Bush's Base Betrayal

The Washington Post ^ | Sunday, May 21, 2006 | Richard A. Viguerie

[gwb43_2004]

As a candidate in 2000, George W. Bush was a Rorschach test. Country Club Republicans saw him as another George H.W. Bush; some conservatives, thinking wishfully, saw him as another Ronald Reagan. He called himself a "compassionate conservative," which meant whatever one wanted it to mean. Experts from across the party's spectrum were flown to Austin to brief Bush and reported back: "He's one of us."

Republicans were desperate to retake the White House, conservatives were desperate to get the Clinton liberals out and there was no direct heir to Reagan running for president. So most conservatives supported Bush as the strongest candidate -- some enthusiastically and some, like me, reluctantly. After the disastrous presidency of his father, our support for the son was a triumph of hope over experience.

[unseen]

It is not hard to believe that out of 10 men you will find 5 that are not worth the trouble or energy to be friends with. And it is not hard to find that 3 out of ten women are the same ( in fact I would say its closer to 5 out of ten for women too). Look at it this way out of all the people you have met in your lifetime how many have become close friends? friends that you would give your life for? Friends that would give their life for you? The answer for the majority of people are not very many. Why? because there just aren't that many good people in the world today.

[HitmanLV]

I agree, but that can't mean that those large numbers are that bad, either.

[Nuc1]

"And the Senate changes hands (it's democratic already anyway in all but name) If these two things happen watch McCain drop out of the race and more conservative candidates run for 2008."

The greatest threat to the USA is the SCOTUS. A democratic congress will ensure the lunatic left wing judges will be replaced with similar lunatic left wing judges and there will be no way to stop them. If these people take over the senate IMHO our republic is doomed. We must gain in the senate because having more votes is how you implement your agenda. It is how you defend the constitution. Mad? So am I. Feel betrayed, so do I. Crying in my beer. Not me. If you are, get your grieving about what could have been over with. Then join the rest of us to minimize the damage done by the poor policies and outright foolishness of some of our leaders.

No warship of the United States has ever struck it colors in the face of the enemy. IMHO the threat to our nation now is greater than it has ever been, and this conservative does not intend to strike my colors in my nations time of need. I hope I can count on your help, if not, then I will fight. Alone if necessary.

McCain has absolutely no chance of winning the presidential nomination in the Republican Party.

[Dawnsblood]

I have been wondering for a year or two how many Moby Republicans were here on FR. Reading this tread I am guessing quite a few.

Moby suggests that it's possible to seed doubt among Bush's far-right supporters on the Web.

"You target his natural constituencies," says the Grammy-nominated techno-wizard. "For example, you can go on all the pro-life chat rooms and say you're an outraged right-wing voter and that you know that George Bush drove an ex-girlfriend to an abortion clinic and paid for her to get an abortion.

"Then you go to an anti-immigration Web site chat room and ask, 'What's all this about George Bush proposing amnesty for illegal aliens?'"

Of course this was '04... Surely there is no way they would try again in '06!

[Tribune7]

Immigration

Immigration hmmm what specifically bothers you about Dubya's immigration policy?

Spending

And here I was thinking that spending bills started in the House of Representatives which is safely in the hands of "conservatives".

Dubai ports

You mean the place where the U.S. Navy docked 590 supply vessels and 56 warships much of it in support of our effort in Iraq?

Meir's nomination

You mean the conservative whose nomination was pulled for another conservative with more gravitas?

Katrina mess

You think Bush was wrong to push Blanco and Nagin to evacuate New Orleans? You know he was the one who pushed for it right?

out of control budget

Those danged conservatives in the House again.

bigger government

That's a fair complaint although the did get us the House and Senate.

drug coverage

Ditto that

no child left behind

We should listen to the true conservatives in the NEA as to how bad it is

campaign reform

Which led to the wildest and widest open campaign in my memory.

wire taps

Exactly!! There is no need to monitor overseas phone call to people with terrorist connections. Nobody really want to hurt us. 911 was an accident.

backing specter in the 04 election

You mean the Republican incumbent?

Cafta

Like Reagan supported NAFTA?

Trade policy New world order view point.

[napscoordinator]

I agree with the fact that we had to hold his feet to the fire, but I think we got two very good people on the bench (I guess I have a higher opinion of Roberts than you, but we shall see) regardless of how we got them (and they were nominated by Bush, despite how they got the nod.)



The only thing that the Roberts court has done so far is not take important cases that I believe they should have. That is some what disappointing.

[BW2221]

Don't forget Ford gave us one of few justices on a par with Warren and Brennan - John Paul Stevens. Also remember he banged his head getting into AF One and helicopters a lot. Should have saved his old leather U-M helmet.

Again, Ford wasn't a true conservative. I think Reagan was the only true conservative president since 1933.

[unseen]

If they are not good enough to be a friend how are they not bad. People tend to forget that human history is one of might over right. Of deception over truth. There are very few people that I would trust with my life. Does that make them 'bad'. I think yes. Put another way. If a person lied to a neighbor about a broken window is that person 'bad' to you if it was not your neighbor and he didn't have the money to replace it. Now if that same person lied to you about your window would you think he was bad? I think yes to both. Most people think no to the one and yes to the other. To me a lair is a liar and not a person I want to be around.

[Maximus_Ridiculousness]

It was a series of events that got me thinking the same way too. For me, it really started when my hubby was in Iraq. As far as I'm concerned, Iraq has been a grossly mismanaged war from day one (I blame Rummy, actually, for that). I do support the overall war on terror, don't get me wrong, but Iraq is a different story for me. My complaint is that our soldiers have their hands tied and they're being turned into 'friend makers' and 'peace keepers' which they are not trained to do (unless they’re in Civil Affairs). Let our guys FIGHT wars, and let FRANCE or the Useless Nations be peace-keeping soldiers.

Anyway, since Bush's re-election, he has done a couple of minor good things, but to be honest, he's slipped further and further left on everything else, so much so that the lines between Democrat and Republican have dangerously blurred. The border security/illegal immigration issue was **THE** last straw for me. I am so disgusted with the man that I can’t bare to look at him on the television anymore. When he comes on to speak, I change the channel.

And my feeling now on voting is….why bother? (BTW, I voted for Bush twice.) There may be drastic philosophical differences between Republicans and Democrats, in general, but in reality, in my opinion, both parties currently seem devastatingly united. I almost can’t see a difference anymore. (Is it just me?!?) I feel that not just the president has sold us down the river, but most of our Republican reps have too (especially in Kalifornia).

[AmeriBrit]

we managed to get Clinton to balance the budget
.........................................................

He 'balanced the budget' by reducing our military down to the bare bones and what was left of the military had to use old, obsolete equipment and the lower ranks had to go on food stamps. Also his 'balanced budget' gave us 9/11 and the loss of 3,000 lives and a war in Iraq to contend with resulting in another 2,000 + lives lost.

Clinton didn't do one thing in the positive for this country or her citizens. Everything he did, he did for himself and his commie buddies and no-one else.

[HitmanLV]

Any one single set of bad decusions doesnt make a person bad. Chronic or habituially bad conduct or bad decisions does. Get it?

[unseen]

I will be voting in 06. For the most conservative person I can find. I will continue to call and write my elected leaders in Congress. However, I will not vote for anyone that has lied to me, that has decreased the national security in return for a short term poll bounce. If faced with that in the ballot box I will leave that person's name blank. I will not give my vote to a liberal but neither will I give it to a person that does not deserve simply because he/she has an r beside it.

[BW2221]

If you have been following FR since Monday, you should realize that you don't need the Washington Post to divide us. Bush's Monday night speech did more to alienate conservatives and divide Republicans (not necessarily the same thing) than MSM ever dreamed of doing.

[Ronin]

Good point.

[napscoordinator]

Why? What's the social value served by sticking by a dreadful spouse?



The answer to the question he asked way too many times was "till death do us part" he does not even understand the meaning of this. I have no ill feeling towards your feelings, but I do think that Newt is a loser. Of course feel free to vote for him. I won't and find that many others won't either. Dude, come one were not even talking about one time mistake, we are talking multiple. We do not give people with no morals the highest office of the land KNOWINGLY!!!! (I had to say that because of President Clinton).

[HitmanLV]

I have explicitly said that this isn't a defense of Newt, and that I don't think he is a good candidate at all.

Cheating on a spouse doesn't necessarily make someone a dreadful person. That's my main point, really.

[napscoordinator]

Everything he did, he did for himself and his commie buddies and no-one else.



It seems like President Bush took lessons from President Clinton....commie buddies like the Fox guy huh? I would say that is a friendship made in he!!.

[sauropod]

Mine is when he refused to veto the Farm Bill (2000).

I knew then that what I feared before the election was true. We were screwed. 'Pod.

[napscoordinator]

I voted for Alan Keyes in the last two Republican primaries ('96 & 2000). OK go ahead and laugh, but I love his views on the Second Amendment and his understanding of our Constitution AND the Declaration of Independence (a forgoten political document in the US). And woe be it to the candidate who comes on stage AFTER Keyes makes his speach.


I am not laughing just pitying you.

[BW2221]

"I think one of the big mistakes liberals make is assuming that the extremely wealthy and the corporate elites are fundamentally "conservative" or Republican. I think one of the big mistakes grass roots conservative make is in assuming the same thing."

Exactly. In today's world, most top executives simply care about maximizing their incomes by maximizing their company's profits without caring if it has any effect on the U.S.

Lee Raymond of ExxonMobil is the ultimate example. His retirement parachute is the equivalent of the annual base pay of 23,359 E2 grade soldiers/sailors/airmen/marines in the U.S. military.