Worrying About “W”

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.

It seems to me that most successful politicians are, first and foremost, about winning elections. Alan Keyes is not, and doesn't. We need someone who is both conservative and "amiable" like Reagan, and to a large extent W. I'm hoping such a candidate emerges for 2008. In my area of southeastern Wisconsin, we have several such great candidates, such as Paul Ryan, representative from the 1st Congressional district, and Scott Walker, Executive of Milwaukee County, and likely next Governor.

The Democrats condundrum is that their "strongest" candidates are the ones that can never get through their primaries, like Zell, Nunn, or Breaux. I am concerned that Evan Byah may move far enough to the left to get the Democrat nomination, but without the terrible history of a Kerry. He would be a formidable opponent.

Criticize away. It's your democratic right. I just argue that as conservatives desiring to get the best possible result from the status quo, that we consider GWB to be an ally with whom we have differences, rather than an enemy. There is much to admire and support in his program.

I wish I knew how to post a picture. I would post one of the great man many of you are turning on so you would feel ashamed. He is resposible for all the great things and wonderful direction of our country since he was elected. Remember what things were like before? Hunh? Think about it.

Actually I forgot about Byah, but agree with you. He is someone who I would be comfortable with.

W has many good qualities. But unlike Reagan, when he's done something that disappoints me, I remember it. With Reagan, he'd give that charming smile and let me know that it's ok.

Let's show them by allowing DEMOCRATS to regain power once again.

You'd be surprised at how many people on this very form agree with that statement.

No, it was not.

And as for this statement:

I cannot think of a time this nation went to war on such poor intelligence.

My response to that is "That HE knows of." In past wars, some of the country might not even have known where the countries we were at war with were.

I'll vote for them. But I'm not giving them anything over and above my taxes to blow. And I DO fear for the '06 election. All our momentum feels lost. It feels a lot the way it did before 9-11.

The reason President Bush is unable to get any appointees is because the stupid DIMS what to say NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO

The dims are some RINO are thrilled to not see anything getting passed. I for one support my President 150% and I want the personal income funds... to replace lagging SS that is taken out of my check each month.

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