Posted on 06/21/2007 9:53:32 AM PDT by Josh Painter
Many conservatives... were alarmed when Bush and Rove went on their big government expansion spree by siding with Ted Kennedy on “No Child Left Behind” and the arm twisting that went on by Tom Delay the President’s water carrier for big government in the House by the passage of the Prescription Drug bill arguably the largest expansion of government since the New Deal...
Less than a year into Bush's second term, the President's approval rating was down around 40 percent.
To hold on to power it was thought that earmarks and largesse were key.
Coupled with an unpopular and mismanaged war, the inability of Bush and Congress to secure our southern border, the ineptness of the response Hurricane Katrina, the Jack Abramoff and the Mark Foley scandals the stage was set for a disastrous 2006 election.
The result was predictable...
Now in June of 07 President Bush’s approval rating hovers in the low 30’s and the party is torn apart by the disconnect between the Washington elites and the grassroots over illegal immigration.
Bush accused conservatives of “not wanting to do what’s right for America" when it comes to illegal immigration.”
Conservatives would argue that a novel idea might be to follow the rule of law and enforce the laws that are currently on the books, particularly during a time of War.
What is clear is that the conservative movement and the Republican Party are in a rebuilding phase.
The "Center Right" Republican majority forged by Reagan and Gingrich has been squandered by Rove's realignment pipe dream that was based on the premise of big government for the sake of power.
The damage to the country, the conservative movement and the Republican Party may take years if not decades to repair.
(Excerpt) Read more at townhall.com ...
Pales in comparrison to BJ - Clintoon squandered Reagan's Cold War victory.
The no child left behind bill, the prescription bill, the failure to make tax cuts permanent and the mismanagement of the war (making our guys stand trial for the murder of civilians during engagements) mark Bush as a failed president. The loss of the house and senate can be laid at his door also. However, this immigration bill puts him on the level of Jimmy Carter. I would say they are both tied for the worst president ever to serve in my lifetime award.
The Repubs have an equally dismal rating. Probably most Americans will not bother to vote in 2008 if this illegal immigraton bill goes through. The base will decide the winners. The Republicans have destroyed their base. They have no base anymore.
The Abramhoff and Foley “scandals” were solely the inventions of the MSM-DNC. If not, then why after the 2006 elections, did they faded off the radar faster than a UFO in a Sci-fi movie?
How were they an invention by the MSM-DNC? Are you saying they never happened?
Everyone associated with the Foley scandal was Republican - Foley, Hastert, Boehner, Tom Reynolds, the house clerk, etc. Whatever happened to Foley; he was supposed to have checked into rehab (for alcohol, no less) for a month (to avoid the press presumably) but don't know what happened to him after that.
As far as the Abrimoff scandal goes, it is not on the front page very much but it is still ongoing. I think Abrimoff is still cooperating. One of the latest to be caught up in it was J. Stephen Griles, who pleaded guilty of obstruction of justice back in March.
I'm so sick of this ridiculous "conventional wisdom" about the response. Bush was ahead of the game and that worthless Gov. Blanco never gave authorization and admits the DNC was telling her to hold off to "embarrass Bush"!
The National Guard and military performed a miracle in the air getting people out of danger flying thousands of missions.
And FEMA performed exactly as it had in every natural disaster - with bureaucratic ineptness. So Katrina wasn't new.
And let's point to the elephant in the room - when talking about Katrina what the press and pundits are really saying is "New Orleans", a dysfunctional city that had warning but, as usual, did nothing.
He was the leader of the Republicans at that time, and let the Clintonistas and Dems get away with framing it about sex. He should have brought up the real charge of TREASON, which was what he had with the Riady's arranging People's Republic of China Liberation Army money for the president's reelection, kickbacks from cronies at Loral so they could sell advanced missile technology to a known enemy of the USA, shutting of Utah's access to low sulfer coal thus allowing the Lippo group sole possesor of world class low sulfer coal, etc, etc, etc.
All Newt could do was b!tch about where he sat on USAF 1. He could have grown a pair as the leader of the House and stopped the treason when he had a chance.
I do agree that the charges they finally brought against Clinton were serious--lying under oath and obstruction of justice--but it could have been so much more had the REAL crimes been brought up.
Bush and Rove gave us no Gore or Kerry Administrations. I don’t care what your opinion of GWB is or has become. We would have been much worse off under either of those bozos.
Now compare that to the Dem Congressman in Louisiana with with the $$$ in the freezer. Still serving! How ‘bout Harry Reid’s illegal land deals in Nevada? Or Diane Feinstein’s husband getting prime Navy property in San Fran? Or Murtha’s shady dealing with DoD contractors? Each and every one of these scandals I heard about from Free Republic and/or Fox News.
None of these got air time on the Driveby Media in Sept-Nov 2006. They only had room for Foley. I remember well that in early Sept of 2006 the Republicans numbers in the House and Senate were starting to go up. Then the Foley scandal was dropped and the DBM was ordered to drum beat it to death. It worked. ABC's Brian Ross Investigates spent a whole month on Foley stories.
The DBM made the Foley scandal much greater than all the multiple scandals the Dems were involved in because they wanted the Dems to win.
his tax cut.
That sunsets in a couple of years doesn’t it?
“It is a war on terror!”
Yup.
6000+ unknowns wandering across our southern border each week.
WOT.
Indeed.
Go sell silly somewhere else.
Nailed it. And THAT is why the dishonest, lying, activist MSM is utterly hated by people who have eyes to see.
And what of CNN’s special series, “A Broken Government” run in the weeks leading up to the 2006 elections?
And what of the activist media donating their own financial skin on a ratio of 9 to 1?
And what of the editorial survey that consistently shows that greater than 90% of editors vote Democrat.
Nope, no bias at all. Pffft.
“Now compare that to the Dem Congressman in Louisiana with with the $$$ in the freezer. Still serving! How ‘bout Harry Reid’s illegal land deals in Nevada? Or Diane Feinstein’s husband getting prime Navy property in San Fran? Or Murtha’s shady dealing with DoD contractors? Each and every one of these scandals I heard about from Free Republic and/or Fox News.
None of these got air time on the Driveby Media in Sept-Nov 2006. They only had room for Foley. I remember well that in early Sept of 2006 the Republicans numbers in the House and Senate were starting to go up. Then the Foley scandal was dropped and the DBM was ordered to drum beat it to death. It worked. ABC’s Brian Ross Investigates spent a whole month on Foley stories.”
Alas, that is exactly why I thought/hoped that FR readers would know enough to NOT fall for the DBM’s manipulation. Instead, they went for it hook line and sinker. Repubs are corrupt! Well duh, many politicians are - including SOME Repubs - but certainly no more than Dems. And the GOP tends to discipline its misbehavors quite effectively (as you cite, Foley was required to resign). That is a good approach, I think.
Insisting upon 100% purity is just not realistic, this side of Heaven. R voters should have reminded themselves of man’s imperfect nature, and the media’s extreme bias, and taken the Foley story with a grain of salt. If FReepers, who are self-identified news junkies and better informed than most who only watch the evening news on their TVs, if they fall for this... is there any hope at all?
I wish we could get a conservative to BUY one of the broadcast networks. I guess that’s the only way we will get some coverage from our POV.
Don’t be manipulated, people. The media are even more dishonest than the worst politicians!
Then Newt resigning for the very issue we were confronting Clinton on...
He went after Clinton lying under oath in court....not adultery. Newt did bring about his own down fall by losing the faith of the GOP congress that he led and showed a series of character flaws along the way. He was a great leader of the party in vision and message, but did not manage the power very well. Other than that, you made many excellent points. A lot of the things that led to the down fall were false 'scandals' du jure that were aimed at accomplishing a GOP loss. From Iaq coverage to Katrina blame game to the Abramoff and Foley. The PR against the right in the past four years is unprecedented, for certain. Worse yet, the counter campaign has been, uh, lacking.
The cynical pandering of signing CFR so he could look like a reformer but figuring he was smarter than everyone else by half because he expected it to be struck down is when I mark the beginning of the end.
If AS means Arlen Specter then you can also thank Rick Santorum, who sabotaged Pat Toomey's chances by endorsing and campaigning for the RINO.
Are you all still happy with your "pragmatic" vote for this sellout?
Never was happy!, but I will no longer toe the "PRAGMATIC" line!
Another lesson learned the hard way!
Well, I do agree with that, but you have to understand that Bush and Rove took control of the DNC completely after 2004 and were responsible for the re-election effort. Now the GOP in congress did not help out much.
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