GOP Platform: We're all Big Government Conservatives Now (ACU Commentary)

American Conservative Union ^ | August 26, 2004 | Richard Lessner - Executive Director, ACU

[NJ_gent]

NEW YORK – The 2004 Republican Platform Committee finished its work this afternoon. It wasn't a pretty picture.

You have to give the Bush political operation credit: they badly outflanked the party conservatives. By the time delegates gathered here in New York for the platform committee work, the game was already over. The Bush operation made certain that the committee, selected by state parties, was packed with loyalists. Any chance of a conservative uprising over the platform was DOA.

The most controversial plank in the draft platform was on immigration, specifically President Bush's proposal for a guest worker program for illegal aliens, a plan that also would put those who entered America unlawfully on the path to U.S. citizenship. This idea is wildly unpopular with grassroots Republicans and the Bush people know it. So the fix was in. Any effort by the handful of conservatives on the rubber-stamp platform committee to amend or delete the offending plank on immigration were trumped by a series of strong-arm tactics and procedural maneuverings.

Not that the bullying tactics mattered much. The platform delegates comported themselves like a flock of obedient sheep. Taking their cues from committee co-chairmen Sen. Bill Frist and Colorado Gov. Bill Owens, delegates even rejected amendments drawn word-for-word from the 2000 GOP platform.

While there is much in the platform to please conservatives, there is also plenty to infuriate. Just eight years after the GOP platform called for the abolition of the U.S. Department of Education, the 2004 platform boasts, “President Bush and Congressional Republicans have provided the largest increase in federal education funding in history and the highest percentage gain since the 1960s [only a last-minute amendment deleted a reference to LBJ at this point] . . . Support for elementary and secondary education has had the largest increase in any single Presidential term since the 1960s – an increase of nearly 50 percent since 2001.”

A Texas delegate, introducing an amendment to delete this mind-boggling big government boast, said it sounded like something out of the Democratic Platform rather than anything identifiably Republican. The amendment was overwhelmingly crushed.

And that's how it went here in New York. I guess it's true: We're all big government conservatives now.

[NJ_gent]

It's unfortunate that, in the rush to grab the few remaining swing voters, the GOP is tossing so much of its conservative platform aside. In the end, it may cost them more votes from conservatives staying home than they pick up from swing voters. (note: this is only my second posting, so if something's broken, please be kind. :-) )

[Feiny]

The sad thing is that they can afford to take us for granted...who else will we vote for? They just don't give a damn about their base....they need the mushy middle.

[NJ_gent]

"The sad thing is that they can afford to take us for granted...who else will we vote for?"

Unfortunately, I think we'll see a lot of people so disheartened that they won't vote at all. I do know that some have started looking to third parties. Before this election, I never really looked at any of the third parties (other than Nader's, and that was for entertainment). Sadly, what I also hear more and more of is people changing their emphatic support for the President to "well at least he's not like Kerry".

You're right, though. The GOP knows that the vast majority of those right of center will always vote for it, no matter how liberal it becomes. Personally, what hits me most is the immigration policies. I see our borders and ports as our biggest line of defense against terrorist attacks, yet they're being wedged open by both major parties, at the expense of our national security. I keep waiting and hoping for a sudden reversal of the President's amnesty plan, but it hasn't yet arrived. Here's to hoping.

[JustAnAmerican]

What I don't understand is how the President of The United States Of America can tell us that we must all abide by the law, and then push for lawlessness when it comes to people from Mexico? If anyone else had a chance against Bush that was conservative I would vote for them in a minute. Because Bush is not now, nor will he ever be a conservative.

It just seems to me that he doesn't care what Americans think, just what the big business and illegal lobby thinks. My Moto of, "I am not voting for Bush because I like him, I am voting for Bush because I despise Kerry", is wearing pretty thin.

And if he and his cohorts try to pass this garbage off on us, I will in all likelyhood just not vote in the Presidential election at all. Anyone that does not put the American people first does not deserve to be President.

[Feiny]

I plan on doing that locally, but for President....we can't afford Kerry. I will vote Libertarian if there are no real conservatives running in local & state elections.

[NJ_gent]

Oh, I don't plan on voting for the Libertarian or Constitution Party candidates. I only said that this was the first time I've looked at them. What I saw when I looked were a couple of nutcases with platforms so bizarre in some aspects that they made me question whether the websites were real. If I can't bring myself to vote for the President come election day, I honestly don't know what I'll do in terms of voting for President. Kerry will take NJ regardless of what I do, so I won't feel quite so bad if I write in David Keene for President. :-)

[Jaysun]

This is such bullsh*t. What happened the last time a Conservative ran for office? He (Reagan) wiped the floor with his opponent's ass both times. The idea that they have to become more like the liberals to gain enough votes to win is absurd.

[gcruse]

Thanks for posting this. It's good to know I'm not paranoid, just cynical. ;)

[NJ_gent]

Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you! :-)

[Richard-SIA]

Our hope has to be that some of the sincere conservatives will force the platform to be amended from the convention floor!

This weak platform has not been ratified by the delegates yet.

[Reagan Man]

George W.Bush. The big government, amnesty promoting, education President.

Bad decisions that should not have been made part of the GOP platform 2004. Dumb dumb dumb! Not part of any conservative policy agenda I'm aware of.

[The Ghost of FReepers Past]

Yeah. I visited the Bush 2004 website for the first time today. Heck, if it didn't say Republican it would have been hard to tell. I don't know why the 'rats hate him so much. In many ways, he's one of them. I know he means well, but I wish he would be generous with his own money, and give the rest of us the freedom to make our own choices. The guy is a closet socialist. I'm going to vote for him, sadly, anyway. He's better than the other socialist. At least Bush has some moral sense.

[StockAyatollah]

It's unfortunate that, in the rush to grab the few remaining swing voters, the GOP is tossing so much of its conservative platform aside

What conservative platform did they have to toss aside? The GOP has gone from endorsing socialism-lite to full-on, no-holds-barred, cradle-to-gravism. They are horrible on immigration, and meek at best on abortion and gun control. They also never roll back any of the horrific programs that the rats put thru. With an iron grip being held by neo-cons and Bushies, the Grand Old Party needs an Grand Old Enema.

[ex-snook]

Well when the platform was conservative, Dole wouldn't read it.

[GladesGuru]

I certainly hope all conservatives vote for Bush AND CONSERVATIVEES IN ALL OTHER OFFICES!!!

Congress then can (hopefully) produce conservative legislation, something which even Bush can't do.

Politics is local, after all - let's not forget that.
Vote conservative at all levels!

[MonroeDNA]

I'm a Libertarian; been here since '97. Last election I stated I would crawl over broken glass to vote for Bush. I was one of the 537 Volusia county votors who pushed Bush over the top.

I have to say, this illegal amnesty thing, especially with SS benifits, make me want to sit this one out. I'll be goddamned if illegal aliens, lawbreakers, get amnesty. And suck our SS sytem dryer than it already is.

SSS.

[MikeJ75]

Anybody know if the text of the platform is available online?

[gcruse]

Vote conservative at all levels!

"They told me if I voted for Al Gore we'd have deficit spending, bloating federal government, increased federal intrusion into education, and higher funding of NEH and CPB.  So I did.  AND WE DID!"

[Celtman]

Our hope has to be that some of the sincere conservatives will force the platform to be amended from the convention floor!

LOL.

[drhogan]

but kerry will probably offer them free (taxpayer-paid) sex-change operations. and then free changes back again. and taxpayer-funded medical marijuana for life.
we (taxpayers) probably already pay for these in NY, but at least we could protect the rest of the country.