Posted on 05/13/2002 3:12:19 PM PDT by TLBSHOW
On Monday's show, the Doctor of Democracy made a sad diagnosis: "If the Reagan Revolution is not dead, then it's dying." If there was a model that the Bush administration used in establishing itself, it was the Reagan presidency. But now Bush is advancing the Democrats' most liberal agenda items - something particularly frustrating at a time when Bush's popularity would make it easy for him to recruit new conservatives.
Many of you have been critical of Rush's reactions to Bush's actions on spending over the recent months, and we took more calls of this sort on Monday - people who'd convinced themselves that the farm bill made sense or that Bush had some grand strategery at play. Now, Rush could throw his beliefs out the window for a day or two and say things that you might want to hear - like when he endorsed Clinton back in 1992 - but that's not what he does.
Rush can only give you his honest reaction, even when he doesn't like those reactions. That's honesty, folks, and it goes to disprove a key criticism many of the nation's liberals have made of Rush over the years. They've said that Rush is a party hack, and that he'd support the Republican Party no matter what they did. They charged that the EIB Network was simply a tool, that we were in daily contact with the powers that be to get marching orders. Well, that has pretty much been dispelled here: Rush is disgruntled.
Could you elaborate, please?
GWB came to DC wanting to 'change the tone' and work together. Well, if one looks at the bills that have been signed, a good argument can be made that he has put partisanship aside. And perhaps he may be a bit naive thinking that since he has compromised on many key issues, the Senate would return the favor with judicial appointments. Well, we are seeing, and so is GWB, that this is simply not true.
With a Republican Senate, however, he can push HIS agenda through. And while the Dems sit back crying that GWB isn't 'working with them', all he has to do is point back to the Bills that were signed between 2000-2002. The Dems, as usual, will be the cry babies.
Fringers, of any stripe here, who keep beating the tom toms, with the " there's no difference between Bush and Gore / Dems and / GOPers, are proponents of " THE BIG LIE ". Even IF they really believe this canard, it just proves how politically naive and foolish they are.
Bottom line, for those who either stay home, or vote third party ? They do exactly what they claim they aren't doing AND do absolutely NOTHING to advance what they supposedly claim they really, real REALLY yearn for.
I'm not raising crops, either. Are you? Then where is OUR check?
And maybe you need to read what I said.
I haven't accused Rush of having an inconsistant philosophy, I said that the world has largely passed him by.
He's constantly beating the same dead horses and it's long past being uninteresting.
For instance, Rush decided that in order for there to be peace in the Middle East the Palestinians had to be thoroughly trounced militarily like the Germans and Japanese in WW II.
Putting aside whether this concept has validity or not, there comes a time when the point has been made and it's time to move on.
But Rush hammered on this theme day after day for a couple of weeks until I got so bored and exasperated that I just couldn't listen any more.
And it's been the same with most of his program material since he lost and then regained his hearing.
Maybe he's too much into a comfortist and cacooned lifestyle to be on the cutting edge anymore.
Whatever the cause, Rush has become a broken record who just is no longer very interesting.
But since you brought up ideological consistancy I say that Rush isn't practicing what he formerly preached.
I have may times heard him disapprovingly accuse disgruntled conservatives of caring more about ideological purity than about winning.
This perfectly describes Rush today.
It's not every year that they go up 80%.
Reagan signed them; GHWB didn't, and the farmers went ballistic on him. President Bush knows this;
IOW, it's a vote grab. As with steel. As with lumber. As with CFR. I'm not yet, on balance, regretting having voted for Bush but the trends are not good.
DING DING DING!!!! We have a winner!!!! You have to kiss a lot of toads before you find the prince. Daschle is the biggest toad of all, and the control of the Senate is the prince.
I don't think Republicans ever claimed to be Libertarians, however, you're welcome to your opinion, but I think it's wacko! If you look at the Libertarians there is much that is wrong with this party too. I have given them money in the past, but stopped. Anyway, you were definitely BRAGGING that you got Cantwell elected - and the reason is to PUNISH the Republicans. Well you punished more than just Republicans in my opinion.
Libertarians will NEVER do much of anything at all, but be spoilers.
Ron Paul is a joke ! He has done zero, nada, zilch, B+NOTHING but make himself irrelivant and given people here, someone to hold up as an elected Libertarian ; except that he couldn't get elected dog catcher as a Libertarian, so ran as a Republican. He is a JOKE ; a sad one, at that.
He is the President. Why doesn't he have a choice?
I have a choice and it won't be GWB.
I find it interesting your choice of words ("scare me back into line,"; beautiful). Couldn't have said it better. Fear and control, folks. Meet the new boss (GOP), same as the old boss (Dems).
Pretty funny - that's what the hardcore D's say about Bush. Going on about it looks childish.
That said, however, where is the payback for Jeffords defection? Why does the farm bill renew and extend the milk compact? It's quite pathetic.
I'd agree that for the D's it looks childish for them to keep crying about it. Dubya was Constitutionally elected. The Jeffords Defection virtually overturned the election.
I'm not sure what you could do to for payback on Jeffords. He's pretty much isolated himself. His head should roll, but I'm not sure what can be done to him.
Without Rush, the Dems would have kept control in '94 -- and since I have a business -- I'd probably be in some gulag.
Rush is human. He's been on the air for over 10 years and I think he has lost a step and is getting a touch of burnout. But I still listen, although I prefer it when Walter Williams subs.
Rush is wrong on Dubya but that doesn't make him some freedom-hating lefty.
Answer: Political reality.
A reality that is lost on the Right.
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