You're all talk, Ed. Prove it. We don't have lower taxes, we just received a "rebate" of some of our money. The tax rate is still where it was before. As for less regulation, I challenge you to show me just what regulations have been removed under this administration and the Republican majority in Congress. Strong national security? I live in Cochise County, Arizona and I can assure you that our border is wide open to any terrorist who wishes to cross. The situation has grown worse down here under this administration, not better. Heck, our so-called Republican Congressman was instrumental in dismantling all of the Border Patrol highway checkpoints on the highways going north from the border. As for fiscal responsibility, the evidence demonstrates that there is little of that either.Since President Bush came into office Republicans have rejected $1.9 trillion in additional budget spending proposed by Democrats while passing $350 billion in tax relief just this year. That's just a fact, as I noted in our discussion.
That's not a cut in spending. That's rejecting additional spending that the Democrats wanted. How much additional spending did the allegedly "fiscal conservative" Republicans want and get? Hmmmm?Fiscal discipline requires leadership and this year President Bush proposed and the Republican leadership in Congress worked to pass a budget that limits spending growth to 4%, the same amount as family income. This accounts for important increases in spending required to continue our fight in the war on terrorism. In fact, non-defense discretionary spending only goes up 2%, a point I should have made but did not.
Discretionary spending "only goes up 2%"!? And you think that's laudable!? How about discretionary spending going....now think about it for a moment...DOWN!!? That would show actual "fiscal discipline" and would be more compatible with Republicanism. You see, the Republican Party has traditionally wanted smaller, more limited government. You're never going to achieve smaller, more limited government by actually growing it every year. The following chart demonstrates just how far off the Reagan path our Republican President and the Republican majority in Congress actually are:As I also pointed out, I worked with Newt Gingrich and Dick Armey in their effort to eliminate the federal Department of Education but these efforts were defeated. And so I noted that the issue is settled but I also noted that this administration has applied conservative principles to the now settled federal role in education, a point you neglected to mention.
There you go...the "now settled federal role in education." You act as if it is a done deal and that real Republicans should just give up. That goes with the "now settled federal role" in government-protected abortion on demand, the "now settled federal role" in the Social Security ponzi scheme, the "now settled federal role" in welfare state wealth redistribution schemes, the "now settled federal role" in government managed health care, the "now settled federal role" in after-school and midnight basketball programs, the "now settled federal role" in condom distribution programs, and the "now settled federal role" in whatever the public polls show is the "now settled federal role". The Union Leader editorial and Rush Limbaugh had you pegged, Ed.As I also pointed out regarding Medicare, our choices are to maintain a health program for seniors where government makes decisions and delivers the care or a market oriented approach where patients make choices and private providers deliver the care, and that we could pass our modernization program over the objections of Ted Kennedy if necessary.
I don't recall a big federal wealth redistribution scheme like Medicare being a proud Republican program. And here you are bragging about how the deck chairs are being rearranged on that failed "New Deal" socialist program. You are again showing that you just don't get it. Don't give me tax rebates where I get a pittance of my own hard-earned paycheck back. Get rid of all the confiscatory taxes that steal it in the first place.Not Reaganesque? I joined the Republican Party because of Ronald Reagan. I believe that conservatives and millions of other Americans are Republicans because they support our positive agenda and share our beliefs, not because they have nowhere else to go.
Wrong. We're stuck in a Republican Party run by Republican-In-Name-Only boobs like you because we've nowhere else to go. It's our party anyway, not yours. How about you neocons find somewhere else to go. As soon as the grassroots, rank and file members can throw you guys out of party leadership positions, the better. You've corrupted the Party and sold its soul for public opinion polls and the cheap, easy, low-hanging votes. Your anointed candidates have openly stated in the past that they are not bound by the Party platform and your recent statements prove that the RNC leadership isn't either.You can spin all you want, Ed, but the Union Leader editorials were dead on and you know it. The more rank and file members who figure out where you actually stand, the better chance we have of keeping the Republican Party Republican.