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Jim Robinson: Taking stock of our dwindling conservative inventory
Jan 5, 2011 | Jim Robinson

Posted on 01/05/2012 11:23:02 AM PST by Jim Robinson

Tea party favorite and pro-life conservative Sarah Palin and her family were viciously attacked to the point she chose not to run.

Congressional Tea Party Caucus leader and constitutional pro-life conservative Michele Bachmann had early promise, but I guess came across as too "shrill" and consequently her numbers driven down to the point she exited.

Successful pro-life conservative Texas Governor Perry hit the race at the top but due to missteps and less than stellar debate performances soon fizzled and is now all but gone.

Pro-life conservative businessman Cain and his famous 9-9-9 plan had promise, but was driven out due to indefensible allegations.

Pro-life Reagan Revolution conservative Newt Gingrich reinvigorated his campaign and soared to the top of the national polls, but was unacceptable to the establishment and apparently also unacceptable to the "true conservatives" among us and his numbers are now plummeting

You'd think "unquestionably" pro-life, pro-family conservative Rick Santorum whose recent surge took him to a tie in Iowa and who's now surging in the national polls might be good enough to stand against Romney for the base, but looks like there are "true conservatives" now attacking HIM as not good enough.

Well, drive them all out and who's left?

Huntsman? Who? Moonbat Paul?

Ideas anyone? Should we all continue attacking the conservatives we don't like until we drive them all out?

Personally, I could easily have lived with Palin, Bachmann, Cain, Perry, Newt or Santorum and would be proud to enthusiastically support any of them, warts and all. Any one of them is infinitely better than Obama or Romney.

But if we don't land on one soon and raise him up over Romney, guess who we're going to be stuck with? And it ain't going to be pretty. And if abortionist/statist/progressive Romney (or moonbat Paul) is the one, might as well get used to four more years of Obama. I won't vote for or support either one of those two.

I'd suggest that we all stop trying to tear down the other conservative candidates in the race and instead concentrate on trying to build up our own personal favorites. Who knows? May even discover an acceptable conservative (if not a great conservative) in the bunch. We've never had a perfect conservative yet. Not even the magnificent Ronald Reagan. We and they all have warts.

But we do want to have a candidate with at least an actual CONSERVATIVE record and not an out and out liberal progressive RINO. So let's compare their records and their actual conservative accomplishments but not try to destroy them personally.

God bless and may the best CONSERVATIVE be our nominee.


TOPICS: Breaking News; Constitution/Conservatism; Free Republic; Politics/Elections; Your Opinion/Questions
KEYWORDS: conservatives; elections; eleventhcommandment; gingrich; jimrobinson; newt
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To: Vendome

Newt so long as he continues to intellectually eviscerate that Lame-O MuttTard.  I want Gingrich to absolutely use Newtonium to destroy Mutters and it should go off with a loud BOOM!!!

Might be Perry, “IF!”, he can get his game on and sharpen his knives.

Could be Santorum but, he needs to learn commity of speech.

Romney is a corporate salesman and a good one. However, he has taken no position so he can be all things to all people.

My hope is that like any other “Me too” salesman he goes down in flames.

We need a couple more debates now that we have fewer voices, who diffuse the real thinkers and then we will see who really has a plan for America.

Mitt, with his 59 page/point proposal, which no one with ADD or a “Type A” personality would give more than 3 minutes of serious thought.

Santorum, who seems to be a good man and fairly conservative but lacks a Power Point plan and points that are quickly understood.

Newt, gets it and is a very flawed man. Hell, ain’t I? A record of real achievement from a conservative point of view?

You betcha!

I’ll spell it out in a second.

Rick, Rick, Rick. I took you on as a recommendation from a friend but you ain’t working it and I suspect you were talked into doing something maybe you hadn’t seriously considered before.

Doesn’t mean you couldn’t be a decent President but, dang it! Act like you want it and I can stay with you as an alternative to Mitt. As it is, all I can do is send you my hard earned loot and hope your voice mutes that other governer but, sadly, yours is the one that currently not heard.

Get with it or Go home. BTW, love what you are doing in Texas.

 

Romney’s positions and that of Newt’s are pretty well known.

One has acted them out and the other has not.

One is opportunist for the purpose of advancement, the other is a serious intellect and strategist whose performance in the past I very much agreed with.

In fact, I had to educate our new local host his 2nd day on the air. He made the unfortunate mistake of Praising Bill Clinton for Welfare Reform, the Balanced Budget and lowered taxes through capital gains tax cut.

Brian Sussman made an unfortunate mistake of trying to give Clinton credit on the one hand while demonstrating his errors on the other.

I called in and thanked him for deciding to become a full time talk jock but I wanted to correct his view about Clintons legacy. Not to be contrarian or take away from him or Bill Clinton but they were just plain wrong and I asked I might quickly demonstrate why Clinton deserved zero Credit and when I am through who really should get the credit, without insulting anyone.

So I quickly went through them:

Contract with America, who wrote it? Newt Gingrich was his reply.

That is correct.

Now to clear the record I’ll go through them in the order I think is most powerful:

Capital Gains tax cut-
Was thought of as a response to Clintons raising of taxes and as a tool to keep the investment community well, inevesting and spurring additional investment. That was a Contract with America initiative and a well thought out position by Newt.

There was some horse trading and Newt gave away something no one really cared about to get it and the economy kept going with the result being unemployment dropping from 7% to 4% in a few short years.

The host immediately got the idea, said he would probably rephrase his thought at the end and asked me to continue.

Balanced Budget -
Again, Newt gave Clinton some bases that were already on the secondary list, devised by Dick Cheney, as alternatives for closure. Clinton got a win for his anti-military wing, we gave away something we didn’t care about and got what we wanted.

Welfare Reform -
This was the end goal all along and with a new Republican majority Congress it easily passed the House only to have Clinton veto it.

No problem. The President has the bully pulpit but was embroiled in a few distractions at the time which made it possible for Newt, Dole and few others to take their case directly to the American people who were sick of welfare queens.

Clinton was made aware the American people and the Houses were very much in the majority and very excited about reforming welfare. Still, he vetoed it again and then tried to make the argument he was going to co-opt the argument and reshape welfare reform as he saw fit.

It became very apparent the American taxpayer had, had enough and so had the houses. The pressure became to much and Clinton relented with nary a change to the original welfare reform act.

While he took credit for welfare reform it was never his idea, never became a priority until politically forced.

This was a Newt idea and part of the Contract with America which he shepherded.

Mitt has done nothing like this and I can trust Newt to follow through on his positions.

Still, I am in the Bachman(was), Santorum or Perry Camp. They just need to catch and if they cant’ then I am with Newt, all....the ...way.

Welfare Reform, the Balanced Budget and lowered taxes through capital gains tax cut.

Who has a record like that?

Who can perform like that?


21 posted on 01/05/2012 11:40:44 AM PST by Vendome (Don't take life so seriously, you won't live through it anyway)
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To: Jim Robinson

Food for thought from today’s Rasmussen poll nationally among likely GOP voters:

Former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum, coming off his photo finish with Mitt Romney in the Iowa caucuses, is now in second place among Republican voters in the race for the party’s 2012 presidential nomination.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey, taken the night after the caucuses, shows Romney again in first place with support from 29% of Likely Republican Primary Voters, followed by Santorum with 21%.


22 posted on 01/05/2012 11:41:00 AM PST by Lazlo in PA (Now living in a newly minted Red State.)
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

Ping!


23 posted on 01/05/2012 11:41:45 AM PST by Jean S
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To: Jim Robinson

A lot of this is being orchestrated by the GOP establishment. They put out soundbites and tidbits trying to show how XYZ conservative has departed from the true faith in some case, and then they use this to dismantle the candidate in the eyes of conservatives. All the while, they don’t want you to notice that they are doing it to push through what would be the most liberal GOP Presidential nominee since Nixon.


24 posted on 01/05/2012 11:42:48 AM PST by Thane_Banquo
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To: Jim Robinson

I’m convinced that Newt Gingrich is the junkyard dog we need to rip Obama a new one and send him running back to his Chicago cesspool with his tail between his legs. Newt has DC experience, executive ability, and his silver tongue is razor sharp. He delivers his messages straight up and he can also be very witty. His work with American Solutions was very impressive in that he was able to spell out principles around which the vast majority of Americans agree. He also has plenty of practical ideas for making government work better for the taxpayers. Is Newt pure as the driven snow? No. Whatever Newt’s “baggage”, it’s miniscule compared to Obama’s load and Newt is 100% American. Newt is like Larry the Cable Guy: Send him to DC and he’ll “Git ‘er done”. Junkyard dogs are not show dogs, but they’ll save your bacon.


25 posted on 01/05/2012 11:43:07 AM PST by bopdowah ("Unlike King Midas, whatever the Gubmint touches sure don't turn to Gold!')
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To: humblegunner

I want Perry, Gingrich and Santorum in that order.

I want ‘em all.

What we REALLY need to be worrying about is how to split up Paul’s base. He can’t go on forever.


26 posted on 01/05/2012 11:44:56 AM PST by txhurl (Perry/Pence 2012 OR Perry/Ryan 2012 or even better Perry/Abbott 2012!)
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To: Bubba Ho-Tep

Yes. And we sound like the “anybody but Bush” crowd too. They lost and that worries me. That isn’t a good strategy. Conservatives need to be clear on the direction in which they want to take the country. Simply saying “Anybody but Obama” isn’t a strategy.


27 posted on 01/05/2012 11:47:28 AM PST by DJ MacWoW (America! The wolves are here! What will you do?)
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To: freedomrings69

Give some examples.............


28 posted on 01/05/2012 11:47:33 AM PST by Osage Orange (HE HATE ME)
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To: Jim Robinson

Sarah is my first choice but i’ll settle for santorum if I have to.

anyone else, I’ll stay home.

it might mean another 4 yrs of 0failure... if so, then the American people haven’t learned and deserve more ‘change’


29 posted on 01/05/2012 11:47:42 AM PST by sten (fighting tyranny never goes out of style)
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To: Jim Robinson

I hope that we do not get so caught up in fighting about purism and the top of the ticket that we forget about the House and Senate. Particularly if we end up disappointed with the GOP candidate, WE-I mean CONSERVATIVES- have to control the Legislature. If we do not win the Whitehouse fight and the occupant is a liberal, either Obama or Romney, we must be in a position to make him squirm!!!!!! Primary RINOS and support conservatives!!!!


30 posted on 01/05/2012 11:50:29 AM PST by elvis-lives
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To: txhurl
What we REALLY need to be worrying about is how to split up Paul’s base.

I don't think his base is real.

In polls, his base is a bunch of spam monkeys.

In Iowa and soon to be other primaries/caucuses, his base is cross-over liberal voters.

My theory: His numbers are fake.

31 posted on 01/05/2012 11:51:15 AM PST by humblegunner (The kinder, gentler version...)
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To: humblegunner
I’d take any of the three.

Same for me hg. At this point, it's anybody but Romney or Paul for me.

If it turns out to be Romney or Paul, wow, FR will be very interesting for the following months.

32 posted on 01/05/2012 11:54:22 AM PST by Jean S
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To: Bobalu

“I like Santorum but it’s gonna take a Newt Gingrich to roll everything back pre FDR.”

####

Pre-FDR?!?!?

Wow.

You are thinking big.

Me likey.


33 posted on 01/05/2012 11:55:16 AM PST by EyeGuy (2012: When the Levee Breaks)
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To: Jim Robinson

Truth. It does seem that a lot of Conservatives have been indirectly helping out Obama. Circular firing squads, personality attacks on candidates, astoundingly polarized dogmas that malign any candidate who is not X. Result - lots of bad taste in many mouths. This can even be seen on FR. Looking at Romney - he would have no chance against Conservatives (Iowa showed a 3:1 disadvantage for him), but for him to lose Conservatives need to stop being split. They have to agree on one candidate, based on issues, coalesce around that one candidate, knock Romney out, and then take the fight to the Dems. Right now the Dems are laughing at us ...derisively. We are doing their work for them. Let us have the last laugh.


34 posted on 01/05/2012 11:56:16 AM PST by spetznaz (Nuclear-tipped Ballistic Missiles: The Ultimate Phallic Symbol)
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To: Jim Robinson

Bump that. Amen.


35 posted on 01/05/2012 11:56:59 AM PST by BuckeyeTexan (Man is not free unless government is limited. ~Ronald Reagan)
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To: Jim Robinson

I’m sure Santorum is a perfectly nice guy.

This just isnt a nice guy election.

Newt is the most fearless guy to run for the white house since Reagan. He knows how to fight and does not need time to train and get up to speed.


36 posted on 01/05/2012 12:00:00 PM PST by VanDeKoik (1 million in stimulus dollars paid for this tagline!)
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To: Jim Robinson

No delegates have been selected yet and Iowa has a bad record for selecting the eventual winner.

Rick Perry for executive experience (minus the 53 seconds of bad debate experience) with Rick Santorum as VP for Beltway experience.

Rick ‘n Rick 2012!


37 posted on 01/05/2012 12:04:04 PM PST by Squidpup ("Fight the Good Fight")
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To: spetznaz
We are doing their work for them.

Don't be naive....they are very active in "helping" us.

38 posted on 01/05/2012 12:04:16 PM PST by Osage Orange (HE HATE ME)
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To: Jean S
If it turns out to be Romney or Paul, wow, FR will be very interesting for the following months.

I can picture two ways that might go and I don't like either.

Let's hope it doesn't happen!

39 posted on 01/05/2012 12:04:33 PM PST by humblegunner (The kinder, gentler version...)
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To: Jim Robinson
Well-said, Jim!

The "Principled Conservatives" are unwittingly the RATS' secret weapon. The RATS play them like a cheap banjo.

40 posted on 01/05/2012 12:04:42 PM PST by Redleg Duke ("Madison, Wisconsin is 30 square miles surrounded by reality.", L. S. Dryfus)
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