Anger on Display Among Conservative PAC Audience

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[Sub-Driver]

Anger on Display Among Conservative PAC Audience

Sunday , March 04, 2007 By Kelley Beaucar Vlahos

WASHINGTON — America's conservatives are mad and they're not going to take it anymore.

That was the message the movement's leaders delivered throughout the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C. last week.

One after another, conservatives told FOXNews.com that they are angry, irritated, frustrated and in some cases depressed. And the target of their angst and ire is none other than the Republican Party, which wants and needs their support to win the 2008 presidential election and avoid losing more seats in the Senate and House next election.

Many of these conservatives, whose national stars began to rise with the presidential election of Ronald Reagan in 1980, described the GOP's state of affairs in Washington with words like "failed," defeated" and "in the grave."

"The Republican Party apparently has a death wish, but that doesn't mean we conservatives have to go along with it," Richard Viguerie, a movement veteran who helped elect Reagan, said during his wildly-received speech delivered Thursday. "Let's focus on the conservative movement, not the GOP."

"We've got to stop being lackeys of the Republican Party. We've got to be a third force," said Bill Greene, head of RightMarch.com, an online activist network. He is running as a Republican in the June special election to replace the late Rep. Charlie Norwood, R-Ga., who died of cancer on Feb. 13.

Several candidates vying for the GOP nomination appeared at the conference. But one — Arizona Sen. John McCain — was notably absent, and the frontrunner in generic opinion polls — former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani — acknowledged to the crowd that he has differences with his audience on social issues.

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

I sincerely wonder why this subject is on your mind so much of the time.

To defeat your promotion of it...

[LtdGovt]

To defeat your promotion of it...

Promotion, eh? I don't believe we were even talking about this, when you burst in and started about your favorite preoccupation. In any case, I respect your decision on how to spend your time, I don't want to criticize it.

[hedgetrimmer]

Is that like Clinton and Blair's and Bush's The Third Way?

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

I respect your decision on how to spend your time, I don't want to criticize it.

You are a feminized wimp...

[LIConFem]

Hey, it worked for Moses...

[TommyDale]

"If you did have the guarantee, would you vote for Rudy?"

It would take much more than just that. It would take Rudy "finding God" and renouncing his previous positions on abortion, partial birth abortion, homosexuality, global warming, embryonic stem cell research, amnesty for illegal border invaders and more.

[justshutupandtakeit]

Let's commit national suicide by attacking the GOP and empowering the Party of Treason. Brilliant simply brilliant. And these clowns wonder why their influence is declining.

[LtdGovt]

You are a feminized wimp...

No, dear Francis, I am not. It's remarkable how often people project their own characteristics on other people.

[LtdGovt]

It would take much more than just that. It would take Rudy "finding God" and renouncing his previous positions on abortion, partial birth abortion, homosexuality, global warming, embryonic stem cell research, amnesty for illegal border invaders and more.

Why didn't you have that litmus test for Bush, if I might ask? I believe that you said that today, you would still vote for Bush (an unacceptable candidate) over Kerry & Gore. Why did he not have to renounce his positions on homosexuality and amnesty?

[LtdGovt]

Let's commit national suicide by attacking the GOP and empowering the Party of Treason. Brilliant simply brilliant. And these clowns wonder why their influence is declining.

This needs to be repeated.

Let's commit national suicide by attacking the GOP and empowering the Party of Treason. Brilliant simply brilliant. And these clowns wonder why their influence is declining.

[TommyDale]

Bush was opposed to homosexual marriage/civil unions. The amnesty thing didn't come up until the second term. If he were running right now, I would oppose him on those grounds as well.

[TommyDale]

You might find this hard to believe, but I think Rudy is much better at fiscal issues than GWB has been, so you can't accuse me of being totally negative!

[capitalist229]

Let's neutralize the extremists and get back to what matters to muddle class Republicans.

National security and lower taxes.

BUMP

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

Go take a Midol and calm down...

[Little Ray]

The GOP is dumping us...
And the wilderness would be more comfortable that the USA with two ilberal parties...
But they'd probably pass an environmental law to keep us out of it...

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

National security and lower taxes.

National security?

Borders?

Invasion?

Second Amendment?

-

Lower taxes?

Welfare plantation for illegal immigrants?

Illegals get public housing.

Illegals get social security.

Illegals get food stamps.

Illegals get disability.

Illegals get free college tuition.

Need I keep going?

[LtdGovt]

Bush was opposed to homosexual marriage/civil unions.

Actually, Bush supported civil unions before the 2004 elections. Bush's gay union stance irks conservatives. The only difference between his position and Rudy's is that Rudy opposes a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage.

The amnesty thing didn't come up until the second term.

But he did campaign on the issue both in 2000 and 2004. And he was about to come with an amnesty plan when 9/11 prevented that.

If he were running right now, I would oppose him on those grounds as well.

You would vote for him in the general election, and that's what matters.

[pointsal]

Nope...don't need to go to the wilderness...just wander in the big tent..

[LtdGovt]

You might find this hard to believe, but I think Rudy is much better at fiscal issues than GWB has been, so you can't accuse me of being totally negative!

Hey, I already noticed that your fairness to Rudy was greater than the others', when you commented on Romney's accusation that Rudy favored same-sex marriage, even while saying that you see no difference between civil unions and marriage.

As for fiscal issues, I agree with you. And I think that someone like Huckabee would be even worse than Bush, he did something that Bush has not done, and that is raising taxes (like the other tax-raiser from Arkansas).

[LtdGovt]

Go take a Midol and calm down...

Why should I? I am calm already. You really need to do something about the projection thingie.