Conservative Movement Needs Fiscal Discipline
TimesUnion.Com Millions Have Now Dropped Off Full article David Paul Kuhn TimesUnion.Com White Men Shun Democrat Party David Paul Kuhn is author of White Men and The Democratic Dilemma Club For Growth Blog February 15, 2010: Evan Bayh's "Conservative" Record? It always irks me when people characterize someone like Evan Bayh as a "conservative" Democrat. He's nothing of the sort. Is he as liberal as Chuck Schumer or Bernie Sanders? Probably not, but on the ideological spectrum, being to the right of Schumer and Sanders does not automatically make you a fiscal conservative. In Bayh's case, it just makes you only slightly less liberal. Here are some big votes that Bayh cast that no self-respecting fiscal conservative would make. He was: * FOR the $2 trillion federal health care takeover; * FOR $700 billion Wall Street bailout; * FOR the $787 billion stimulus; * FOR the Cash for Clunkers debacle; * FOR a job killing cap-and-trade energy tax; * FOR the auto bailouts; * FOR card check; and, * AGAINST repealing the Death Tax. And here are his ratings on the Club for Growth's scorecards: * 2008 - 11% * 2007 - 9% * 2006 - 1% * 2005 - 2% No matter how you approach his record, Evan Bayh is not a fiscal conservative. Wednesday, June 03, 2009 Thomas Sowell :: Townhall.com Columnist Media Carefully Protecting Sonia Sotomayor "Out of Context": Part II by Thomas Sowell Excerpts: As the mainstream media circles the wagons around Judge Sonia Sotomayor, to protect her from the consequences of her own words and deeds, its main arguments are distractions from the issue at hand. A CNN reporter, for example, got all worked up because Rush Limbaugh had used the word "racist" to describe the judge's words. Since it has been repeated like a mantra that Judge Sotomayor's words have been "taken out of context," let us look at Rush Limbaugh in context. The cold fact is that Rush Limbaugh has not been nominated to sit on the highest court in the land, with a lifetime appointment, to have the lives and liberties of 300 million Americans in his hands. Whatever you may think about his choice of words, those words and the ideas behind them do not change the law of the land. The words and actions of Supreme Court justices do. Anyone who doesn't like what Rush Limbaugh says can simply turn off the radio or change the station. But you cannot escape the consequences of Supreme Court decisions. Nor will your children or grandchildren. Full article Thomas Sowell Townhall.Com CLUB FOR GROWTH PRAISES GOVERNOR MARK SANFORD Full article Club for Growth Praises Gov. Sanford’s Stimulus Decision Washington – The Club for Growth commends South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford for rejecting a portion of the stimulus funds unless the White House will allow the state to use it to pay down its debt and reduce existing contingent liabilities. As Nancy Pelosi talks about drafting a second stimulus bill, it is comforting to know some politicians are willing to stand up for American taxpayers. After taking considerable time to study the stimulus bill—something many of its supporters did not do—Gov. Sanford came to the conclusion that much of the legislation will cause more economic harm than good. Instead of blindly accepting the stimulus funds to expand the size of government, increase the country’s debt, and commit his state to unaffordable spending in the future, Gov. Sanford announced that he will ask for a waiver from the White House to use the stimulus money to pay down the state’s debts and contingent liabilities. “For weeks, Governor Sanford has been a voice of fiscal sanity as he tried to convince Congress not to pass the waste-laden $800 billion stimulus bill,” said Club for Growth President Pat Toomey. “While many governors could not extend their hands fast enough, Gov. Sanford urged the country to consider the long-term consequences of pushing our country further into debt.” The American Conservative Union Foundation Stimulate Federalism Instead by George Liebmann Issue 126 - February 18, 2009 Full article George Liebmann The American Conservative Union Foundation Excerpts: Most people support the need for a temporary economic stimulus. The sharp contraction of credit, largely the product of derivative financial products and mortgage and credit card pools whose value is overstated or indeterminable has had immediate impacts on the real economy, with large layoffs, a continuing fall in consumer confidence, and concomitant reductions in corporate profits, corporate investments, American imports, and the long-term willingness of foreigners to invest in the United States and maintain the value of its currency. A purely top-down system of relief based on the propping up of large banks, however, rewards the irresponsible, may not necessarily enhance or maintain consumer demand, introduces economic distortions based on attempts to direct the lending activity of banks, and may produce monetary inflation. Conservative One consequence of layoffs and falls in retail sales are declines in state and local tax revenues. The states lack capacity to print money and are constrained by balanced budget amendments; some of their leaders have joined in premature cries for relief of their condition. At this point, however, most states are crying before they are really hurt, and are turning to federal assistance as a way to avoid necessary rationalization of their tax systems, employee benefits, and systems for support of both incomes and infrastructure. There are dangers that the relief package will confirm and extend bad habits, while leading to a permanent dependence on Washington and the creation there of a new Versailles, the court of a Sun King. By INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY Passing The Torch Of National Safety Friday, January 16, 2009 4:20 PM PT The Presidency: George W. Bush's administration achieved what few believed possible after 9/11 — a perfect record of keeping America safe. Will President Obama keep the streak going? Full article INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY Excerpts: In his final address to the nation as president, Ronald Reagan noted that "there is a great tradition of warnings in presidential farewells." On Thursday evening, President Bush did not employ the unforgettable poetry of the Great Communicator. He did not conjure images of a "shining city" that "still stands strong and true on the granite ridge, and her glow has held steady no matter what storm." But he did issue a warning that all should heed: "America must maintain our moral clarity," he said, noting that "I have often spoken to you about good and evil" and that "this has made some uncomfortable." INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY By INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY Wednesday, December 31, 2008 Full article INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY Excerpts: Nine Possibilities Heading Into 2009 Time again to make a few guesses — 9 for '09 this time — on what the New Year may bring. Read More: Election 2008 | Economy Last year's "8 for '08" were fairly accurate on six counts: the world would continue to dither as Iran's nuclear program advanced, the "consensus" on global warming would start to crumble, Cuba would sail into rough waters, Hugo Chavez would wear thinner, the Cold War would return and the economy would replace Iraq as the top news story. We were too sanguine, however, about the economy's ability to avoid recession and a little early in predicting a reassessment of the Bush presidency. We were also disappointed a Nobel Prize didn't go to Japanese and American researchers who found a way to turn regular human skin cells into the equivalent of embryonic stem cells. Now, this year's outlook: 1. A Less Safe Homeland? One of the Bush Administration's key reasons for letting the National Security Agency listen to communications between the U.S. and al-Qaida contacts was that the special courts set up by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act often work too slowly to prevent terrorist operations. As current CIA director and former NSA director Gen. Michael Hayden put it, "it's a quicker trigger . . . it allows us to be as agile as operationally required to cover these targets." FORBES.COM Grand New Party Obama's Perfect Foil Reihan Salam, 11.24.08, 12:00 AM EST Mitch Daniels says ''Yes you can.'' Full article Reihan Salam Forbes.com Excerpts: Wouldn't it be nice to have a president who understood that throwing good money after bad is a losing strategy? President-Elect Barack Obama will enjoy his honeymoon for many months to come, and so far he deserves it. His economic team is first-rate. His pick for Secretary of the Treasury, Timothy Geithner, describes himself as a former moderate Republican, and he'd be a credit to a White House of either partisan stripe. And as Detroit's Big Three automakers angle for a bailout, the word on the street is that Obama has expressed skepticism, calling for an aggressive restructuring package as the price of any deal. Conservative But who really believes that the White House and Congress will successfully enforce the kind of terms that will turn General Motors into Toyota?Article Controls Bailout capitalism is crony capitalism: the marriage of the socialization of risk and the privatization of profit. In this upside-down world, the taxpayer bears the brunt of failed decisions while crony capitalists make billions when times are flush. Notice what has happened since the bailout of the financial sector. While some have condemned it as a massive giveaway, others have decided that they too are deserving of federal largess. Conservative This is a mentality that will sap our economic vitality and, as melodramatic as this might sound, undermine our democracy. We badly need politicians who are willing to apply the same set of rules to big guys and to little guys. If Republicans are ever going to make a comeback, they need to make the case against never-ending bailouts of the rich and connected. HUMAN EVENTS.COM GOP's Future Is In Its Grass Roots by Michael Reagan 11/14/200 Full article Michael Reagan Human Events.Com Excerpts: There are a lot of meetings going on among some Republicans trying to figure out what went wrong on Election Day and how the party needs to respond. None of them involve what the media like to call the base, the folks at the grass roots whose votes, after all, determine the outcome of elections. The gatherings get a lot of media attention because the media mistakenly believe that the people attending them represent the grass roots of the GOP. They don’t. What they represent is the coterie who led the party into eight years of ignoring the traditions and principles of the party pursued so avidly by the Reagan administration, with which they have the effrontery to identify themselves. NOVEMBER 11, 2008 Conservative Take Some Political Risks By PAUL RYAN Full article Wall Street Journal Excerpts: After two straight electoral defeats, it is time for a substantial party shake-up. We don't need a feather duster; we need a fire hose. We need to be honest about the root causes of our current financial crisis: loose money, crony capitalism and a lack of market transparency and information. We need to adopt a policy of sound money by requiring the Federal Reserve to focus exclusively on keeping inflation in check, as I've proposed with my Price Stability Act. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, whose excesses helped lead to the current mess, must be taken off the backs of taxpayers. We need a complete overhaul of our outdated financial regulatory system to emphasize market transparency and accountability. The greatest threat to our nation's future prosperity is the explosion of entitlement spending. Our entitlement programs are headed for a painful collapse that will bankrupt this nation and leave our children with an inferior standard of living. If we don't tackle these problems, they will tackle us. TOWNHALL.COM Andrew Miga November 7, 2008 Full article Andrew Miga Townhall.Com Excerpts: Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is talking to Connecticut independent Sen. Joe Lieberman about the possibility of Lieberman caucusing with the GOP. Lieberman's affiliation with Democrats is up in the air. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, angered by Lieberman's support of Republican John McCain for president, is considering yanking Lieberman's chairmanship of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee as punishment. Lieberman and Reid met Thursday to discuss Lieberman's options, including possible committee and subcommittee posts for him. Those talks are ongoing. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL The Europeanization of America What's ahead if Obama becomes president. By PETE DU PONT OCTOBER 27, 2008, 12:49 A.M. ET Full article Pete DuPont THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Excerpts:
Barack Obama is likely to become the next president of the United States. Six weeks ago John McCain was leading Mr. Obama. But according to RealClearPolitics, as of yesterday Mr. Obama led in the national polls by just under 8% and in the Electoral College by 306 to 157 (a majority is 270). Throughout his campaign Mr. Obama has successfully presented himself as a careful and sensible person and was recently endorsed by Christopher Buckley, son of the late William F. Buckley, as having a "first-class temperament and a first-class intellect." But Mr. Obama will most likely be our most liberal public policy president since Franklin D. Roosevelt. Since President Bush is not popular (his approval rating is at 25%, with 71% disapproving). Conservative Mr. McCain has not run an inspiring campaign, and most people have declining confidence in our economic and financial system, voters have simply decided it is time for change. Gallup reports that just 7% of Americans are satisfied with the way things are going, so voters seem to have concluded that they will take a chance on Mr. Obama, whatever his policies may be. The only organization with a worse rating than the Republican president is the Democratic Congress—14% approval, 75% disapproval. But there, too, the Democrats will gain strength. They are expected to increase their majority in the House, and current polling shows that in Senate races Democrats will increase their members from the current 51 (including two independents who caucus with the Democrats) to at least 57. They may even achieve the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster. Contributors Why I Voted For The Bailout Tom Coburn 10.22.08, 12:00 AM ET Full article Tom Coburn Excerpts:
One of the challenges of dealing with an economic crisis during campaign season is that when politicians and commentators use hyperbole and politically expedient rhetoric to bash "unregulated markets" and "Wall Street greed" they end up undermining not just confidence in George Bush's policies or the Reagan legacy, but the fundamentals of our free market system. Campaigns, after all, don't do subtlety. If one side can find an advantage, it's easier to throw the proverbial baby out with the bathwater. Economist Jeffrey Sachs recently demonstrated how even academics can get carried away in campaign season when he wrote in Fortune: "Success [after this crisis] will mean the end of the Reagan era, of an ideology that has brought the country to its knees." Conservative Sachs' declaration that the United States--not the Soviet Union--was the country brought to its knees by Reagan betrays not just partisan cheerleading, but a dangerous, self-defeating revisionist version of history. At a time when consumer confidence is in the tank, fueling a national identity crisis is not the way forward, particularly when enemies like the Ayatollah Khomeini are gloating about the "end of capitalism." Joe the Plumber cuts to the heart of the Presidential choice. WALL STREET JOURNAL October 16, 2008 Full article Wall Street Journal Excerpts: Whether or not last night's much-improved debate performance helps John McCain rally in the polls, at least voters finally got a clearer sense of the policy differences. For our money, the best line of the night was Mr. McCain's Freudian slip of referring to Barack Obama as "Senator Government." Neither candidate is offering policies that meet the serious economic moment. But Mr. McCain would let Americans keep more of their own income to ride out the downturn, while Mr. Obama is revealing that his default agenda is to spend money and expand the government. Cribbing from Hillary Clinton's playbook, Mr. Obama called this week for a "90 day foreclosure moratorium for homeowners that are acting in good faith," whatever that last phrase means. When Mrs. Clinton proposed a foreclosure moratorium during the Democratic primaries, Mr. Obama had said it would lead to more expensive mortgages going forward. He was right then. The Treasury's Hope Now program and the Federal Housing Administration are already helping to refinance homes for millions of homeowners. Conservative Anyone who isn't able to qualify for one of those voluntary programs and who still can't afford to pay a mortgage isn't likely to be any better fixed in a mere 90 days. Mr. Obama also overlooks that the banks that service the mortgages don't typically own them. They're owned by far-flung investors via a mortgage-backed security.  Custom Search REAL CLEAR POLITICS September 16, 2008 The High Cost of Racial Hype By Thomas Sowell Full article Thomas Sowell RCP Excerpts: Sometimes you don't know when you are lucky. Certainly I did not consider myself lucky when I left home at seventeen and discovered the hard way that there was no great demand for a black teenage dropout with no experience and no skill. In retrospect, however, those days of struggling to earn money to pay the room rent and buy food left little time or energy for navel-gazing over things like "identity." All this came back to me recently when I saw a font-page story about middle-class blacks worrying about their racial identity. There, on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, was a picture of a black teenager whose mother was fixing his bow tie as he was getting dressed in a tuxedo, in preparation for a cotillion. I never had the problem of wearing a tuxedo to a cotillion, so it was hard for me to empathize with their angst. McPalin rattles Team Obama REAL CLEAR POLITICS The Democratic ticket finds itself trapped by a McCain-Palin double-team. Jonah Goldberg September 9, 2008 Full articles Jonah Goldberg RCP Excerpts: Barack Obama, a famous fan of pickup basketball, must recognize his plight: It's two on one now. John McCain drafted Gov. Sarah Palin, the star point guard from the Wasilla Warriors, to double-team Obama. (McCain's team doesn't care if no one covers Joe Biden, who seems to spend most of his time yelling to the media, "I'm open! I'm open!" But when he gets the ball, all he does is talk about what a great player he is and dribble in place.) So after the halftime show of the political conventions, to strain the sports metaphor a bit further, it looks as if the change-up in strategy has Team Obama rattled and in danger of choking. Polls -- the closest thing we have to a scoreboard -- show that McCain, at least temporarily, has taken the lead. Conservative The Real Clear Politics average of national polls since Friday shows McCain ahead by a razor-thin (and statistically meaningless) 2.9 percentage points. The USA Today-Gallup poll has McCain leading by a whopping 10 points among likely voters (and four points among registered voters), though that's almost surely an overstatement. The Weekly Standard Thanks, Guys The media's attacks on Sarah Palin backfire. by William Kristol 09/15/2008, Volume 014, Issue 01 William Kristol The Weekly Standard Excerpts: The editors of THE WEEKLY STANDARD believe in giving credit where credit is due. The presidential race looks a whole lot better today than it did two weeks ago. For this, thanks are owed to two men--Barack Obama and John McCain--and to that herd of independent minds, the liberal media. First: Thank you, Barack Obama. He lacked the confidence or the strength to ask Hillary Clinton, recipient of some 18 million votes, to join him on the ticket. Such a ticket, uniting and exciting the Democratic party, would have been hard to beat in this Democratic year. Having ruled out Clinton, Obama then lacked the nerve to double down on the theme of change, by selecting, say, Virginia governor Tim Kaine or Kansas governor Kathleen Sebelius. A change versus experience election wouldn't have been a bad bet for Obama. Instead, he settled on an unimpressive vice presidential pick, a long-time, long-winded overrated senator from a safe state, who gave him no lift at all in the polls, and offers no prospect of doing so. Second: Thank you, John McCain. He showed guts with his pick of Sarah Palin. He also demonstrated a shrewd strategic sense. He knew that running on experience would carry him only so far--most likely to a respectable defeat. He understood the implications of Obama's passing over Hillary--not that Clinton voters would vote for McCain-Palin (though if even a few do so, it could make a difference), but that his pick of Palin when compared with Obama's shying away fromHillary would show McCain as a bolder and more confident leader. And he had the sense that Palin's anti-establishment conservatism, pro-family feminism, and tough-minded reformism would add something important to his campaign. Excerpts: TOWNHALL.COM Friday, August 29, 2008 Hugh Hewitt Victory and Energy for the Second American Century: Cheering the Palin Pick Full article Hugh Hewitt Townhall.com Excerpts: Conservatives are thrilled with the selection of Sarah Palin as John McCain's running-mate. Scroll through the postings at RobinsonandLong.com, or listen to the hosts and callers on any of the talk shows today. There are six reasons, all of them huge and enduring. First, over the past month we have gone from hoping Senator McCain would win to thinking he might actually be able to win. With the selection of Governor Palin most of us are convinced he will win. Which means the country will be well led on the war for at least another four crucial years. The reason behind this new confidence leads us to the second factor. Conservative July 31, 2008 REASONONLINE Sen. Tom Coburn resists the tyranny of good intentions Jacob Sullum July 30, 2008 Full article Jacob Sullum REASONONLINE
Excerpts: Frustrated by Tom Coburn's "unprecedented obstructionism," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid cobbled together a "Tomnibus" of 35 bills with "broad—virtually unanimous—bipartisan support" that Coburn had blocked. On Monday the Oklahoma Republican blocked them again. According to the Congressional Budget Office, Reid's wish list will cost about $10 billion over five years, at a time when the federal budget deficit has ballooned to a record $490 billion. Yet Reid marvels that "the rogue far right...has perfected the art of stopping good bills that help good people." Good bills that help good people: Could there possibly be a better governing philosophy? I myself am partial to the notion, promoted by such rogue right-wingers as James Madison, that the federal government may exercise only those powers explicitly enumerated in the Constitution, which do not include subsidizing medical research, museums, or foreign travel for college students. As Madison pointed out, if Article I's General Welfare Clause is interpreted as blanket permission to spend money on good things, much of the rest of the Constitution is superfluous. ...Coburn, known as the Dr. No of the Senate, does not go that far. Unlike Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas), the Dr. No of the House, Coburn generally does not oppose spending on constitutional grounds. But he does ask his colleagues to pay for new programs by cutting old ones instead of spending money they do not have. In a letter to Reid, he identified $45 billion in cuts that could be used to offset the cost of Advancing America's Priorities... Conservative July 27, 2008 REAL CLEAR POLITICS July 26, 2008 Romney's Value By Robert Novak Full article Robert Novak RCP Excerpts: WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The principal reason why former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has climbed to the top of Sen. John McCain's practical wish list for vice president is the possibility that he could bring Michigan's 17 electoral votes to the Republicans for the first time since 1988. Private polls show Romney could make all the difference in Michigan. A McCain-Romney ticket carries the state by a moderately comfortable margin. With any other running mate, McCain loses Michigan. George Romney, Mitt's father, was a Detroit auto executive and the popular three-term governor of Michigan. The younger Romney won the 2008 primary in Michigan over McCain, who had won there in 2000 against George W. Bush. Conservative July 19, 2008 LAS VEGAS SUN Lisa Mascaro July 18, 2008 Excerpts: Washington — Nevada Republican Rep. Dean Heller’s comments to a newspaper nudged him into national headlines recently, sending him careening from impolitic freshman to party oracle in a matter of days. The reaction has died down, but look for it to resurface this fall in his reelection campaign against Democrat Jill Derby. The newsmaking began when Heller said the Republican Party needs to “clean house” and “the next couple of election cycles are going to do that.” In remarks to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, he said some Republicans who rode a conservative wave to office in 1994 “came to change Washington, and Washington changed them.” Visit: Club For Growth Club For Growth July 16, 2008 Dr. Broun Goes to Washington Andrew Roth I just received this from John Fund. It's from today's WSJ Political Diary ($): Last July, Paul Broun shocked Georgia pundits when the poorly funded physician narrowly defeated a longtime legislative leader in a GOP primary for a special election in an overwhelmingly Republican U.S. House seat. Party grandees were convinced Dr. Broun's victory was a fluke and this year backed a challenge from state Rep. Barry Fleming, who hails from the district's population center of Augusta. Mr. Fleming promptly raised nearly $1 million and proceeded to throw the kitchen sink at Dr. Broun, including mailers claiming he was soft on Internet perverts and chiding him for failing to bring home earmarks for the district. Well, Dr. Broun will be going back to Washington next year, having won 71% in last night's primary to defeat the GOP establishment's consensus choice in his district for the second time in a year. Mr. Broun says his victory demonstrates that a Member of Congress can prosper politically even when he votes against any federal program that isn't explicitly authorized by the Constitution. Dr. Broun was outspent again this time, but raised about $760,000 to put out his message that he was a different kind of Congressman. He touted endorsements from the free-market Club for Growth and social conservative leader Paul Weyrich. But the centerpiece of his campaign was a pledge to continue applying a four-way test before voting on any bill: Is it constitutional and a proper function of government? Is it morally correct? Is it something we really need? Is it something we can afford? Like libertarian congressman and fellow physician Ron Paul of Texas, he always carries a copy of the Constitution in his pocket and consults it before voting. "Today's federal government is too big, too powerful, and too expensive because it is doing things beyond the scope of what our Founders envisioned the national government should be doing," he told constituents. "This is foolish and it is dangerous." Dr. Broun will once again do battle with more liberal Members of Congress, many of whom no doubt view him as foolish or dangerous. The conventional wisdom in Washington is that someone in Congress who votes against federal spending that isn't in accord with the original conception of the Constitution will have trouble getting re-elected. Dr. Broun has just won an overwhelming endorsement from his constituents, despite being outspent and shunned by his party's establishment. Maybe there's a lesson there for other Members. THE WEEKLY STANDARD The Enthusiasm Gap, Part II Conservative voters remain uninspired by the McCain campaign. by Stephen F. Hayes 07/21/2008 Belleville, Michigan Full article Stephen F. Hayes Weekly Standard Excerpts: Standing on a stage at an auto-parts manufacturing facility in this small town west of Detroit, John McCain reacquainted himself with his enthusiasm gap. Rich Keenan owns the Old Glory Flags and Flagpoles Company in Livonia, Michigan. Wearing jeans and a black buttondown with an American flag embroidered over his left breast, Keenan took the microphone and told McCain that he would not be voting for Barack Obama. But he said: "What I'm trying to do is get to a situation where I'm excited about voting for you." Keenan was "concerned" about some of McCain's views--he mentioned the opposition to the Bush tax cuts and his views on the environment--and told the senator that he was grateful that McCain had begun taking more conservative positions. "I guess the question I have, and that people like me in this country have, is what can you say to us to make us believe that you actually came to the right position? We want to take you to the dance, we're just concerned about who you're going to go home with." Conservative July 31, 2008 REAL CLEAR POLITICS July 12, 2008 We're Not Leaving By Michael Barone Full article Michael Barone RCP Excerpts: Sixty years ago this month, the top story in campaign year 1948 was not the big poll lead of Republican nominee Thomas Dewey or the plight of President Harry Truman. It was the Berlin airlift. On June 23, the Soviets cut off land access to West Berlin. Gen. Lucius Clay, the military governor in Germany, called for sending convoys up the autobahns, but Allied troops were vastly outnumbered by the Red Army, and everyone feared they would overrun Western Europe unless the United States retaliated with the atomic bomb. Air Force generals said that there was no way planes could ferry the 8 million pounds of food and coal Berlin would need every day. Secretary of State George Marshall and Joint Chiefs Chairman Omar Bradley, two of America's most respected generals, felt Berlin was indefensible and we should withdraw. One man disagreed. President Harry Truman, in one crucial meeting after another, said, "We're not leaving Berlin." INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY How A Black Can Oppose Barack Obama By LARRY ELDER Posted Friday, June 27, 2008 4:30 PM PT Mr. Elder, I am shocked you oppose Barack Obama and belong to the Republican Party. We must get over ourselves and realize there is room at the top for everyone, and we must get there by helping each other — instead of agreeing with policies and old politics that are proven not to work. To endorse John McCain, a person who will not make it easier for the underprivileged, is just too much. How can a fellow black American feel this way? Your Former Supporter
Dear Former Supporter, Do you have any Republican friends, let alone black ones? If so, how many want to make it harder "for the underprivileged"? You also might want to familiarize yourself with the history of the Democratic and Republican parties, and see which one has stood up longer for the rights of people of color. Do you know that Democrats opposed the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments to the Constitution — abolishing slavery, granting citizenship rights to newly freed slaves and guaranteeing the right to vote (at least on paper) to blacks, respectively? Full article Larry Elder INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY Excerpts: Cato Institute Paul Ryan's Roadmap for the GOP by Michael D. Tanner June 11, 2008 Full article Michael D. Tanner Cato Institute Excerpts: There are many reasons for the Republican Party's troubles, including an unpopular war, a sputtering economy, and a long string of corruption scandals. But perhaps most important, the party no longer seems to stand for its core commitment to limited government. Enter Paul Ryan. Late last month, the five-term Wisconsin congressman introduced a comprehensive blueprint for reforming taxes, entitlements, retirement and health care. If Republicans are looking for a road out of the political wilderness, they should pay attention. Health Care: Ryan would reform our employment-based insurance system by replacing the current tax exclusion for employer-provided insurance with a refundable tax credit of $2,500 for individuals, and $5,000 for families. This would encourage employers to take the money they currently spend providing health insurance and give it directly to workers, who could then use it to purchase competitive, personally owned insurance plans. That would be insurance that met their needs, not those of their bosses, and people wouldn't lose it if they lost their jobs. WALL STREET JOURNAL Principle Beats Pork in California By JOHN FUND June 7, 2008; Page A9 Sacramento, Calif. Full article John Fund Excerpts: House Republicans clearly suffer from a form of split personality. Last month, Minority Leader John Boehner unveiled a series of reform proposals he dubbed "Change You Deserve." But a few days later, over half of his GOP caucus voted for a farm bill full of pork-barrel projects. Pragmatic Republicans who voted for the farm bill defend themselves privately by claiming GOP voters send mixed signals, saying they want smaller government while also pressing for federal largesse. But is that still the case following the egregious spending excesses of the Bush years, and the victory of John McCain, an antipork candidate, in presidential primaries? This week, a GOP primary for an open House seat in California featured a major clash between pragmatic and principled conservatism. The clear winner in the Sacramento-area district was state Sen. Tom McClintock, a politician popular with grassroots voters for his principled campaign for governor in the 2003 recall election won by Arnold Schwarzenegger. THE NEW YORK TIMES The White Working Class: Forgotten Voters No More John Harwood May 26 Full article John Harwood NYT Excerpts: Ruy Teixeira, a Democratic analyst of voting trends, wrote the book on the core issue in the endgame of the party’s nomination fight. Its title is “America’s Forgotten Majority: Why the White Working Class Still Matters.” One might conclude that Mr. Teixeira is troubled by Senator Barack Obama’s performance in recent primaries against Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton among the voters known by nicknames like Joe Sixpack or Nascar Dad or Waitress Mom. Actually, he is not. WALL STREET JOURNAL How to Tackle the Entitlement Crisis By PAUL D. RYAN May 21, 2008; Page A19 Full article Paul D.Ryan WSJ Excerpts: While Congress will have a partisan debate over the federal budget this week, there is a growing, bipartisan consensus about the greatest threat to our nation's long-term economic prosperity: the explosion of entitlement spending. Unfortunately, Washington is not planning to address that problem this week, or any time soon. By doing nothing, we are shackling our future with unsustainable debt and taxes. According to the Congressional Budget Office, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and the rest of government will consume nearly 40% of the economy by the time my three young children reach my age (38). This will require more than doubling the average tax burden of the past 40 years just to keep the government afloat. Continuing down this path will eventually strangle our economy. To meet this challenge and secure our fiscal future, I'm introducing a comprehensive legislative plan called "A Roadmap for America's Future." Here are its components: - Health Insurance. The bill provides universal access to affordable health insurance, by shifting the ownership of health coverage from the government and employers to individuals. It provides a refundable tax credit – $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families – to purchase coverage. Individuals will be able to buy insurance offered by any provider in any state – not just the one where they live – and carry it with them if they move or change jobs. NATIONAL REVIEW ONLINE Principles Before Policies Conservative reconnection. By Jim DeMint May 20, 2008 4:00 AM Full article Senator Jim DeMint NRO Excerpts: In the 1980s, Ronald Reagan single handedly turned around the American economy. On the heels of the lackluster Carter years that saw high inflation and a poorly performing economy, Reagan proposed sweeping income tax cuts that transformed the American tax system. Indeed, Reagan’s policies have been credited for ushering in a new era of American prosperity. By all accounts, the tax cuts of the 80’s were a massive success as were many other conservative wins over the last two decades. Defeating the “Evil Empire,” reforming the failed welfare bureaucracy, and winning confirmation of conservative judges — these are just some examples of conservative victories that made America better. And on these victories we must always defend the ground we have won because in Washington, no victories are permanent. But today we have a problem. A kind of mental lethargy now exists in my party. We are relying on these brilliant and successful policies of the past to be our principles of today. This is completely backwards. The greatness of conservatism has been an understanding that policies are derivatives of principles. Principles never change, policies do. The trick is finding the correct application of principle-based policies that fit our time. CHICAGO TRIBUNE.COM UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO University of Chicago plans Milton Friedman Institute May 16, 2008 The University of Chicago, in a move officials said will build on the school's longtime strength in economics, said it plans to spend $200 million to create the Milton Friedman Institute. U. of C. President Robert Zimmer said the goal of the institute "is to build on the university's existing leadership position and make the Milton Friedman Institute a primary intellectual destination for economics," by creating a forum where faculty and students can engage with scholars and policymakers from around the world. Full article Chicago Tribune.Com Excerpts: Most of the funds will be raised in donations from alumni and the business community, the university said. Conservative Movement Needs Injection of Youth REAL CLEAR POLITICS May 17, 2008 Full article Conservative To Patrick Casey RCP Excerpts: If GOP Wants To Govern Like Dems, Why Have a Separate Party? Republicans are and should be panicked over the fact that conservative Democrat Travis Childers just defeated Republican Greg Davis by a margin of 54%-46% in the race for a vacant Mississippi congressional seat. That seat is in a conservative district that had given President Bush a 25-point margin of victory over John Kerry in 2004 - it never should have flipped Democrat. This is the third double-digit loss in a row for Republican candidates in conservative districts across the United States. Childers' victory came one week after Rep. Don Cazayoux won a House seat in the Baton Rouge, La., area that had been in Republican hands for three decades. Over the winter, Rep. Bill Foster won an election in Illinois to succeed former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, who had been in Congress more than 20 years. What we're watching is the culmination of the decade-plus deterioration of the conservative Republican brand. Put simply, no one, including base conservatives, trusts the Republicans to govern effectively while following anything even faintly resembling a conservative platform.
The Federalist No. 10The Utility of the Union as a Safeguard Against Domestic Faction and Insurrection (continued)Daily AdvertiserThursday, November 22, 1787[James Madison]To the People of the State of New York: [[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[AMONG the numerous advantages promised by a well constructed Union, none deserves to be more accurately developed than its tendency to break and control the violence of faction. The friend of popular governments never finds himself so much alarmed for their character and fate, as when he contemplates their propensity to this dangerous vice. He will not fail, therefore, to set a due value on any plan which, without violating the principles to which he is attached, provides a proper cure for it.]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] [[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[The instability, injustice, and confusion introduced into the public councils, have, in truth, been the mortal diseases under which popular governments have everywhere perished; as they continue to be the favorite and fruitful topics from which the adversaries to liberty derive their most specious declamations.]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] The valuable improvements made by the American constitutions on the popular models, both ancient and modern, cannot certainly be too much admired; but it would be an unwarrantable partiality, to contend that they have as effectually obviated the danger on this side, as was wished and expected. Complaints are everywhere heard from our most considerate and virtuous citizens, equally the friends of public and private faith, and of public and personal liberty, that our governments are too unstable, that the public good is disregarded in the conflicts of rival parties, and that measures are too often decided, not according to the rules of justice and the rights of the minor party, but by the superior force of an interested and overbearing majority. However anxiously we may wish that these complaints had no foundation, the evidence, of known facts will not permit us to deny that they are in some degree true. It will be found, indeed, on a candid review of our situation, that some of the distresses under which we labor have been erroneously charged on the operation of our governments; but it will be found, at the same time, that other causes will not alone account for many of our heaviest misfortunes; and, particularly, for that prevailing and increasing distrust of public engagements, and alarm for private rights, which are echoed from one end of the continent to the other. These must be chiefly, if not wholly, effects of the unsteadiness and injustice with which a factious spirit has tainted our public administrations. By a faction, I understand a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or a minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adversed to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community. There are two methods of curing the mischiefs of faction: the one, by removing its causes; the other, by controlling its effects. There are again two methods of removing the causes of faction: the one, by destroying the liberty which is essential to its existence; the other, by giving to every citizen the same opinions, the same passions, and the same interests. It could never be more truly said than of the first remedy, that it was worse than the disease. Liberty is to faction what air is to fire, an aliment without which it instantly expires. But it could not be less folly to abolish liberty, which is essential to political life, because it nourishes faction, than it would be to wish the annihilation of air, which is essential to animal life, because it imparts to fire its destructive agency. Conservative The second expedient is as impracticable as the first would be unwise. As long as the reason of man continues fallible, and he is at liberty to exercise it, different opinions will be formed. As long as the connection subsists between his reason and his self-love, his opinions and his passions will have a reciprocal influence on each other; and the former will be objects to which the latter will attach themselves. The diversity in the faculties of men, from which the rights of property originate, is not less an insuperable obstacle to a uniformity of interests. The protection of these faculties is the first object of government. From the protection of different and unequal faculties of acquiring property, the possession of different degrees and kinds of property immediately results; and from the influence of these on the sentiments and views of the respective proprietors, ensues a division of the society into different interests and parties. The latent causes of faction are thus sown in the nature of man; and we see them everywhere brought into different degrees of activity, according to the different circumstances of civil society. A zeal for different opinions concerning religion, concerning government, and many other points, as well of speculation as of practice; an attachment to different leaders ambitiously contending for pre-eminence and power; or to persons of other descriptions whose fortunes have been interesting to the human passions, have, in turn, divided mankind into parties, inflamed them with mutual animosity, and rendered them much more disposed to vex and oppress each other than to co-operate for their common good. So strong is this propensity of mankind to fall into mutual animosities, that where no substantial occasion presents itself, the most frivolous and fanciful distinctions have been sufficient to kindle their unfriendly passions and excite their most violent conflicts. But the most common and durable source of factions has been the various and unequal distribution of property. Those who hold and those who are without property have ever formed distinct interests in society. Those who are creditors, and those who are debtors, fall under a like discrimination. A landed interest, a manufacturing interest, a mercantile interest, a moneyed interest, with many lesser interests, grow up of necessity in civilized nations, and divide them into different classes, actuated by different sentiments and views. The regulation of these various and interfering interests forms the principal task of modern legislation, and involves the spirit of party and faction in the necessary and ordinary operations of the government. No man is allowed to be a judge in his own cause, because his interest would certainly bias his judgment, and, not improbably, corrupt his integrity. With equal, nay with greater reason, a body of men are unfit to be both judges and parties at the same time; yet what are many of the most important acts of legislation, but so many judicial determinations, not indeed concerning the rights of single persons, but concerning the rights of large bodies of citizens? And what are the different classes of legislators but advocates and parties to the causes which they determine? Is a law proposed concerning private debts? It is a question to which the creditors are parties on one side and the debtors on the other. Justice ought to hold the balance between them. Yet the parties are, and must be, themselves the judges; and the most numerous party, or, in other words, the most powerful faction must be expected to prevail. Shall domestic manufactures be encouraged, and in what degree, by restrictions on foreign manufactures? are questions which would be differently decided by the landed and the manufacturing classes, and probably by neither with a sole regard to justice and the public good. The apportionment of taxes on the various descriptions of property is an act which seems to require the most exact impartiality; yet there is, perhaps, no legislative act in which greater opportunity and temptation are given to a predominant party to trample on the rules of justice. Every shilling with which they overburden the inferior number, is a shilling saved to their own pockets. It is in vain to say that enlightened statesmen will be able to adjust these clashing interests, and render them all subservient to the public good. Enlightened statesmen will not always be at the helm. Nor, in many cases, can such an adjustment be made at all without taking into view indirect and remote considerations, which will rarely prevail over the immediate interest which one party may find in disregarding the rights of another or the good of the whole. The inference to which we are brought is, that the causes of faction cannot be removed, and that relief is only to be sought in the means of controlling its effects. Conservative If a faction consists of less than a majority, relief is supplied by the republican principle, which enables the majority to defeat its sinister views by regular vote. It may clog the administration, it may convulse the society; but it will be unable to execute and mask its violence under the forms of the Constitution. When a majority is included in a faction, the form of popular government, on the other hand, enables it to sacrifice to its ruling passion or interest both the public good and the rights of other citizens. To secure the public good and private rights against the danger of such a faction, and at the same time to preserve the spirit and the form of popular government, is then the great object to which our inquiries are directed. Let me add that it is the great desideratum by which this form of government can be rescued from the opprobrium under which it has so long labored, and be recommended to the esteem and adoption of mankind. By what means is this object attainable? Evidently by one of two only. Either the existence of the same passion or interest in a majority at the same time must be prevented, or the majority, having such coexistent passion or interest, must be rendered, by their number and local situation, unable to concert and carry into effect schemes of oppression. If the impulse and the opportunity be suffered to coincide, we well know that neither moral nor religious motives can be relied on as an adequate control. They are not found to be such on the injustice and violence of individuals, and lose their efficacy in proportion to the number combined together, that is, in proportion as their efficacy becomes needful. From this view of the subject it may be concluded that a pure democracy, by which I mean a society consisting of a small number of citizens, who assemble and administer the government in person, can admit of no cure for the mischiefs of faction. A common passion or interest will, in almost every case, be felt by a majority of the whole; a communication and concert result from the form of government itself; and there is nothing to check the inducements to sacrifice the weaker party or an obnoxious individual. Hence it is that such democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been found incompatible with personal security or the rights of property; and have in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths. Theoretic politicians, who have patronized this species of government, have erroneously supposed that by reducing mankind to a perfect equality in their political rights, they would, at the same time, be perfectly equalized and assimilated in their possessions, their opinions, and their passions. Conservative A republic, by which I mean a government in which the scheme of representation takes place, opens a different prospect, and promises the cure for which we are seeking. Let us examine the points in which it varies from pure democracy, and we shall comprehend both the nature of the cure and the efficacy which it must derive from the Union. The two great points of difference between a democracy and a republic are: first, the delegation of the government, in the latter, to a small number of citizens elected by the rest; secondly, the greater number of citizens, and greater sphere of country, over which the latter may be extended. The effect of the first difference is, on the one hand, to refine and enlarge the public views, by passing them through the medium of a chosen body of citizens, whose wisdom may best discern the true interest of their country, and whose patriotism and love of justice will be least likely to sacrifice it to temporary or partial considerations. Under such a regulation, it may well happen that the public voice, pronounced by the representatives of the people, will be more consonant to the public good than if pronounced by the people themselves, convened for the purpose. On the other hand, the effect may be inverted. Men of factious tempers, of local prejudices, or of sinister designs, may, by intrigue, by corruption, or by other means, first obtain the suffrages, and then betray the interests, of the people. The question resulting is, whether small or extensive republics are more favorable to the election of proper guardians of the public weal; and it is clearly decided in favor of the latter by two obvious considerations: In the first place, it is to be remarked that, however small the republic may be, the representatives must be raised to a certain number, in order to guard against the cabals of a few; and that, however large it may be, they must be limited to a certain number, in order to guard against the confusion of a multitude. Hence, the number of representatives in the two cases not being in proportion to that of the two constituents, and being proportionally greater in the small republic, it follows that, if the proportion of fit characters be not less in the large than in the small republic, the former will present a greater option, and consequently a greater probability of a fit choice. Conservative In the next place, as each representative will be chosen by a greater number of citizens in the large than in the small republic, it will be more difficult for unworthy candidates to practice with success the vicious arts by which elections are too often carried; and the suffrages of the people being more free, will be more likely to centre in men who possess the most attractive merit and the most diffusive and established characters. It must be confessed that in this, as in most other cases, there is a mean, on both sides of which inconveniences will be found to lie. By enlarging too much the number of electors, you render the representatives too little acquainted with all their local circumstances and lesser interests; as by reducing it too much, you render him unduly attached to these, and too little fit to comprehend and pursue great and national objects. The federal Constitution forms a happy combination in this respect; the great and aggregate interests being referred to the national, the local and particular to the State legislatures. The other point of difference is, the greater number of citizens and extent of territory which may be brought within the compass of republican than of democratic government; and it is this circumstance principally which renders factious combinations less to be dreaded in the former than in the latter. The smaller the society, the fewer probably will be the distinct parties and interests composing it; the fewer the distinct parties and interests, the more frequently will a majority be found of the same party; and the smaller the number of individuals composing a majority, and the smaller the compass within which they are placed, the more easily will they concert and execute their plans of oppression. Extend the sphere, and you take in a greater variety of parties and interests; you make it less probable that a majority of the whole will have a common motive to invade the rights of other citizens; or if such a common motive exists, it will be more difficult for all who feel it to discover their own strength, and to act in unison with each other. Besides other impediments, it may be remarked that, where there is a consciousness of unjust or dishonorable purposes, communication is always checked by distrust in proportion to the number whose concurrence is necessary. Conservative Hence, it clearly appears, that the same advantage which a republic has over a democracy, in controlling the effects of faction, is enjoyed by a large over a small republic, -- is enjoyed by the Union over the States composing it. Does the advantage consist in the substitution of representatives whose enlightened views and virtuous sentiments render them superior to local prejudices and schemes of injustice? It will not be denied that the representation of the Union will be most likely to possess these requisite endowments. Does it consist in the greater security afforded by a greater variety of parties, against the event of any one party being able to outnumber and oppress the rest? In an equal degree does the increased variety of parties comprised within the Union, increase this security. Does it, in fine, consist in the greater obstacles opposed to the concert and accomplishment of the secret wishes of an unjust and interested majority? Here, again, the extent of the Union gives it the most palpable advantage. The influence of factious leaders may kindle a flame within their particular States, but will be unable to spread a general conflagration through the other States. A religious sect may degenerate into a political faction in a part of the Confederacy; but the variety of sects dispersed over the entire face of it must secure the national councils against any danger from that source. A rage for paper money, for an abolition of debts, for an equal division of property, or for any other improper or wicked project, will be less apt to pervade the whole body of the Union than a particular member of it; in the same proportion as such a malady is more likely to taint a particular county or district, than an entire State. In the extent and proper structure of the Union, therefore, we behold a republican remedy for the diseases most incident to republican government. And according to the degree of pleasure and pride we feel in being republicans, ought to be our zeal in cherishing the spirit and supporting the character of Federalists. Conservative James Madison 22 page ups Federalist 51 1st 3 paragraphs TO WHAT expedient, then, shall we finally resort, for maintaining in practice the necessary partition of power among the several departments, as laid down in the Constitution? The only answer that can be given is, that as all these exterior provisions are found to be inadequate, the defect must be supplied, by so contriving the interior structure of the government as that its several constituent parts may, by their mutual relations, be the means of keeping each other in their proper places. Without presuming to undertake a full development of this important idea, I will hazard a few general observations, which may perhaps place it in a clearer light, and enable us to form a more correct judgment of the principles and structure of the government planned by the convention. Conservative In order to lay a due foundation for that separate and distinct exercise of the different powers of government, which to a certain extent is admitted on all hands to be essential to the preservation of liberty, it is evident that each department should have a will of its own; and consequently should be so constituted that the members of each should have as little agency as possible in the appointment of the members of the others. Were this principle rigorously adhered to, it would require that all the appointments for the supreme executive, legislative, and judiciary magistracies should be drawn from the same fountain of authority, the people, through channels having no communication whatever with one another. Perhaps such a plan of constructing the several departments would be less difficult in practice than it may in contemplation appear. Some difficulties, however, and some additional expense would attend the execution of it. Some deviations, therefore, from the principle must be admitted. In the constitution of the judiciary department in particular, it might be inexpedient to insist rigorously on the principle: first, because peculiar qualifications being essential in the members, the primary consideration ought to be to select that mode of choice which best secures these qualifications; secondly, because the permanent tenure by which the appointments are held in that department, must soon destroy all sense of dependence on the authority conferring them. Conservative It is equally evident, that the members of each department should be as little dependent as possible on those of the others, for the emoluments annexed to their offices. Were the executive magistrate, or the judges, not independent of the legislature in this particular, their independence in every other would be merely nominal. Conservative
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