Posted on 05/05/2005 9:13:01 AM PDT by metalmanx2j
A lot of thoughtful conservatives are having serious second thoughts about George W. Bush. His failure to act upon core values of fiscal conservatism and sovereignty is a growing concern.
Donations to conservative organizations and think tanks are in sharp decline. A lot of conservatives have decided to stop giving financial support because they are losing faith in the ability of these groups to have any effect on administration policies.
Bush has an engaging personality, but he’s not running for office anymore. He is already a very lame duck.
In concert with Republican party leaders in Congress, the White House has been unable to get its judicial appointments approved and the fight over John Bolton’s appointment as UN ambassador suggests the party lacks unity on Capitol Hill. Bolton has been confirmed four times for previous positions. Unless the GOP can unite to overcome the obstructionism of the Democrats, it bodes ill for the party.
If conservatives stay home for the 2006 elections, power can shift to the Democrats.
People are increasingly worried about the huge budget deficit created by a President and a Congress that have been on a spending binge. The national debt has increased by $2.16 billion every day since September 30, 2004. It is now a cliché that Bush has not vetoed a single spending bill while in office. New “entitlements” added to Medicare for prescriptions will add still more to the rising tide of national debt. It is not “if” the economy will reach a tipping point this accumulated debt cannot be paid, but when.
Compounding fears is the appearance of an increasingly shaky economy that includes rising inflation and major corporations like General Motors in trouble. Wall Street is experiencing early tremors that forecast a bear market.
An issue reaching critical mass are the illegal immigrants flowing across our southern border. The assertion that they are necessary to do the work that Americans will not is nonsense. With the exception of the agricultural sector that has always depended on migrant workers, there are many jobs American workers would take if they weren’t already being given to undocumented workers paid in cash. Illegal workers sent $20 billion dollars home to Mexico last year!
History will record that George W. Bush secured the liberation of the Iraqi people from one of the worst tyrants of modern times. Let us give him credit for that and for driving the Taliban out of Afghanistan. What rankles was the way the war was sold as an eminent threat of Weapons of Mass Destruction. I cannot think of a time this nation went to war on such poor intelligence. One gets the feeling, however, that the Bush administration has little faith in the intelligence of the American people.
Yet another distinctly un-conservative aspect of the Bush administration has been its approach to education. The “Leave No Child Behind” program has thrown billions at an already failed educational system. It is so awful that whole states are considering withdrawing from it. And the Bush administration is pushing for programs that would require all students to undergo mental health evaluations, thus opening the door to still more millions of them being required to take mind-altering drugs.
Many conservatives fear that homeland security is an excuse for circumscribing fundamental constitutional protections. Most certainly, the Patriot Act needs revision, but the administration does not support that. There is talk of installing chips in passports that will carry all kinds of personal information about you. More insidious is the effort to require Americans to carry a national ID card. This is more consistent with a police state than with conservative values.
As Americans confront rising gasoline prices, they are wondering if we have an energy policy. There’s scant evidence. It’s nice to know Alaska’s ANWR may be opened up to oil extraction, but this nation hasn’t seen a new refinery built since the 1970’s, down from 321 refineries in 1981 to 146 now. Current refineries are running at 95% capacity and, thanks to the Environmental Protection Agency, they have to produce 45 “regional blends” of gasoline. It will be years before any oil starts to flow from ANWR. Meanwhile, other reserves of oil and coal are ruled off-limits to extraction and use.
Finally, under the Bush administration, the federal government remains hell bent on acquiring more and more of the nation’s landmass. It’s in cahoots with environmental organizations, offering them millions in federal funds, to assist in this travesty. There’s even an “Invasive Species” bill floating around that would put the EPA in control of your front lawn. Why isn’t the Bush administration out front on killing this monstrosity?
Does any of this sound like conservative policy to you? Does it worry you that the threat of terrorism is the sole reason given for almost any policy put forth by the White House since 9-11? If the Democrats ever get their act together, you and I are going to be talking about President Clinton, but referring to Hillary.
On the issue of money management, the left has consistently aligned itself with UNsound fiscal policy.
Protection of borders, personal property and the maintenance of civil order are perhaps the only legitimate functions of government.
(Is my libertarian underbelly showing?)
[Bush] "He is already a very [very,very very] lame duck.'
Listen friends, this is just what we do and who we are. Republicans always go after our own leaders, sometimes with good cause. The question here is "degree". The guy who wrote this article sounds like he never liked Bush in the first place, so he's unloading a buttload of handwringing in one fell swoop.. No big deal. who the hell is he, anyway?
We wanted a Republican president, most of us preferred a conservative republican, and in President Bush, we got our wish. And here too, the question is "degree." I happen to think President Bush has done the best he could under the worst possible conditions, but of course there are policies, programs, and decisions that didn't please me 100%.
This writer thinks he speaks for "many conservatives". We're "losting faith" "rankled"..."People are increasingly worried ", he writes. And the aforemenetioned, we're having serious second thoughts." I love how this writer isn't content with just adjectives, he's got to throw in some adverbs for extra emphasis.
Republicans chewing on President Bush for what we consider political blunders and process mistakes, has one good result. It reminds us how the Democrats never never criticize their criminals, incompetents, and perverts. We won't ever be accused of blind allegience to a scoundrel.
I thank God everyday President Bush is at the helm.
As you two gentlemen have no doubt figured out, eliteblondie was being sarcastic.
Unfortunately, he (she?) is also a stormfront retard. I was surprised she was still here today.
"Alan Caruba is the author of Warning Signs, published by Merril Press. His weekly commentaries are posted on the Internet site of The National Anxiety Center."
That wasn't an option on my ballot.
Bush was a weak candidate, Kerry was a beyond horrible.
Bush was a strong candidate, that you had disagreements with. He got more votes than any Presidential candidate in the history of the Republic. I agree about Kerry. He was our first major Party, consciously anti-American candidate with a realistic chance of winning.
I give Bush's Presidency a C+ so far. A B+ for his response to terror, a D- for his fiscal restraint, and a C+ for his social policy (says the right things, but doesn't try hard enough to follow through).
This seems about right. But it's said that politics is the art of the possible. Some of this is about priorities in a time of war.
This clown sounds like he's always "rankled."
LOL. Good citizens come in all political colors!!!
But, those two problems (fiscal mismanagement and illegal immigration) are becoming increasingly important issues because they are a threat to Americans of all political stripes. No matter what different people might think a government should or should not do, nearly all of them agree that there should be government.
Those two issues are becoming important because they are central to the concept of government. They can't be ignored for very long. ;-)
Um, they were migrants alright. From Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas, Mississippi...even Oregon.
The Mexicans were brought into California in significant numbers in the 1940's because the Americans were drafted to fight another European war. So while American men were getting shot and killed, the new "meegrants" were happily living on their land, doing their jobs.
It may seem rather "mean spirited", but uh, the Americans wanted their jobs back once they came home from fighting for them. Silly them, huh? I mean, what were they thinking...
All sarcasm aside, the U.S. has never had a problem with ag employment. Ag workers in California are now 92% "hispanic", whatever that means. Largely because it is seen as a way to keep them employed, rather than rioting in Mexico, which is what should happen. If that supply were cut off, two things would happen in the U.S.: 1) wages would go up, but not a lot. And it wouldn't add much of anything to food costs. That's been shown over and over. And 2), mechanization of ag work would kick in again. It was artificially cut off 35 years ago due to the political insistence of the UFW. In Mexico? War. Against the sickening ruling class.
A third thing that would happen is that high value boutique agriculture would become a problem, and the employers that utlilize land use restrictions and illegal alien labor to profit from them would suddenly find themselves having to sell their lovely seaside "farms" (um, "plantations"). Which would benefit lots of middle class folks looking to buy a nice seaside home. Something I'm more in favor of then strawberry fields populated by illegals.
I'm joking of course. But there are those who's use of that phrase is commonplace. I think that's why you're getting grilled.
If Bush was such a strong candidate, how in the world did he win the election by just over 50% of the popular vote? Reagan was a popular president and tallied much higher.
I have got to find an appropriate Bush-bot picture.
While what ifs and hypotheticals are useless, had 9/11 never happened and the strength of Bush on fighting terror and the RATS clear willingness to be soft on it, Bush would have been crushed in 2004 by virtually ANYONE.
I happen to think President Bush has done the best he could under the worst possible conditions, but of course there are policies, programs, and decisions that didn't please me 100%.
From a post on this thread.
This dummie from the ignominious Freeper class of 2004 has three hot buttons at this time:
National Sovereignty Issues
Judicial Appointmnets and Confirmations
Tax and Regulation reform for business and individuals
Bush and the other Republicans all work for us. Come the end of the year...I am giving them a performance appraisal. I suggest you all do likewise. That is our right.
So far....this year hasnt started out gangbusters...
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