Posted on 04/25/2008 3:28:20 PM PDT by goldstategop
RUSH: In the first hour of the program -- and I want to go through some of this again, because it's crucially important. As you know, the North Carolina Republican Party has an ad. They are not going to pull the ad. It is an ad that is... Its intent is to cause doubt among North Carolina voters about the Democrat gubernatorial candidates. It uses sound bites from the Reverend Wright. Here is that ad.
FEMALE ANNOUNCER: For 20 years, Barack Obama sat in his pew listening to his pastor.
WRIGHT (screaming): And then wants us to sing God Bless America? No, no, no! Not God Bless America. God (bleep) America!
FEMALE ANNOUNCER: Now, Bev Perdue and Richard Moore endorse Barack Obama. They should know better. He's just too extreme for North Carolina.
DAVES: The North Carolina Republican Party sponsored this ad opposing Bev Perdue and Richard Moore for North Carolina governor.
RUSH: On the Today show today, Meredith Vieira asked John McCain: Why can't you get this ad canceled? "You've called this ad 'degrading,' and you've asked the state party to pull it, but so far they've refused to do that. Why do you think they're not listening to you, A? And why do you believe that they would continue to raise questions about Senator Obama's patriotism?"
MCCAIN: They're not listening to me because they're out of touch with reality and the Republican Party. We are the party of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan, and this kind of, uh, campaigning is unacceptable. I've said that. It will harm, uh, the Republicans' cause, and I've done everything that I can to repudiate and to see that this kind of campaigning does not, uh, continue. I have engaged in and will continue a respectful campaign of either Senator Obama or Senator Clinton.
RUSH: (McCain impression) "They're not listening to me. They're not listening to me, 'cause -- 'cause they're out of touch. They're out of touch with reality!" Senator McCain is attacking his own party. The North Carolina GOP is not backing down, and they are fundraising successfully off of this. Meredith Vieira then said, "Senator Obama said that if you wanted to, you could get that ad pulled; because you are [the head honcho now]. So if you can't get the ad pulled, does it raise any questions about your leadership?"
MCCAIN: I don't know exactly how to respond to that except that I would hope that, uh, Senator Obama would, uh, repudiate and apologize for his remarks concerning the heartland of America; where his elitist remarks indicated that people who are hard working, dedicated people who harbor traditional values and principles and value their religion and Second Amendment of the Constitution; would not be treated in an elitist fashion. I hope he'll apologize for that.
RUSH: Yeah. This is not the sandbox. This is the big leagues.
"You apologize."
"You repudiate!"
"I've repudiated. You repudiate!"
"I've apologized. You apologize!"
This is embarrassing. Next on the CBS Early Show today, Maggie Rodriguez was talking to Senator McCain. "The Republican Party in North Carolina is planning to run an ad bashing Senator Obama. I know you opposed the ad, but they're running it anyway. So what does that say about you, that you haven't opposed it strongly enough or your own party is blatantly disagreeing and disregarding your wishes?" MCCAIN: It means that the Republican Party of the state of North Carolina is dead wrong. They are an independent organization. I'll do everything in my power to make sure not only they stop it, but that kind of leadership is rejected; and the overwhelming majority of Republicans in North Carolina share my view.
RODRIQUEZ: But as the Republican nominee for president, couldn't you pick up the phone and call the head of the North Carolina GOP and say, "Don't run it"?
MCCAIN: I have communicated that in every possible way, and, uh, I will, uh, continue to communicate that.
RUSH: "[T]he Republican Party of the state of North Carolina is dead wrong." Has he ever said the Democrat Party is "dead wrong"? Would he say the Democrat Party is dead wrong in a presidential campaign, or is that being too harsh? So once again Senator McCain is totally comfortable lighting out against his own party, insulting them. "They're out of touch with reality. They are dead wrong. They're not listening to me." Hey, senator? We're all mavericks now! You demand fealty and loyalty from us and these state parties. You demand that we not use Hussein's middle name -- uh, sorry, Barack's middle name. You go along with the notion that we shouldn't call him a liberal. We shouldn't talk about Reverend Wright. But you're free to walk across the aisle and make all kinds of attacks. You're free to trash your party. You reserve the right to do whatever you want to do and say what you want to say whatever you want to say it, but you chide us for the same behavior. We're all mavericks now! We're all independents now, Senator McCain, including the North Carolina Republican Party! Shepard Smith, yesterday, Fox News Channel, asked, "What about that North Carolina ad was offensive to you, Senator."
MCCAIN: I think it's -- Anyone who watched it was offensive in that it, uh, brought, ehh, elements into this race which are --
SMITH: Race?
MCCAIN: -- excuse me. Into this contest, of race, that are totally unacceptable. We are the party of Abraham Lincoln and the party of -- of Teddy Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan. That's just not the kind of advertising we want to do. We want this race decided on the issues.
RUSH: This is an issue. Jeremiah Wright and all of Obama's relationships attest to his character. That is an issue. Read the Federalist Papers, Senator McCain. So now they don't know how to listen to him. They're not listening to him. They're not representing the views of the Republican Party. They're dead wrong, and now their ad is racist. Has he ever said anything the Democrats do is racist? Would he say that Reverend Wright is racist? No! Of course not, folks! It's the North Carolina GOP that is racist, according to Senator McCain. It's clear he doesn't care about the Republican Party. He doesn't care about bringing it along. He doesn't care about building it up. He intends to win despite it. This from the Christian Science Monitor: "The announcement got buried in the avalanche of news coverage ahead of Tuesday's Democratic primary in Pennsylvania. But on the same day that Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton finished another lap in their slog for the nomination, the national Democratic Party launched its first television ad against [McCain].
"The 30-second spot, which will air for three weeks on CNN and MSNBC and targets John McCain's economic views, reflects a growing sense among Democratic leaders that the prolonged nomination fight is giving Senator McCain a free pass for too long. The ad coincides with a set of other Democratic Party efforts this week to counter the [McCain], including a national grass-roots door-knocking effort and a series of 'counter-activities' near McCain campaign stops and fundraisers. When McCain visits Oklahoma Friday, for instance, the state's Democratic Party will host a 'No Third Bush Term' rally and a union hall event with $2.30 hot dogs -- a poke at McCain's $2,300-a-plate fundraiser that night at a nearby Hilton." It's too bad the state Republican Party won't be there to help him. The state Democrat Party taking... Is McCain going to make them apologize on for making fun of him by having a $2.30 hot dog night? Is he going to demand that Obama repudiate the Oklahoma state Democrat Party for the way it's conducting itself in this campaign, as he repudiates of Republican Party of North Carolina?
Don't look for it. It's apparent to him the Democrat Party is not the enemy. His own party, apparently, poses the greatest obstacle to Senator McCain. It's obvious to me, folks, that Senator McCain has no intention of rebuilding the Republican Party as an institution. He just wants to use is it as a means to achieve his ends and leave it in whatever state of disrepair, or repair it is when he is done -- and we know this because the purposely of McCain-Feingold was to cripple the party system; McCain's revenge when he lost the 2000 Republican primary, which he blamed on party officials and blamed on George W. Bush. So, final question here: "If Senator McCain is to be praised as a 'maverick,' as an 'independent,' then why shouldn't the rest of us get the same praise?" I want to be very clear about this. If Senator McCain is campaigning not as a Republican or conservative, but as a "maverick" and "independent," with license to criticize his own party so as to impress Democrats and the media; then why shouldn't we behave the same way?
What do I mean by this? It's very simple. Why should Republicans vote for McCain, just because he's a Republican? What reason? He's a Republican, so Republicans ought to vote for him, is that how this works? Well, McCain teaches that's the wrong thing to do! You don't support Republican presidents and their policies just because they're Republicans. No! You don't do that. So why should we support his candidacy just because he's a Republican? Why should conservatives get behind McCain, just because he claims to be conservative? McCain teaches us that that's the wrong thing to do as well. So if he's not going to be loyal to his own party and to conservative principles, why should Republicans be loyal to him? Why should conservatives be loyal to him? We're all mavericks now. He reserves the right to dictate to all Republicans what they do say, should not say, when; but then he at the same time reserves for himself the right to abandon the Republican Party? We have to stay on the reservation; he can wander off any time he wants? BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: Durham, North Carolina -- sorry, "Dur'm," North Carolina. Welcome to the program, sir.
CALLER: Mega dittos, Rush.
RUSH: Thank you.
CALLER: Long-time listener, first-time caller.
RUSH: I appreciate that.
CALLER: It's my honor to speak to you.
RUSH: I appreciate that.
CALLER: Rush, as a North Carolina Republican, I'm mad as hell about John McCain's comments. Who does he think he is to tell us how to run our local elections? I mean, I was prepared, you know, to hold my nose and vote for John McCain even though he's not a Jesse Helms-Ronald Reagan Republican. But why should we vote for somebody who insults us? If John McCain loses states like North Carolina, he's finished. He can't win the presidency without us. He says we need to listen to him? He'd better wake up and listen to us, if he wants us to like him.
RUSH: It is mystifying. As I said earlier in the broadcast: I can't relate to that kind of ego even though I have one of the most renowned egos in modern media.
CALLER: (laughing)
RUSH: I can't relate to it.
CALLER: He's living in a parallel universe. He cannot win without our support.
RUSH: He said in one of these sound bites that the majority of people in North Carolina agreed with him on this.
CALLER: No. He's dead wrong.
RUSH: He said it. He's deluding himself.
CALLER: Well, I had not heard those comments 'til you played them, and I appreciate you playing them today because I had not heard them until then.
RUSH: I should have given a blood pressure alert warning, though.
CALLER: (laughing) And the other thing I want to say, Rush -- and I'm sure you're aware of this, but probably a lot of people aren't -- is that WRAL-TV here in the triangle, Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area --
RUSH: Yeah.
CALLER: -- proudly announced that they are refusing to run that ad. Now, Rush, I would hope that North Carolinians of any political persuasion would be upset at the idea of censorship.
RUSH: That's not censorship. They can accept the advertising or not. That's within their right. The thing you have to ask yourself is, why. Why do you think they're not? I've got 25 seconds. I happen to know.
CALLER: Well, I mean, they think it's racist. But, you know, if you believe that Reverend Wright didn't say what he said and Obama sat there for 20 years and didn't listen to what he said, you gotta be Chris Matthews.
RUSH: (laughing) I can't top that.
CALLER: (laughing) Sure you can, Rush.
RUSH: I would bet you that the people that own that station or run that station have a bunch of wealthy liberal guilt, and aren't running it for that reason.
He has to go home and sit on his porch, that's what he has to do.
"...conclude that McCain is GUARANTEED to do untold damage to the Republican party and the principles of conservatism that are ultimately freedom's only guardian, while either Obama or Hillary in the White House would probably be weak within their own parties, have more people fighting them than not, quickly become pariahs, accomplish little of what so many fear they "will" do, and that backlash, combined with my and other conservatives' pointed rejection of McCain, would create an almost guaranteed benefit for the Republican party and conservatism....
Are you urging a McCain defeat as a means to benefit the "Republican Party." If so, this will be a hard sell since you assume a defeat would augur for better things when logic would assume a defeat is a defeat and the consequences are unknown albeit usually bad.
You go girl. :)
Yeah, it surely figures you'd use this pompous, secular, useless quote to show your arrogant selfish attitude, just like the hotheaded canidate you chose to align yourself with. It just shows your clueless outlook toward reality. Go ahead make enemies of your allies, see where you end up.
In time, people reflected. Most now see that we can solve this with a national identity card but the "real conservatives (as they portray themselves) don't want an identity card because it is a "show me your papers thing." On the other hand the ultra liberals count on those illegals to make the welfare system work and to vote whenever the coast is clear.
Tancredo, Hunter and Romney did not get traction with the illegal issue.
As far as some other McCain issues likely to infuriate others remember "it takes courage to make mistakes." Campaign finance reform was a mistake, but the problem was and is--do you really believe there isn't enough money in politics?
But the left in the form a republican can and will destroy the conservative movement. In the last 8 years we have seen the conservative movement barely able to get itself together with the abject failures of GWB. We have seen the party which we conservatives must work through being neutered.
It has been tossed out of the House of Representatives, the Senate, most of the state governorships that it possessed earlier as well as control of most of the state legislatures that it had earlier. GWB and his Rino associates such as Gonzales, Miers, Powell, Martinez, etc, etc have caused more damage to the conservative movement that a host of democrats could have inflicted.
I used to think Rush’s pomposity was shtick but her has become so full of himself that when his relevancy was questioned by the MSM he became hell bent on proving otherwise.
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No matter which of the three stooges is elected Rush , Hannity , Savage , Beck et al are out of business or moved to satellite radio as the FCC will re-impose the “fairness doctrine” ... he isn’t really being pompous , he’s going out with a bang... don’t think for a minute that McCain won’t appoint someone that’ll put it in effect , he’s already shown with Mc-Feingold that he doesn’t give a cr*p abut the first ammendment.
This is why I despise McPita. He is the epitomy of all that is wrong with the RNC. I want to get rid of him and his ilk. I want them to either get out or have conservatives force them out. (render their power useless) They are the cancer which will have to be cut out at some point in order for conservatives to survive in the repub party.
At some point conservatives will have no choice but to open up a major can of whoopass!
Huh? You said in a response to my post 51, and I quote, that "ad hominem seems to be your chief, if not single, means of argumentation."
So I asked you to elaborate how my post 51 appealed to peoples' emotions or prejudices over their ability to think. Say ... when's the last time you looked up ad hominem?
Are you urging a McCain defeat as a means to benefit the "Republican Party?"
Yes, in particular when the Republican Party in question represents a philosophy that gives popular big government policies priority over small government options to a level nearly equal to Democrats. Big government is the antithesis of conservatism; big government necessarily and by definition diminishes indivual freedoms and labor.
If so, this will be a hard sell since you assume a defeat would augur for better things when logic would assume a defeat is a defeat and the consequences are unknown albeit usually bad.
Suffice it to say your "logic" is different than mine.
From where I sit, there are few unknowns or gambles with regard to the consequences of a McCain victory. In my estimation, sure as sunset a McCain victory would result in:
}Severe disillusion among small-government voters with the Republican party
} Increased government infringement on freedom and my labor (tax dollars) under the name of "Republican" leadership
Less sure, but probable:
} More Democrats in Congress
} Stronger embrace of the communistic "Global Warming" environmental panic -- in the name of Republicans
} Mass confusion with regard to the WOT and policies with prisoners, in the name of Republicans
} Stronger embrace of the positively DEADLY prospect of nationalized health care in the name of Republicans.
As for the judges and the military, it a crap shoot in the same way it's a crap shoot to trust a colorblind guy tell you the green scarf from the red one. Conservative principle goes right over McCain's head, hence his ability to recognize conservatives.
An Obama or Hillary presidency would result in the same things except in the name of the Democrat party. Judges and the military would be more dangerous -- less of a crapshoot, but one can hope that enough right-thinkers could get into congress to battle bad decisions. On the other hand, among "less sure but "probable" or at at the very least possible --
} Recoil within the Republican party at the rejection of McCain
} More Republicans in Congress
} Intense division within the Democrat party
} Increased perception of the Democrat Liberalism bringing on heavier-handed government
If you ask me, the "consequences of the unknown" are a better gamble with the Democrats. But maybe it doesn't matter.
I'm a chicken-livered gamblin type, but I think McCain's going to crack one way or another at some point (so would/will Hillary! What a GAS!) and in the election, it's his vice presidential candidate who's being elected (not so in Hillary's case, I wouldn't think). That's the way I'm going to vote, anyway.
And as a politician: As a verb, it means to seize something without holding a lawful claim to it. Wickipedia
It will soon become to be defined as stabbing your own supporters in the back and then being insane enough to expect them to like it.
Your dictionary is different than my Encarta.
LMAO. If you believe that I got a bridge in Brooklyn for sale you might be interested in.
1. Gang of Fourteen (Kept some of President Bush’s best judges from being presented for a vote)
2. McCain-Fiengold (Assault on Free Speech and Pro-Life groups and Gun-rights groups)
3. McCain-Kennedy (Amnesty for criminal Illegal Aliens)
4. McCain-Lieberman (50 cents a gallon tax)
5. Total support for global warming scam, including carbo cap and trade system.
6. Support for embryonic stem cell research (Murder of unborn babies).
7. Leaked top-secret information concerning CIA prisons in Europe
8. Wants to close Gitmo and give Terrorists access to our legal system.
9. F grade from Gun-Owners of America.
10. C- grade from NRA.
11. 60% score from American Conservative Union in 2006
12. Wants to bail out sub-prime losers (many of which are either illegal aliens or lied on thier applications) with US tax money.
13. Voted against President Bush’s tax cuts (called them tax-cuts for the rich)
14. Flirted with the idea of crossing over to the Dems in 2004.
The time is right now for conservatives and likeminded people to STOP voting for moderates/rino's just for the sake of it.
Go, Finny!
Who is and who is not a “conservative” depends on a self definition. If you believe you are a “conservative” you are one.
So, if Hillary were to call herself a "conservative" would you accept that?
”Second, the conservative adheres to custom, convention and continuity.”
”Fifth, conservatives pay attention to the principle of variety.”
How can he possibly use two directly opposite axioms as part of his thesis?
Ninth, the conservative perceives the need for prudent restraints upon power and human passions.”
I certainly don't ascribe restraint on passion as any kind of desirable construct for conservatism or any other ideology. Opponents of conservatism have it right then, when they note that conservatives lack passion and human emotion and equate us to automatons that cannot see the human standing next to us if they follow Kirk's definition.
”Tenth, the understands permanence and change must be recognized and reconciled in a vigorous society.” The conservative is not opposed to social progress. “…Although he doubts whether there is any such force as mystical Progress, with a Roman P, at work in the world.” Where something progresses something else is usually in decline.
Is he now saying the "mystical Progress", which I would attribute to God, is not a conservative construct when earlier he declared God as a basic tenet of conservatism?
This essay rambles and reaches for a sort of all inclusive definition of conservatism. I don't buy it.
This is one of his best essays and most see it as a masterpiece of expository writing. Apparently you disagree.
Remember, the modern conservative movement began with Kirk's The Conservative Mind: From Burke to Eliot (1956). A long book, that he summarized with the lecture in question.
McCain’s ACU rating lifetime is 83 out of 100 and 80 out 100 for 2006. Good enough for me. If it isn’t for you, that is too bad but the world will go on.
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