are suppose to be the watchdogs, instead they are merely lapdogs. The coverage of this decision is as big an abomination as the decision itself.

248 posted on 12/11/2003 11:37:55 PM PST by thesummerwind (like painted kites, those days and nights, they went flyin' by)
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To: Lazamataz
Thanks for the ping, Laz.
249 posted on 12/12/2003 8:15:51 PM PST by hellinahandcart
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To: Lazamataz
Hey I thought you haven't read the articles since 1999?!?
250 posted on 12/13/2003 6:55:33 PM PST by kuma
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