Posted on 09/22/2016 6:19:30 AM PDT by Kaslin
A "never Trump" friend I've known since law school writes:
"My former partner is old enough to have voted for Barry Goldwater. And like me, he is pro-choice, pro-gay rights and libertarian, so there are some Neanderthal Republicans out there who are just too distasteful to vote for. So, like me, he often votes Libertarian. He does not see much about Donald Trump that resembles a traditional Republican."
For the millionth time, Trump is not a fiscal conservative. He is a populist. And his near-embrace by many evangelicals notwithstanding, New Yorker Trump with "New York values" is likely pro-choice and pro-gay marriage. The man doesn't even go to church. And speaking of "traditional Republicans": GOP voters backed Mitt "Romneycare" Romney and John "McCain-Feingold" McCain, but they draw the line at insufficiently conservative Trump?
Here's the problem. We live in a center-left country. Not center-right -- center-left. We talk the talk of low taxes and ending entitlements and terminating this or that social program -- until a fiscal conservative true believer proposes legislation to do just that.
Goldwater, in 1964, lost in a landslide. The main reason President Ronald Reagan got elected in 1980, despite his many gifts and his conservative principles, was voter disdain for President Jimmy Carter -- gas lines, the Iran rescue debacle, stagflation. Most conservatives who romanticize about Reagan don't get this point! Yes, we "need" another Reagan. But to bring that about, given the ever-increasing leftward tilt of the country, we need another Jimmy Carter.
Americans never embraced Reagan's stated conservative agenda -- advocating pro-life policies; standing down the Soviet Union by, among other things, funding "Star Wars"; dramatically lowering taxes; and encouraging true free trade (despite his protection of the auto industry with stupid Japanese car "voluntary" import quotas, and protecting Harley-Davidson, among other measures).
David Stockman, Reagan's young, fiscally conservative then-House member -- a Paul Ryan-type numbers guy -- headed his Office of Management and Budget. He wanted to take a machete to the size of government. But he failed to roll back much of anything. After leaving in frustration, Stockman wrote "The Triumph of Politics: Why the Reagan Revolution Failed." He laments that with the combination of special interests and Reagan's refusal to bat them down, the size of domestic government grew even under the "Great Communicator."
But Reagan was liked personally, and when he was shot, his popularity soared. Americans were proud and impressed at the way he handled it with humor and without hatred. What, because of the attempted assassination Americans underwent an ideological metamorphosis? Of course not. In fact, when he was going through another rough patch, he reportedly joked with his wife, Nancy, that maybe he should go out and get himself shot again.
Consider this passage from The New York Times in 1986, the middle of Reagan's second term and two years after a 49-states-to-1 reelection blowout over Democrat Walter Mondale:
"For example, (Reagan's) personal popularity ratings, especially high for a second-term President, are not matched by public support for some of his key policies. As Fred I. Greenstein, a professor of politics at Princeton, puts it: 'He is more successful than any recent President in establishing space between himself and his policies.'"
This brings us to 2016. And it's even more left-wing now. Reagan pushed the income tax top marginal rate down to 28 percent. His successor raised the rate, as did Clinton. Yes, GWB rolled them back to about 35 percent, but they're back up.
In eight years, Reagan did not raise the minimum wage. Few of this year's GOP rivals, save Rand Paul, made a forceful argument against it. And Rick Santorum and Ben Carson wanted to raise it!
President George W. Bush tried to partially privatize Social Security -- and his party abandoned him on the issue. We now have "universal health care," which people are forced to join, and a self-described socialist might have won the Democratic nomination had he not stupidly taken Hillary Clinton's email issue off the table.
Finally, look at still popular and respected ex-Secretary of State Colin Powell, a supposed Republican. He is pro-gun control; pro-choice; pro-affirmative action. He criticized the House Speaker Newt Gingrich's 1994 "Contract With America" as a "little too harsh"; twice voted for Obama; and thinks the GOP has a "dark vein of intolerance" -- code for racist.
Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown.
What % of Townhall reporters and commentators are NeverTrumpers?
And, I remember what happened during Reagan’s funeral.
It was a week-long event; the PEOPLE came out in droves (similar to Trump’s campaigns); and they showed up to be in the city during the funeral, as well as to take the time to just walk past his casket. They filled the Mall to capacity; and when they left, there was not a single scrap of paper on the ground.
The media was beside itself; whining and complaining about everything. ALL THEIR HATRED TOWARD REAGAN GOT THEM NOTHING.
IT’S GOING TO BE THE SAME WITH TRUMP. The people will speak and the media will be STILL on the outside looking in.
Reagan would have won 12 years ago. He wouldn’t have won 4 years ago, or today.
Nevertrumpers don’t want Reagan. They want Hillary - she’s one of them.
“Voting their conscience” is a BS excuse to continue trying to fool the public that there are 2 parties. I’ll accept it from the ones who can show me all of their attacks against the 2015 Congress - and Republicans in general over the last 8 years. But the rest want Hillary.
He is going to rise from the dead, but electing him President on the last day seems kind of pointless—and unless we amend the constitution again, he’s not eligible even if he does rise from the dead.
That said, I’ve written in both Coolidge and Taft.
NeverTrump is really all about never-ending illegal alien inundation.
They are not conservative at all if they do not want to conserve the rule of law and the nation.
Their only concern is blocking the citizens from stopping the Cheap Labor Express.
In every election since the last amnesty, the GOP has run amnesty candidates, intentionally preventing the citizens from electing anyone who would enforce the immigration laws.
GHWB and GWB are largely responsible for us having 30 million illegal aliens.
The real reason the NeverTrumpers oppose him is because he stands with the citizens and the rule of law.
Another great reason to vote for Trump, Romney is a two time loser, go away!!
If Trump builds a wall, and does nothing else, put him on Mt. Rushmore.
Part of the goal for conservatives these days is to REGAIN those values the Left has discarded. That’s the not-so-subtle message of Trump’s “Make America Great Again” campaign.
Speak for yourself young'un, some of us have had both.
Though Reagan was a better President than Trump will ever be, we need a MEAN PITBULL this time around to dismantle the socioeconomic fascists and PC thought police regime.
Trump is the man for these tough times.
Reagan was tough, but he was a gentleman.
A gentlemanly style doesn’t work against today’s leftist thugs. GHWB, GWB were “gentlemen” (they never fought back and now look what we ended up with).
Slick Willie Clinton was a low-class junkyard dog and his wife is his B.... Trump has more class than Slick Willie and his wifey.
He did not sit in the pews of a church where the pastor "damned" America for 20 years; nor otherwise act like he shared such a profane message.
Moreover, while the inflation that sent the prime rate to over 20% happened on Carter's "watch," the causation went back to the preposterous way LBJ handled the Viet Nam War in the 1960s.
We have not yet seen the fallout coming from the era of Obama.
BTTT
Same difference.
You are very right....Given the obvious hatred the press has for Trump and his supporters....i think there is going to be some kind of change/shift in the MSM world.
*I would imagine many stations will see drops in revenue
as fewer viewers tune into them
*If Trump does start turning things around, less viewers
means some media, both print, social media and cable
will go out of business
*Trump will probably only do interviews with those that
stood by him...and will see to it that those in his
administration avoid certain, networks, programs etc
His not going to be into driving ratings up for those
that treated him and his viewers as ‘deplorable’
Hopefully a lot of good will come out of it. Like less
PC and politics in TV programming.
Hopefully there will be a time we are glued to TV as hearings are held for those that did harm to national security and ripped off the US for major $$$
Like the $6B Hillary’s state department cant account for
His legacy is that he is the worst president in the American history.
Man you got that right....he had a strong hand...why did he pick Bush!!!!!!! Jimmy Carter would have been better.
All about Principles, silly. </s>
The daughter of Robert Kennedy made the fabricated claim that George H.W. Bush told her that he would vote for Hillary Rotten Clinton. She posted it even on Facebook but retracted it later.
You left out No Fault Divorce the simple way to destroy families. Also the delusion of tax cuts, lower rates and remove all deductions.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.