Posted on 01/17/2006 10:53:56 AM PST by Reagan Man
When Rep. John Shadegg jumped into the race for House majority leader last week, he called himself a "Reaganite" who would bring back the Gipper's vision of limited government. Rep. John Boehner, also running for majority leader, is sounding a similar note, quoting the 40th president extensively in his 37-page proposal on how to get the party back on track.
It's telling that now, five years into the second Bush presidency, conservatives are still looking for the next Ronald Reagan to champion their ideas in Washington.
Both Messrs. Boehner and Shadegg are promising to bring Reagan back because over the past five years the party appears to have been seduced by the very forces it came to Washington to overturn--rampant spending with expansive new federal entitlements.
~snip~
Of course, limited government wasn't original to Reagan, and many of his ideas are inherent in President Bush's governing philosophy, such as combating the nation's enemies by spreading freedom around the world. But it was Reagan who branded these ideas into the nation's consciousness by using them to remake one of the two dominant political parties. And it was Reagan who proved to be the change agent in Washington.
(Excerpt) Read more at opinionjournal.com ...
Mike Pence, and to a lesser degree Mark Sanford, Tom Coburn, and Tom Tancredo could all make excellent, more-or-less Reaganesque candidates in 2008, with proper support and backing, starting NOW.
Strongly preferring Pence at this moment.
Note to republicans...we want to see some action not words!
Agreed 150%.
I am as cynical as you. The only saving grace is that Republicans at least love American and try for the most part to take national security seriously, while the democrats hate America and could care less about national security.
Will the Conservatives accept the REGAN Democrats ???
If not, they lose !!
"It's all talk. And too many people want want want from the feds."
You have nailed the problem right on the head.
We won't have limited government until WE the People, dismantle this Gorilla from the bottom up.
I've got news for ya. Those Reagan Democrats of 1980 quickly became Reagan Republicans.
GWB is NOT in the twilight of his presidency. He has 3 full years left. He will continue to reshape the ME and beyond, he will reform Social Security (THAT DREADED THIRD RAIL) once and for all, he will continue to cut taxes and likely revamp the tax code, he will reign in the growth of the federal budget, he will tackle the illegal immigration problem, he will continue to slap the UN like a red headed step child, he will continue with robust military spending (aside from the war) and he will set the table very nicely for a competent Republican to win in 2008. Not bad for a 2nd term.
As of today, the elapsed time since 9/11 is eight months longer than the time between Pearl Harbor and V-J Day.
Combine that with the PC-hobbled "homeland security" department and the administration's unwillingness to candidly name the enemy's ideology.
I think it's way too early to use an adjective like "successful"
Strong national defense
A nanny state to keep us "safe"
More and more shovels full of free gubmint money for everyone (although admittedly a buck or two less than the Dems would spend)
This is what the man wants. This is what America voted for. And this is what it's getting.
Yep. And it took an atom bomb to do it. I'm glad they did, but if they had not, it would have been at least 2 more years of bloody fighting. And we also occupied Japan with many troops for many years after. Afghanistan (where all empires fail...remember) fell in weeks. Baghdad fell in weeks. Now we are in the occupancy stages of both countries and will be for a couple more years. Looks damn successful to me.
Hmmmm. I'll double check those numbers. Seems to me it was not JUST defense spending that shot thru the roof. Are you sure those are not waht he proposed versus what he got back from Congress?
I see it differently then you do.
You get no argument from me on the President's defense of America and prosecuting the WOT. But this isn't about that. Its about advanicng a conservative agenda for the future of the Republican Party. If the GOP wants to remain the majority party in America serious changes must take place. Its about controlling run away federal spending on social welfare and entitlement programs and putting the brakes on an ever expanding federal bureaucracy. Its also about advancing real immigration reform that addresess the open borders issue, prosecution of employers who hire illegals and welfare handouts to illegals. And all without Bush`s guest worker program that is nothing more then backdoor amnesty.
I see no action from Bush on either Social Security reform or redesigning the US tax code. That was first term priority. There might be some tweaking of the tax code, but nothing more.
>>>>Not bad for a 2nd term.
Good on the foreign policy side. But bad on the domestic policy side.
I may be angry with the Republicans, but I'm not crazy enough to vote Libertarian or Democrat and hopefully most other conservatives are not either.
Those were real changes in budgets.
Spending did increase in certain areas I believe by tack-ons to bills that would fall under discretionary but not in the realm of the specific agency.
When I can get on a plane carrying my Leatherman, and visit the Smithsonian without having my camera bag searched, and the traffic barriers come down in front of the White House, that's when I'll agree we've won the war.
Well stated. It will be awhile, to be sure. The problem is that we are fighting an islamo-scum ideology that stretches from the far east, centered in the ME, to many parts of Africa, with sleepers sprinkled throughout the west. If it were only the nation-states of Iraq, Iran, Syria etc, then it would be easily contained. It is not. Far too long the west was asleep at the wheel. If it were not for the US, the west would have to capitulate.
Change years to decades....
Not at the high levels we currently have. Hopefully, we will have a nice big airbase or two in each country for the rest of history.
I doubt that Boehner would be serious about border control. He is a very good Catholic, and the Catholic churches here are using the underground illegal railroad to bring in many illegal Mexicans. They are taking jobs away from the building trade workers (citizens) like crazy. The women are all having a baby every year, which is free at our local hospital. I don't expect any help from Boehner to change this.
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