Was Clinton More Conservative Than Bush?

Fox News ^ | Thursday, July 25, 2002 | Veronique de Rugy

[Weirdad]

President Bush may be repeating the sins of his father. Although elected on a Reaganesque, tax-cutting platform, the White House has veered to the left.

President Bush has signed a bill to regulate political speech, issued protectionist taxes on imported steel and lumber, backed big-spending education and farm bills, and endorsed massive new entitlements for mental health care and prescription drugs. When the numbers are added up, in fact, it looks like President Bush is less conservative than President Clinton.

[Willie Green]

Well, I would consider them to be conservative economically.

Economicly, I don't even consider them to be American.
Their policies are seditious and detrimental to our nation's long term well-being.

[FITZ]

I knew for sure Bush was no conservative when he said he wanted to increase the food stamp program and restore food stamps to immigrants plus have more so-called poverty programs.

[gcruse]

 
Bush is there to get folks to snooze and think they've won-

When tariffs are driving up the cost of steel and killing
jobs in related industries...

When freedom to support the candidate of your choice
is hurt to protect incumbents...

When there is so much surplus food it has to be thrown
away while the taxpayer pays for it...

When the federal government is running roughshod
over states' rights...

...all is not political smoke and mirrors.  Damage
   is done.  Rights are trampled.  Money is thrown
   away.  This isn't political jujitsu. This is real.

[GSWarrior]

This isn't political jujitsu. This is real.

Bush's administration is turning into a bad parody of conservatism.

[snopercod]

And to this list, it should be added that:

The policy of the Bush administration is that humans cause global warming. While Bush himself issued a weak disavowal of the EPA report for public consumption, the very next day he told reporters that he actually endorsed the report.

Bush gave $15 billion + of our money to the airlines.

Bush opposes the right of pilots to keep and bear arms.

Bush created a vast new Transportation Security department chuck full of thousands of new union "workers" who's mission is to frisk little old ladies at airports and confiscate their nail files and knitting needles.

Bush wants to federalize just about everything in sight, including the way businesses operate.

Bush wants Americans to spy and inform on their neighbors.

Bush has done absolutely nothing to enhance US energy independence.

Bush undermines Israel every chance he gets.

And the last thing I can think of off the top of my head, Bush did absolutely nothing to help the Klamath Basin farmers.

I'm sorry, but Bush sold us all out. Fool me once...

[snopercod]

This is a nation of the people, for the people and by the people.

Nice theory, let's put it to the test by looking at just one small situation: Arming pilots.

The public, and the pilots overwhelmingly support arming pilots. If your theory is correct, then please explain why Bush opposes arming pilots.

[GSWarrior]

I have no ilusions about politicians. I find politicians who "have a vision" for America distasteful and not to be trusted. I don't expect a president to institute a lot of change.

However, I do expect my president to set a tone, so to speak, that the nation can rally behind. Reagan did this very well. Bush is not Reagan, but the tone I hear from Washington is hurting my ears.

[Uncle Bill]

"Not over my dead body will they raise your taxes," - George W. Bush

[jeremiah]

Truth

[snopercod]

...the tone I hear from Washington is hurting my ears.

It's hurting deeper than that. We all knew that a gore presidency would have expanded the government and curtailed freedom at every opportunity. We didn't want that, so we chose a so-called conservative who claimed to support limited government, lower taxes and more freedom.

Now that he has turned - the only appropriate word for Bushes mix of expanded government and central control of business is "fascist" - Bush has sold out the only remaining freedom-loving people in America - people like us.

What Bush has done reminds me of the battle in the movie Braveheart where the troops which were to attack the English flank just rode away and left the freedom fighters to die.

[wku man]

I gotta tell ya, Dog, read the book. The media conspiracy (yes, I'm one of "those" types, too) went far beyond the Florida fiasco. Sammon details numerous states that Bush was clearly winning or had won, that the media failed to report until sometimes hours after the outcome was certain. All the while, they were wasting no time calling states for Gore, even if it wasn't clear he was winning at the time (case in point, Florida, where Gore never held the lead!). Sammon hypothesizes this was an out and out effort by the criminal liberal mainstream news media to embolden Gore supporters and send Bush voters away from the polls...nationwide!

Since then, of course, Bush has lost my support, but it pi**es me off to no end to hear the Dims whine about Gore getting the majority of the popular vote. Technically he did, but only after collusion with the Communists in the media, and massive Bill Daley created corruption. Sheesh!

Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!

[dogbyte12]

Serious point. Name the last democratic presidential nominee whose policies were more conservative than Clinton. Clinton stuck his finger into the wind and went along with alot of the contract with america, but basically... Clinton is the democratic version of Nixon. Hated by the opposite side, but actually in policy terms, not terrible as opposed to others. Nixon of the EPA, affirmative action, etc is despised by democrats, while Clinton of the death penalty, welfare reform is loathed by republicans.

Mike Dukkakis is ridiculed, not loathed, but the sinkmaster was much more to the center than the tank commander.

[BillyBoy]

>> I realized with certainty that the fix was in when Ashcroft got behind executing McVeigh, The Man Who Knew Too Much. <<

You seem to have stumbled onto the wrong website. Here's the one that you were looking for: Amnesty International

[brat]

Powell??? Morris must be snorting. Even I wouldn't vote for Powell if he was the only Conservative running.

[Jhoffa_]

Even I wouldn't vote for Powell if he was the only Conservative running.

Me either..

(And they thought the "butterfly" ballot was confusing, imagine that conflict in terms!)

[dirtboy]

The best political advice ever given to a candidate was, "Find out where the people want to go. Then lead them there."

C.T., that is probably sound advice for winning elections. It is probably also sound advice for losing the Repubic...

[brat]

"Dubya, like all successful politicians, does just that"

How so? The people want LESS INTRUSION, is Bush giving them that? They want the borders protected, is Bush giving them that? They want the Constitution upheld, is Bush giving them that? What about Immigration? What about the UN and internat'l community? Bush is giving us very, very little.

[FreeReign]

Dubya will do what the public wants. That will not please you. So you hope you can Dubya can be convinced to do what you want. That won't work on any successful politician. When you have convinced the public to your point of view, the job is done. The government will do exactly what you want. If the pubic is never convinced, then what you want to have happen will never happen. This is a nation of the people, for the people and by the people. You seem to think it is of the president, by the president and for the president. People not presidents are the answer.

So then it is NOT about leaving the R party -- the party where most of the Constitution believing people are concentrated. It's about changing the remaining people in the R party and the remaining people in the country to believe in the principles contained in the Constitution -- isn't it.

More and more people here at FR are being mislead away from this -- reality.

[brat]

"The next question, then, is whether Bush will emulate Nixon in his own way (by governing well to the left of his own party)."

I think the next question should be whether W wants re-election. He is rapidly losing conservatives and hopefully he's not so stupid as to believe he can win without them.

[StoneColdGOP]

Oh, Jesus. Really, did you expect Bush to decree that the platform of the Alabama Republican Party would be law on Day 1?

If you want St. Patrick Buchanan, vote for him.