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Karl "The Architect" Rove: The GOP Must Stand for Something
WSJ ^ | May 15th, 2008 | Karl Rove

Posted on 05/14/2008 9:31:24 PM PDT by The_Republican

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To: 2ndDivisionVet
The GOP once stood for small government, individualism, self-reliance, entrepreneurship, a strong & adequate defense, adherence to the U.S. Constitution, a level playing field without resorting to set-asides and reverse discrimination, lowering taxes, cutting red tape & unnecessary regulation, civil rights and freedom. What was wrong with those things?!

Nothing is wrong with those things. But some people are social conservatives of they type who don't want less government, they want a different government, but not necessarily smaller.

Many of those people, as well-meaning as they are, have been in charge lately.

Until those people are no longer in decision making positions within the GOP, it is hard to make a case that the GOP is for smaller government when it is not.

If you go to the voters with the argument that "We know best, let us give you conservative versions of everything", you really have nothing to say against a Democrat that says "We know best, let us give you liberal versions of everything".

Whereas, "We don't know better than you, let us remove ourselves from your lives to the largest degree possible" is a powerful statement that transforms people.

41 posted on 05/14/2008 10:25:30 PM PDT by mountainbunny
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To: wardaddy

I think Rove is a lot like God ...Im sure he is listening to you...


42 posted on 05/14/2008 10:27:18 PM PDT by woofie
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To: The_Republican

bump 4 later


43 posted on 05/14/2008 10:33:34 PM PDT by lesser_satan (Cthulu '08! Why vote for the lesser evil?)
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To: cowdog77
We should have been leery of "Compassionate Conservatives" but instead let the Republican National Committee and President George Bush set the agenda. Huge mistake. Bush did a poor job of selling the need for resuming the Iraq War (Saddam Hussein violated the Amistice he signed with the Allies back in 1991: violated it over 1000 times!). We were forced to resume the actions broken off in Desert Storm, but Bush didn't use that argument. Bush squandered his political capital on that lapse in communication, then proceeded to alienate the majority of party members with his stance on foreign nationals in this country illegally. The GOP has always prided itself on being the Law & Order party. Illegal aliens don't equate with our agenda. Bush ignored the base with this attempt to pander to Hispanic voters, based on the ridiculous assumption that they would vote Republican. Since most of the victims of violence caused by illegal aliens are either black or Hispanic, that doesn't appear to have worked. Duh!! We have to go back to the hard work at the grassroots, and get real Conservatives elected to Congress again, then get a Republican National Committee that deserves to be called Conservative. No Conservative candidate stood a chance this time around - the RNC saw to that. We have to change it from the bottom up.
44 posted on 05/14/2008 10:33:41 PM PDT by SatinDoll (Desperately desiring a conservative government.)
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To: SatinDoll

What happened to my paragraphs?? What is wrong tonight with FR?


45 posted on 05/14/2008 10:34:27 PM PDT by SatinDoll (Desperately desiring a conservative government.)
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To: The_Republican
Karl "The Architect" Rove: The GOP Must Stand for Something

The man who just spent eight years knocking down the foundations, now whining because the house is falling down.

46 posted on 05/14/2008 10:36:55 PM PDT by EternalVigilance (The formerly grand OLD party has completely Whigged out.( Join the new one: SelfGovernment.US))
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To: The_Republican
From Excalibur:You betrayed the Duke. You stole his wife. You took his castle. Now no one trusts you.

I fully believe if we gave the Republicans a full majority they'd go right back to throwing money to their buddies and telling us to screw off. I DO NOT TRUST THEM! I DON'T CARE WHAT JOHN MCCAIN OR ANY OTHER REPUBLICAN SAYS. I DO NOT TRUST THEM ANYMORE. That's after 25 years of voting Republican and nearly ten years of being a representative to the county and state conventions, and yes, donating hundreds of dollars.

When Bill Clinton was President, the country showed a budget surplus. Although some of the surplus came from gutting the military, and much of the rest came from Congress blocking Clinton's agenda, Bill Clinton still gets credit for balancing the budget. When the Republicans got the Presidency and both houses, they spent more money faster than any other entity in the history of the world.

No matter what had happened in previous years, the Republicans ALWAYS could play the "Democrats spend too much money" card. They wiped with that card and flushed it down the toilet.

Few people remember that in 2003, Bush had approval ratings in the mid-60s. I remember the day he made his announcement that he was going to push for amnesty for illegal aliens. His popularity plummeted after that. It was totally puzzling that he would make that push at that time. He was in the middle of pushing the Patriot Act, citizens were grudgingly allowing the stupidest searches on planes (I still won't fly, not because of fear, but because of the stupid searches) and Bush goes totally against everything he's been pushing since 9/11 by advocating and allowing a totally open southern border. His popularity spiked again when Saddam was caught, but he was seldom above 50% after that speech.

Rush Limbaugh pushed the Dubai ports deal, and it was the first time Bush threatened a veto. Many Freepers defended the Dubai deal, but IMHO, it was the point of no return for the approval ratings of the Bush Administration. It was spectacularly unpopular, and Chuck Schumer jumped all over it.

After that, they started court-martialing soldiers for no good reason, and began fighting a "kinder, gentler" war.

The apex of Republican stupidity was after congressman William Jefferson was caught with $50,000 worth of bribes in his freezer, and that damnable Denny Hastert turned a completely Democrat scandal into a bipartisan scandal by attacking the FBI.

I've posted here before about Rick Perry, the Texas governor, who was a Democrat until 1989, telling the county conventions in Texas in 2004 that the Republican party was a big tent, and if we were so tied to our narrow agendas that we couldn't accept it to get out, that the Republicans didn't need or want us.

The problem for the Republicans now is that former party members dislike the Democrats, but we HATE the Republicans. I don't trust them. Why should I? I donated, worked the party floors, and spent HOURS AND HOURS trying to get people to understand that the Republicans COULD NOT WIN without fiscal conservatives, social conservatives and libertarians. We HAD to balance the interests of all three groups. We found out, after they got all three branches of government, that all they wanted to do was dole out pork to their buddies and SCREW THE MORONS WHO SENT MONEY AND WORKED THEIR BUTTS OFF FOR THEM.

RICK PERRY DOESN'T CARE IF REPUBLICANS ARE THE MINORITY PARTY FOREVER. He's pushed through the Trans-Texas corridor, sold a huge chunk of TEXAS to a foreign country, and lined his pockets with money. They've got theirs and screw us.

47 posted on 05/14/2008 10:43:13 PM PDT by Richard Kimball (We're all criminals. They just haven't figured out what some of us have done yet.)
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To: parisa
Mr. Obama leads Mr. McCain 61%-32% among Jews.

That's a shocking statistic for me!

Maybe they prefer being pandered to rather than being converted.
48 posted on 05/14/2008 10:46:12 PM PDT by LanaTurnerOverdrive
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To: SatinDoll

49 posted on 05/14/2008 10:47:20 PM PDT by Richard Kimball (We're all criminals. They just haven't figured out what some of us have done yet.)
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To: Richard Kimball

Your post should be in a history book.


50 posted on 05/14/2008 10:48:47 PM PDT by Lijahsbubbe
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To: Richard Kimball

McCain: ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US!

eh..no juan..we dont...

A good and just man will shoot a lame horse...

Our horse has gone lame.

http://falconparty.com/


51 posted on 05/14/2008 10:53:49 PM PDT by Crim (Dont frak with the Zeitgeist....http://falconparty.com/)
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To: Richard Kimball

Can’t disagree with what you said. They totally screwed us with the spending, amnesty, outsourcing, coddling crooks and prosecuting the border agents, etc. etc.

Are you going to vote for Barr?


52 posted on 05/14/2008 11:00:47 PM PDT by Aria (NO RAPIST ENABLER FOR PRESIDENT!!!)
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To: The_Republican
Why is it tough sledding for Republicans?

Check the mirror, Karl.

53 posted on 05/14/2008 11:08:02 PM PDT by calcowgirl ("Liberalism is just Communism sold by the drink." P. J. O'Rourke)
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To: cowdog77
How did we get to such a dismal selection?

Turds float.
54 posted on 05/14/2008 11:08:52 PM PDT by Liberty Valance (Keep a simple manner for a happy life)
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To: The_Republican

Considering how truly awful, far-left, and corrupt the Demagogues are, the GOP should be crushing them in elections just about everywhere outside the large metro areas (which are permanent socialist cesspools). “Stand for something”??????? It takes a pricey political consultant to figure out that the GOP needs to “stand for something”??????


55 posted on 05/14/2008 11:09:10 PM PDT by Enchante (Obama: My 1930s Foreign Policy Goes Well With My 1960s Social Policy!)
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To: pennboricua

yeah I am afraid the only thing that will change the situation is if Obama gets in and screws things up so back that a leader rises. However the problem still remains that the republicans that are incumbents do not know how to rule while in power. We gave them the presidency, the Senate and the house..... Tell me what did conservatives get out of it?


56 posted on 05/14/2008 11:10:46 PM PDT by Walkingfeather
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To: Richard Kimball

Hall of fame post!

I don’t trust anything that’s spouted during campaign season, and the Rs are not going to convince many people in the next few months that they have suddenly become reformed, serious conservatives when we see the long track record of pathetic, disappointing performance.

As for Karl Rove, buddy, Karl.... you had years and years to make things happen. You helped to eviscerate the best parts of the R. party in favor of bloated budget socialist spending with open borders insanity. It’s a bit late to discover that “The GOP Must Stand for Something”


57 posted on 05/14/2008 11:21:00 PM PDT by Enchante (Obama: My 1930s Foreign Policy Goes Well With My 1960s Social Policy!)
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To: The_Republican
They need to press a reform agenda full of sharp contrasts with the Democrats.

The problem ain't the agenda they've been pushing Karl, it's the actions that speak louder than words once they are in office.

58 posted on 05/14/2008 11:23:47 PM PDT by DannyTN
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To: The_Republican

This-from the architect of “the new tone”.

Never have I seen such incompetence rewarded so highly.

That Juan McAmnesty has become the standard bearer of the GOP is proof that the GOP stands for nothing. The whole second Bush term, purchased for the GOP at great cost, has been the biggest political disappointment of my lifetime.

Never in the course of American politics have so many squandered so much in so little time. Some political capital,eh?

Wait til November—the GOP won’t even be standing at all if they don’t change the horse in this race.

And I cannot shake the feeling that people like Rove are hoping for that exact outcome. “Change we deserve”—idiots!


59 posted on 05/14/2008 11:24:38 PM PDT by exit82 (People get the government they deserve. And they are about to get it--in spades.)
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To: The_Republican

Rove talking about ‘standing for something’, there’s a laugh!


60 posted on 05/14/2008 11:25:02 PM PDT by eclecticEel (You can have my gun when you pry it from my cold, dead fingers.)
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