Posted on 11/20/2005 10:17:34 AM PST by KCRW
REP. CHARLIE BASS says it’s time for “a more moderate form of leadership” in Washington. He says that public dissatisfaction with Republicans shows that America wants to be governed from the middle. He is completely wrong.
In a Gallup Poll conducted over the weekend, President Bush got low marks on every issue. His lowest, however, was “controlling federal spending,” with 71 percent disapproving of his performance on that point. A CNN/USA Today poll found the same thing. Bush scored lowest (26 percent approval) on “immigration” and “controlling federal spending.” On both of those issues, Bush is decidedly unconservative. Bush got his highest rating, 48 percent approval, on “terrorism”.
Public dissatisfaction with Republicans in Washington comes not from the GOP being too conservative, but from the GOP not being conservative enough.
What, exactly, have Republicans done that is so conservative? They’ve tightened Washington’s grip on education policy, expanded the welfare state, enhanced unnecessary farm and corporate subsidies, passed a campaign finance “reform” law that lets the federal government silence citizens’ political speech, refused to control immigration, grown the federal budget faster than President Clinton did, and exploded the deficit.
About the only thing they have done that could be labeled “conservative” is cut taxes and take hawkish stances on foreign policy — and taxes and foreign policy are where Republicans still get the highest marks.
Too many Republicans in Washington have campaigned as conservatives but governed as moderates. No wonder the people don’t trust them. Had they actually governed as the conservatives they pretended to be — the conservatives Americans thought they were electing — they would not be in such a mess right now.
(Excerpt) Read more at theunionleader.com ...
Good article. BTTT
I'm sick of this "govern from the middle" crap. That's NOT what most people want.
Here's the point: Have you ever heard of a "staunch moderate?"
Been saying that for over 30 years.
It would be nice for the congressional Republicans to start acting like the majority more often as well.
If he is smart, he will take a long look at those numbers on spending and immigration.
So you can have Pelosi as the Speaker of the House? To preclude that the grassroots has to get very active in this election.
Sununu is one of the top 10 Conservative Senators which speaks volumes about NH. Get the best Conservative Republican as a challenger to Bass, defeat him in the primary, and work 24/7 to make sure the Republicans wins in Nov 06.
Going to take a lot of work but the grassroots has to be heard across the Country and be willing to work not just post on a website about what is wrong. It takes money, time, and effort -- a lot of time and effort but it can be done. You have to start TODAY to get good candidates.
Hopefully, this past week's events are a good sign. With the $50 billion spending cut bill passing and the rejection of pulling out of Iraq- we are moving in the right direction
Hmmmm?? How many times have you called, emailed, or written to your representatives and/or senators ..??
You're right, KCRW. The Dems have moved left all the way into Communist territory and the teeter-totter (see-saw) is tilting dangerously their way. As in a sailboat heeling over in the wind, lets get as many people as we can to go as far to the right as we are able, even as far as George Washington!
Luckily, I have a conservative for a congressman. He hears from me often- he voted for the $50 billion budget cuts.
My senators on the other hand- Kohl and Feingold- completely ignore me. I cannot imagine why? But I keep harrassing them anyway.
America is swinging to the right and we are still not at the high water mark.
Think of America as a huge pendulum. In the 1960's and 70's the pendulum swung far to the left mostly due to the sexual revolution.
Sex has a huge influence on people (as seen with advertising) and when people let loose with more sexual freedom in a country that is very religious and where it had been kept under the table in the movies and media, that caused a swing to the left. Unfortunately that was not all that was going on at that time. Throw in Vietnam and the unpopular draft and you got a crazy wide swing to the left.
This has cost America dearly in many respects such as abortion, reverse discrimination, homosexual agendas, drug abuse and such.
So being swung to the left and staying there was unachievable due to these grotesque negative effects and America slowly came back towards the middle in the 1980's and 90's.
Then 9/11 happened and add to that all the vile smut that is completely open on the internet and people have now gotten serious again and we are swinging to the right.
The last election was found to be about "morals" and we are in a time of war while at the same time wanting to build a family life to enjoy after all the divorce wreckage of the leftie years.
The American pendulum is now still on its way up to the right but there is a chance it might stop short of its true high mark. Not because society is ill with bad effects from swinging to the right because there really are none with family values (unlike the left that had all those vile negative effects I listed) but because of constant hysterics from Michael Moore-like political traitors and a biased media exploitation of a general public desire to pull back from bloodshed.
That is why we need to stay on top of Iraq and even get real with Iran to settle the Middle East mess for good. This vote on Iraq where we won 403 to 3 was a beautiful thing and we need to stay on top now. Iran does need to be next and I suggest we get that done without a draft. No matter if all we do is drop bombs on them then that is going to have to be good enough. Hopefully that will help make change in Iran, if not we just keep bombing (their military and nuclear factories) from time to time when they FORCE us to.
If we go the way of the draft we will cut short our swing to the right and we need to protect our momentum because as we go right the country becomes a better place, the world becomes a better place and there really is no good reason to fall back towards the left. We can become the family values-oriented and responsible nation with our full potential realized the way we owe it to our children. Not perfect people but certainly much better as a society with little influence and control from the far left.
Elder Bush tried the "down the middle" approach and where did that get him? Now Sonny Bush is in his last 4 years is trying the same thing.
I would be HAPPY to see more moderates in the US House and Senate - if they were all from the Dem'crat side. That party NEEDS a little moderation from the truly exaggerated political posturing they are so fond of.
If politicians spent less time in Washington, then these sentiments would never even occur to them! Tells ya how out of touch they all are.
When Bush first uttered those words “compassionate conservatism,” I knew right there and then we were in deep trouble. And sure enough.
As far as I can tell the GOP has just slowed the rate of our slide into socialism.
The most absurd depiction in politics today is "the far right" when in fact we already are edging from the middle to the left and the DNC is off scale to the left.
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