Posted on 08/24/2011 6:28:40 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
What would the Club for Growth say about Ronald Reagan? We know what they think about Rick Perry since they have produced new Presidential White Papers on him. Their opinion: eh, not bad, but not great.
Now, keep in mind, the Club for Growth is hard to please. We are talking about Rick Perry, the governor of Texas. That is Texas, arguably one of the most conservative and freest of the market states in the country. The very place that George W. Bush helped to create a pro-business atmosphere. All he had to do was clock in and clock out and he gets an A, right?
What I find fascinating when I read the Club for Growth White Papers is that generally only politicians who aren’t governors get great scores. The Club for Growth loves Michele Bachmann. That’s mainly because she has the freedom to toe the ideological line. She has never been forced to balance a budget in a politically diverse environment. So if you are a governor, and especially a governor from a non-ideologically pure state, then prepare to get your hat handed to you by the Club for Growth.
With that being said, I thought it would be interested to imagine the White Papers for conservative icon Ronald Reagan. It might go as follows:
While Ronald Reagan showed promised early on in his presidency by passing one of the largest tax decreases in history, he spent the rest of his presidency signing into law 11 different tax increases. These tax hikes were enacted with the goal of paying for government-run health insurance, such as Medicare. While the eleven tax hikes did not fully make up for that initial tax cut, we find Reagan’s vulnerability to compromise somewhat alarming. True conservatives never increase taxes, much less 11 times.
In Reagan’s eight years, the United States also went from being the world’s largest international creditor to being the world’s largest debtor. In 1981, the deficit was $74 billion and the national debt was $930 billion. Within two years (because of the 1981 tax cut), the deficit was $208 billion. By the end of Reagan’s presidency, the Gipper had allowed the national debt to spiral to $2.6 trillion. We at the Club for Growth find Reagan’s utter disregard for our nation’s finances troubling. What America needs is someone who reduces government, not increases it.
Again, while Reagan entered office with the kind of government-reducing rhetoric that the Club for Growth admires, he largely failed to follow through on his commitments. We find Reagan’s creation of the Department of Veteran Affairs troublesome. Indeed, Reagan ended his presidency with 60,000 more federal employees in the workforce. In 1983, Reagan agreed to $165 billion in government bailout money for the unconstitutional Social Security. Now is the not the time when the United States should bail out its government run programs. If Reagan’s goal was to reduce government, then he utterly failed. America needs somebody who will stick it to Washington, not a government-loving RINO like Ronald Reagan.
Of course, we are not even going to go into Reagan’s non budget-related indiscretions, such as his granting amnesty to illegal immigrants, his states’ rights crippling support of a federal minimum drinking age, and his 1981 “voluntary” export restraint on Japanese cars (the auto industry doesn’t need more bailouts). And then there is his breath-taking support of the Brady Bill, published on the pages of the ghastly New York Times. There is enough here alone to suggest that America would be better off without Reagan’s big government policies.
We think that Dick Cheney is wrong when when he stated that Reagan proved that deficits don’t matter. America would be better off served by somebody like Michele Bachmann. She is ideologically pure.
We should focus on these problems. We should not waste time on stupid articles that ignore every achievement of President Reagan and focus on his unsuccessful compromises.
He did that with Tip O'Neils' promise of congress securing the boarders.
Remember that?
Didn't happen!
Just Sayin’
The other thing that they don’t want to talk about, he exploded the economy.
On a relative basis his deficit was basically flat trending down.
We had the cold war that we were fighting and Reagan won.
THEY ARE JEALOUS!
I got your thoughtful and knowledgable discussion right here: Reagan was a giant among conservatives. Frum is just a pussy.
RE: hy are you posting this douche bag’s brain droppings? As a matter of fact, Why would you even click on his blog?
Because they were linked by that conservative site : HOTAIR.
True conservatives would not be afraid to refute douchebags.
RE: 20 or 30 million illegals later, he’d probably kick his own ass for it.
OK, if we can overlook a mistake the great Ronald Reagan made in his presidency, can we overlook mistakes made by say, Rick Perry in his 10 year term as Texas governor ( e.g. Gardasil)?
After all Rick Perry sorta kicked his own ass for that mistake he made.
Well his mistakes have continued till within the past year.
You, sir, have nailed it.
He didn’t raise income tax RATES, but did plug some loopholes and protect Medicare.
In other words, Reagan was a net tax cutter.
Yeppirs!! Reagan held up his end of the bargain, the Dem Congress (as usual) DIDN'T hold up theirs!!!
Ronnie was a 75% conservative but I’ll take that over a ‘rat any day.
I’m not afraid of them, I just like to avoid them at all cost. Life is too short and too difficult already.
Ronnie was a 75% conservative but I’ll take that over a ‘rat any day.
________________________________
Basically my argument for being glad Perry entered the race after he announced. I got called all kinds of names and had spittle dripping through my screen.
I don’t think Perry is perfect by a long shot but no politician is. His record on regulations, spending, taxes, crime, and his overall record is not too bad. I don’t trust him on immigration and the female vaccine thing creeps me out.
I think he would wreck Obama in the general election. At this point, the person who is mostly conservative that will totally destroy this administration is hard to be upset about. I will admit though..... if Palin enters the race she has me at hello.
I think Palin can make up some ground but I fear if she wins the nomination the left will put up a 3rd party candidate the media will build up. I worry that this would give us four more years of nightmare because all they would have to do based on prior elections is shave off a few points in key states for the 3rd party guy. I will support Palin but Perry is an acceptable candidate for me right now.
Anyone seen my flame suit?
To: SeekAndFind
Why in the world would anyone post anything from the Frum Forum?
posted by bwc2221
Seekie is a Moby poster.
His gig is relentlessly posting constant lefty talking point, contrarian items then claiming he’s just provoking discussion.
Often he can’t help himself and chimes in agreeing with the left leaning perspective of the article.
Note the telltale condescending, challenge to “true conservatives” not being afraid to engage the propaganda.
This was written by a guy named Paul Talley, not by Frum. It’s just on Frum’s site. No idea how big a loser Paul Talley is.
Ronald Reagan was the visionary that led me out of the wilderness of the Dimwit plantation and into a future controlled by ME NOT GOVERNMENT!
Struggling through teens and twenties and trying to make it after college during Jimmuh Carter's reign... just about sent us to the poor house. Had to come out of the generational stupor of voting Democrat... the plantation my dearly loved grandparents were on and my Dad as well until he saw the light and he saw it early on.
Ronald Reagan, thank you SIR... I would not be a homeowner had you not prevailed, I would not be a business owner had you not prevailed, I would not have been able to have helped my beloved grandparents as they aged and passed on.
Thank you President Reagan, for giving me back the freedom to dream and build and hold onto those precious things that I work for and I earn.
To those who disparage your memory, first I can only pray they fail, second I recognize them for who they are.. destroyers of liberty who seek their own agenda.
Well keep in context that he also engineered a large arms buildup to defeat the Soviet Union.
But lets not forget that while he made those Tax Increases, the Tax rate still wasn’t anywhere close to what it was when he came in.
Also he was promised repeatedly by Tip O’Neil and the other Democrat leaders they would hold the line on spending and they never did.
Always another side to the story. Was Reagan perfect, no, but he was a Damn site better than most before or since him.
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