From the moment the states ratified the Constitution, there has never been a day when the federal government has ceased to grow and gain more and more power. In our time, we cannot overturn more than 225 years of history. We can only argue on the margins of debates settled long ago.
Re your point #2, respect for the Constitution isn't good enough. What's needed is a solid understanding of the Constitution, the historical context in which it was written and ratified, an understanding of just how far we have deviated from the Jeffersonian model, and an understanding of how to try to apply that early Constitutional framework to the world in which we find ourselves today.
To run around saying, "I'm a real conservative, and you're not," and "I'm the one with principles, not you," is unproductive and self-defeating. There are as many "flavors" of conservatives as there are in any ideology. They are all real, but different issues motivate different people at different times.
The one overriding hallmark of conservatism is protection of the nation. It is that very, very conservative impulse which motivates those of us who intend to vote for President Bush. If these were ordinary times, I could have more sympathy for the arguments you and others make about spending, immigration, etc. But these most definitely are NOT ordinary times. That is the fault line between those folks who share your point of view and those who share mine. It has nothing whatsoever to do with who has or doesn't have "real" conservative principles, but who has the correct vision of how best to preserve this nation.
Very well-said.
If this is true (and I don't think it is) then I don't see any point in bothering anymore. It's seems to me you are saying a socialist system is inevitable... Marx would agree, I suppose.
For what it's worth, I don't mind a 'strong central government' one bit. I *want* one. I just want it to stay within its proper Constitutional bounds.
Re your point #2, respect for the Constitution isn't good enough. What's needed is a solid understanding of the Constitution, the historical context in which it was written and ratified,
One who respects the Constitution will, without exception, pursue such an understanding.
an understanding of just how far we have deviated from the Jeffersonian model, and an understanding of how to try to apply that early Constitutional framework to the world in which we find ourselves today.
This sounds suspiciously like the 'living document' crap to me.
The one overriding hallmark of conservatism is protection of the nation
I agree 100%. And giving in to domestic socialism is not how you go about it. (See my tagline) Bush has done a pretty good job of addressing foreign threats. But we have enemies *inside* this country's borders, many of them American citizens, and others coming across them. Is the administration ever going to do anything about protecting the nation from them?