Posted on 10/26/2005 10:17:22 AM PDT by SirLinksalot
Behind whom? Who are your viable candidates?
You mean you can't vote for the imaginary perfect candidates? Surely you jest.
I pretty much agree with what's here except for the term "moderate." I think Pres. Bush referred to himself as a compassionate conservative. Since he pretty much created the term, he got to define it.
That included tax cuts, pro-life (rilom), pro-gun, social safety net, no child left behind, faith based social supporter,....
Go back and look at Reagan's record as governor of California, and Clinton's record as governor of Arkansas. You'd have a hard time convincing yourself that Reagan wasn't a Democrat and Clinton wasn't a Republican.
Yep and next time out it will be rump roast and pig's feet and we will lament that there is no meat loaf on the menu.
Bush did say he would improve our military defense, push for tax reform, nominate strict constructionists to the courts and advance pro-life issues. I think he's accomplished all that for the most part. Even though I knew he'd probably raise spending in the name of compassionate conservatism, I never thought he'd increase spending to the levels he has and actually get the GOP Congress to go along.
Bush has been a mixed bag. Conservative on some issues, moderate on others. However, Bush`s liberal spending habits has led to the biggest government expansion since LBJ. Bush is no believer in limited government.
Jean Francois Kerry wasn't a liberal -- he was a nothing. Just like Bill Clinton post-1994, he would have governed as the kind of president who none of his supporters would have recognized.
Reagan never got spending under control -- even with a Republican majority in the Senate.
Reagan appointed Sandra Dee O'Connor, an unconfirmable Robert Bork, and Anthony Kennedy.
Reagan gave back tax cuts one year after enactment (the infamous TEFRA bill, pride & joy of Bob Dole).
Reagan cut and ran in Lebanon.
Reagan gave amnesty to illegal immigrants.
Reagan named moderate George HW Bush his Veep and political heir.
Reagan never hit hard at terrorism other than one attack on Libya.
Don't get me wrong -- I LOVED RR and considered him a great conservative President, but he wasn't perfect by any means.
Bush didn't cut and run like we did after Beirut in '82 and he has, so far, refused to raise taxes after cutting them unlike Ronnie. The amnesty issue and Supreme Court nominees are a wash so far. Rhetorically, Reagan rates much higher.
You think that there is a magic bullet that can change this in 4-5 years.
The way the govt was designed insures that change happens slowly.
It will take 25 years just to change the face of the judiciary and the civil service.
Yup. "W" will wind up in history as being an answer to a Final Jeopardy question.
I'm afraid hes got the same clueless disengaged gene his father had.
Right again. "W's" actions and PR during hurricane Katrina were classic, clueless, "Bush".
Conservative brethren..ask yourself...what has he done for conservatives.....
The more appropriate question is what will "W" have done to non-prefix conservatives after his term is done. Will we get another Clinton?
I, too voted for Bush both times because there was NO alternative, but he is no more and no less than what I expected he would be, not anymore conservative than his dad, but a far better politician. I don't think Bush I cared enough to pretend to fool the peasants by the time he had been president for 4 yrs. Bush II cared enough to do what he needed to do to be re-elected, but certainly not enough to be concerned with what the conservative base thinks of him now. I didn't vote in either primary for Bush because he was the nominee long before PA voted, but of the lousy choices we started with, Bush would not have been my pick.
Bush nominated numerous feddies to appeals courts. How many got confirmed?
Bush can nominate them to SCOTUS, but they won't be confirmed.
The democrats have openly accused the Fed Soc as being the cornerstone of the VRWC and trying to roll back the New Deal.
DON'T ask!
Ditto. I've been saying this here for a while. Conservatives look back on Reagan with rose-colored glasses. In fact he was almost a carbon copy of Bush - Taxes, national security, judges, education funding, deficit, illegal immigrants, etc. Heck, their administrations even contain the same people!
I knew conservatives in the '80's that were always complaining about Reagan not being conservative enough. Ask them today and Reagan could do no wrong. Now they've turned their wrath on Bush and are saying the exact same things that they used to say about Reagan.
Is your definition of a conservative "an extremist ideologue?"
Or yesterday for that matter (Goldwater).
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