Death Knell for Conservatism?

Whatever happened to Less Government?

Fellow Flacks, Hacks, and Dumpster Divers:

On the eve of this monumental expansion of government's reach into our lives - to the tune of a trillion bucks, I thought it might be time for some reflection.We have come a long way from those heady days in 1995 when a Conservative House of Representatives led the country to balanced budgets, a $155 billion budget surplus, and seeking every opportunity to shrink the size and scope of the federal government somewhere closer to the Constitutional parameters set out in our Founding Documents. It was the zenith of the movement of Ronald Reagan and William F.Buckley, Jr.; of Peter Viereck, and Russell Kirk.

Today, the Republican Party is rocketing toward mediocrity.

Since 2000, The Republicans led the way in creating the largest bureaucracy since FDR; the largest expansion of entitlements if not since the new Deal, then certainly Johnson's "Great Society"; to a projected budget deficit of one half trillion dollars (that's trillion, with a "T"). Ol' Everett Dirksen wasn't even close when he opined: "A million here, a million there; pretty soon we're talkin' big money" . Anymore, a million dollars is a "round up error" to these guys.

The Conservatives in Congress, and I regret there are so few left (perhaps 30 or so true Movement Conservatives), have been largely marginalized. The legacy of Ronald Reagan, the leadership of Newt Gingrich and Dick Armey, the new ideas and fresh thinking of the RSC, are all just a fond memory of a time long ago when Republicans actually acted like Republicans, and Conservative ideology defined the parameters of the debate. Most Republicans can only be distinguished from their Democrat colleagues by their vote for Speaker.

Not that I can completely blame my malaise on the failure of the Republican Majority in the first years of this century at the feet of George W. Bush, he certainly had willing acolytes in both Chambers down Pennsylvania Avenue, but leadership does lead. The fact that the Congress didn't stand up and say "oops, wrong way" and redirect the ship back on course is also disappointing. To be fair, this Administration has faced some difficult and unprecedented challenges. Yet, I cannot but somehow believe that our conservative principles would have better addressed these challenges than a rush to infuse the federal leviathan with with even more nourishment.

The future is, well, "the future" and i do not know what lies across that horizon. I hope that better days are ahead for the Conservative Movement. Yet, I fear, there will be many dark days ahead before it is once again "Morning in America."

Dear John: Here's the Platform to Guarantee Victory in November

Where can John McCain learn what really will make America work and guarantee a Republican victory in November? Right here.

Charlie Wilson's War

Man, I should get sick more often. I have been flippin' around the blogs today and I keep running up on all this really cool stuff that really just gets me all worked up. Besides, when I get stuck in bed, I get way to serious about stuff. (Must be the drugs - it's hard to be me when I feel like I've been hit by a bus.)

Anyway, enough about my pathetic, miserable existence today.

I was looking around at some movie reviews (I get bored easily) and I stumbled on this from a piece by Michael Johns about "Charlie Wilson's War". It's a really long piece, but it is really well written and spelled out the Reagan Doctrine perfectly (Ronald Reagan was just a brilliant guy). Imagine my surprise when I read this:

Under this background, every vote on aid to UNITA, the contras, and other resistance movements was a huge political ordeal, with the vast majority of Congressional Democrats seeking to defeat the measures. Sometimes they won. But more often, because of extraordinary efforts made by Reagan to verbalize the importance of the policy, and the leadership of many Congressional Republicans who had the vision to fight for it, they lost.

While Wilson was one, many other Congressional names, most Republicans, deserve a rightful place as part of the Reagan army who fought for this critical support, including some who did so despite a lack of solid political support for it in their own districts: Congressmen Dan Burton (R-IN), Jim Courter (R-NJ), Newt Gingrich (R-GA), Duncan Hunter (R-CA), Jack Kemp (R-NY), Don Ritter (R-PA), E. Clay Shaw (R-FL), Chris Smith (R-NJ), Bob Walker (R-PA), Senators Steve Symms (R-ID), Don Nickles (R-OK), Malcolm Wallop (R-WY), and dozens of others. Sadly, history has not yet properly recorded the role of these brave elected U.S. leaders, many of whom sacrificed political popularity to fight these battles and who articulated the case for this important doctrine that ultimately ended the Soviet empire. (emphasis added)

Courage in the face of political adversity? "Brave elected leaders"? Now there's a couple really novel ideas.

Thankfully we still have a few in the midst of these spineless flacks for the MoveOn/Code Pink crowd. (The Nancy Pelosi crew just nauseates me.)

Some of these genuine leaders are still around to carry on the Reagan legacy. There's a few left to continue the fight, to lead the conservative movement. There are some like Mike Pence (R-IN) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ), among others, who are picking up that mantle and we are the better for it. The Conservative Movement lives.

If we can ever start acting like real GOPers again, we'll win. If we continue offing ourselves in these monumentally stupid circular firing squads ... (I can just hear the Gipper, "well, there you go again ...")

I have been thinking alot about the former President today, with the passing of my other conservative hero, William F. Buckley, Jr. (I am really gonna miss him, almost as much as I miss President Reagan). I know Ronnie was right. America's best days are still in front of her, if we are willing to work at it.

America is still the "shining city on a hill" and the last best hope for the free world.

We have these guys to thank for it.


See the whole story here:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/michaeljohns/blog/2008/02/20/Charlie-Wilsons-War-Was-Really-Americas-War

Wonder Woman Meets The Sacrificial Snake Girl: Hollywood, Politics and the White Death

Bored to Death and Snowed In we had to find something constructive to do ...

I was sitting around watching the rain/sleet/snow-sleet/ice/snow fall and just could not resist the temptation to flip through the video/DVD library looking for a DVD or Vid to pop in as a change of pace from the relentless coverage of OJ in jail and Bobby Cutts going to jail and Hil's 0-10 tanking being compared to Rudy's "firewall" strategy ... ugh.

So, I find "King's Row" (starring Ronald Reagan) and "Conan the Barbarian" (starring Arnold Schwarzenegger) and it got me thinking about all the ex-"b-grade" actors who got into politics ... Remember the guy from the "Love Boat", Fred Grandy, who was a Congressman from Iowa? And Ben "Cooter"Jones from "The Dukes of Hazzard" who also ended up in the Congress from Georgia. And, of course, there's Fred "Law and Order" Thompson, the Senator from Tennessee and erstwhile POTUS Candidate.

Then there's Arnold, and James "Jesse Ventura" Janos, his colleague from Predator who both ended up as the Governor of their respective states.

I have no idea why I found this so intriguing and even remotely interesting enough to the rest of you to post on it, but what the heck ... it might be a good topic for the next WP poll. Who's your favorite actor-turned-politician? Could be a good on-line trivia contest ... list the movies/TV shows and you match them up with the appropriate actor/politician? (It might do better than the Ron Paul Contest is doing.)

I gotta be missing more, so feel free to post comments with the one's I missed. We might get enough of a list to really have a bunch of options to do some weird stuff with it.

Ah, enough of this. I need to get a bag of ice from the bar and make a pitcher of martinis. We'll be watching the returns from the Potomac Primaries tonight and looking for some interesting stuff to write about ... let's see, Drinks, check. Munchies, check. Crackling fake fire in the fireplace, check. Remotes for the TV's, check. OK, we're ready. Let the Spin Begin!

See y'all after the Obama-ma-ma-mia Show. (I wonder how long it will take for the made-for-TV-movie starring Denzel Washington and Jada Pinkett-Smith?) It won't be a late night, I'm sure. The MSM is falling all over themselves to call this thing for the big "O".

When will Republicans start actually acting like Republicans?

Earlier this week our POTUS proffered a humongeousnessly huge Budget proposal for FY'09 which was preceeded by and insanely stupid "Stimulus Package" that will essentially give people who pay little or no taxes around 300 bucks a piece (+ another 300 for each rugrat, thankfully only up to four per household) so they can go buy that flat screen HDTV they missed at Christmas. (PS: Get it on sale at Best Buy and you'll have enough to get a case of $3 Buck Chuck at Trader Joe's too.)

Excuse me? Was I asleep when the GOP lost the message of 2006. I mean, I get the whole "American's have a short memory thing", really. But c'mon. What ever happened to Fiscal Responsibility, Personal Responsibility, Less Government (Intervention and Regulation, as well as size), a little Accountability maybe, and that famous Ronnie line about Government not being the solution to our problems, "Government is the Problem" ... Hello?

My friend and fellow conspirator, Kurt Luidhardt, made a real good point in a recent post on this page, quoting Ronnie:

"A political party cannot be all things to all people. It cannot be compromised to political expediency ..." which means, "If you don't stand for something ..." you'll end up looking just like the Democrats without all the Code Pink baggage. Not a real attractive position to be in.

Here's a thought. How about we just don't take the people's money from them in the first place. It saves us the cost and irratation of having to give it back to them later.

I usually don't wax so seriously on this stuff. After all, this blog is about having fun with politics. But for cryin' out loud, enough is enough. It gets harder and harder to flack for the GOP (even as a true believer) when you can just as easily flack for the other guys and have better campaign sex (not that I have any direct knowledge or experience in that regard, it's just what I've heard).

In the end, it's really all about the idea of thinking about the next generation and not the next election, which is what we used to do. It is about the GOP growing some stones and deciding that we gotta stand for something or we're most certainly going to fall for anything ... like Stimulus Packages that won't stimulate anything.

Does the thought of being in the Minority for another forty years do anything for ya?

THIS JUST IN ... GIPPER WINS WEIRD PRO GOPer PREFERENCE POLL

The RACE WAS CLOSE ... The "GIPPER" pulls ahead in closing hours.

GOP Powerbroker BOB GRAND was narrowly defeated by FORMER POTUS RONALD REAGAN in the Weird Pro Super Tuesday GOPer Preference Poll. The polls closed only moments ago and the Gipper pulled out a 38% - 27% victory, proving that he's still a solid vote -getter.

CA "Governator" Arnold Schwarzenegger almost made it respectable, but in the end he was no match for the Rough Rider and former POTUS Teddy Roosevelt, who finished with a last minute charge up the proverbial San Juan Hill at a "bully" 16%.

The "Governator" and "Honest Abe" Lincoln were bringing up the rear, both in single digits.

Look for more reaction later this evening as we blog live from the Spin Room!

UPDATE: Grand, Gipper in (pardon the pun) Dead Heat!

In a startling development, GOP kingmaker Bob Grand has pulled into a statistical dead heat with GOP Icon Ronald Reagan. Both are polling at 35% in the most recent review of the Weird Pro poll.

Former President, Environmentalist, and Rough Rider, Teddy Roosevelt, is in second place with a solid 21% followed by Republican Party Father and The "Great Emancipator", Abraham Lincoln, in third with 7%.

Former body-builder-turned-movie-action-hero-turned-California-Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, has yet to gain traction garnering nil, nada, zip -- not a single, solitary vote ... but, like Rambo, don't count the "Governator" out. Our California colleagues tell us that "He'll be back."

This just in ... Bob Grand trails The Gipper by one vote in latest Weird Pros Poll.

GOP kingmaker Bob Grand trails former President Ronald Reagan by only one vote in the latest Weird Pro poll of GOP flacks and hacks.

Grand, obviously unaware that this blogspace even exists, was unavailable for comment.