California Conservative

Jonah Goldberg has a great article up talking about the various types of conservatism. Here’s a little glimpse into his article:

Many of the younger conservative policy mavens and intellectuals have become steadily less enamored of free markets and limited government. Washington Post columnist Michael Gerson, formerly Bush’s chief speechwriter, has crafted a whole doctrine of “heroic conservatism” intended to beat back the right’s supposed death-embrace with small government and laissez-faire economics. He calls for moral crusade to become the animating spirit of the right. He’s hardly alone. “Crunchy conservatism,” the brainchild of Dallas Morning News columnist Rod Dreher, is also a cri de coeur against mainstream conservatism. Both of these derive from the kind of thinking that led Bush to insist in 2000 that he was a “different kind of Republican” because he was a “compassionate conservative”, a political program that apparently measures compassion by how much money the government spends on education, marriage counseling and the like.

What these gentlemen are talking about isn’t conservatism. Gerson particularly isn’t talking about conservatism. What he’s talking about is a mix of populism and conservatism. It’s the product of his belief that government is part of the solution. Personally, I’d call it watered-down liberalism.

Bill Kristol’s editorial tries making the argument that conservatives should welcome this year’s candidates, an argument that I reject:

For example: John McCain, with a lifetime American Conservative Union rating of 82.3, is allegedly in no way a conservative. And, though the most favorably viewed of all the candidates right now, both among Republicans and the electorate as a whole, he would allegedly destroy the Republican party if nominated.

Or take Mike Huckabee. He was a well-regarded and successful governor of Arkansas, reelected twice, the second time with 40 percent of the black vote. He’s come from an asterisk to second in the national GOP polls with no money and no establishment support. Yet he is supposedly a buffoon and political naïf. He’s been staunchly pro-life and pro-gun and is consistently supported by the most conservative primary voters, but he is, we’re told, no conservative either.

Or Mitt Romney. He’s a man of considerable accomplishments, respected by many who have worked with and for him in various endeavors. He took conservative positions on social issues as governor of Massachusetts, and parlayed a one-term governorship of a blue state into a first-tier position in the Republican race. But he, too, we’re told, is deserving of no respect. And though he’s embraced conservative policies and seems likely to be steadfast in pursuing them–he’s no conservative either.

Kristol’s blinders prevents him from seeing that we need a Reaganesque conservative now. His argument for John McCain, in particular, is feeble. McCain’s lifetime conservative rating isn’t the issue. Most of that rating was built his first 2 terms. The statistic that Mr. Kristol should be talking about is what McCain’s conservative rating during the Bush administration. Why is Mr. Kristol ignoring McCain’s global warming legislation? Why is Mr. Kristol ignoring McCain-Feingold, the most despicable assault on the First Amendment in US history? How can Mr. Kristol ignore the McCain-Kennedy amnesty bill, which abandons any pretense of abiding by the rule of law? (more…)

Ed Rollins is at it again. He’s back with the stalking horse story. Here he goes again:

“Why would he get aggressive all of a sudden here?” asked Ed Rollins, Huckabee’s campaign chairman, noting the series of attacks that Thompson directed at Huckabee in a recent debate. Rollins added: “Thirty-five seconds after he drops out, he endorses McCain… Anything he takes from us I’m concerned about, because it’s a close race.”

Ed Rollins is totally sleazy. Rollins is the Republican’s Bob Shrum. He’s a total loser. Now that Huckabee’s ties to Common Sense Issues’ push-polling have been exposed, it’s likely that voters are fleeing Huckabee like he’s the devil himself. (more…)

The endorsements keep piling up for Fred Thompson. This time, South Carolina Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom has endorsed him:

“Senator Thompson’s clear leadership on social, fiscal, and defense issues, as well as his strong and proven stance for border security and the rule of law make him a leader like Mark Sanford,” General Eckstrom said. “I proudly and fully support his candidacy for President, and I ask all conservatives to do the same. Senator Thompson is the only conservative candidate who is now strongly surging in the polls. Momentum is crucial and Senator Thompson has it.”

Here’s Fred’s response to General Eckstrom’s endorsement:

“It is always gratifying when an elected official chooses to support my campaign for President, but even more so when that official is known as a ‘Watchdog for the Taxpayers’ and a leading voice for conservative principles as is General Eckstrom,” said Senator Thompson. “I am also humbled that General Eckstrom joins so many other veterans of our armed forces that are supporting our campaign.”

It’ll be difficult to measure how much this endorsement helps Fred, especially in light of David Limbaugh’s endorsement of Fred. Even if this doesn’t move lots of votes in Fred’s direction, it’s still worthwhile because another fiscal conservative has signed onto Fred’s campaign.

Technorati Tags: Fred Thompson, Endorsements, Conservatism, Election 2008

Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog

When Tom DeLay stepped down as Majority Leader, I let it be known that I didn’t think highly of John Boehner as his replacement. As I said here, my image of Rep. Boehner is starting to change. Today, after reading Andrew Roth’s post, I can enthusiastically say that John Boehner has earned my respect:

Boehner Holds Off On Filling Appropriations Vacancy Pending Conference Discussion On Earmarks.

Yesterday, House Minority Leader John Boehner told his House Republican colleagues that they were destined to remain in the political wilderness if they couldn’t kick their spending habits. Today, he took that debate one step further, announcing that the Steering Committee will not make an appointment to the vacant Appropriations Committee seat until after the House Republican retreat, where the GOP Leader has urged that a conference-wide discussion take place on earmarks. (more…)

Yesterday, Common Sense Issues got caught on tape push-polling South Carolina. This morning, I decided to check into them so I started with their website. Here’s what I found on their About page:

Common Sense Issues is a 501(c)(4) social welfare, grassroots lobbying organization, comprised of individuals dedicated to educating and informing citizens in an in-depth manner about public policy issues. We encourage citizens to seek ways to work together to encourage opinion leaders and public officials to approach America’s problems using basic common sense principles. We seek solutions to public policy problems and issues that mirror the God-given common sense of the American people.

That’s a crock. Based on this report from South Carolina, their goal is to smear any candidate not named Huckabee:

Among the people receiving the push polling calls was a county co-chairman of former Sen. Fred Thompson’s campaign.

Jason Goings, the Aiken County co-chairman for Thompson, said the call he received started by asking him if he was a Republican who planned to vote in Saturday’s primary and then asked whom he supported. After he hit the button for Thompson, a voice highlighted Huckabee’s position against abortion and said Thompson worked as a lawyer for a lobbying firm that protected abortion rights.

The call also attacked Thompson, a former Tennessee senator and actor, on same-sex marriage, illegal immigration and taxes.

Let’s hope South Carolinians take their anger at Common Sense Issues out on Gov. Huckabee. To say that Common Sense Issues is a sleazy operation is understatement. (more…)

The minute I read this headline, I knew that Fredmentum had just gotten a huge boost. Will it be enough to help him win South Carolina’s primary? Possibly. Here’s the headline:

David Limbaugh Endorses Fred Thompson

Take a minute and let that sink in a bit. Then exhale. This isn’t the same as Rush endorsing Fred but it’s significant. It’s big. Now let’s look at what David Limbaugh said in endorsing Fred:

He will not respond like a puppet when a debate moderator tells him to raise his hand to signify a childishly simplistic approval or disapproval of a certain policy. He will not be goaded by interviewers into saying things he doesn’t feel comfortable saying. He won’t divide us with class envy or pretend we can be friends with rogue regimes or terrorists. He does not promise a chicken in every pot or pander to liberals on global warming.

It’s obvious that Limbaugh is pointing at McCain when he says that Fred won’t “pander to liberals on global warming.” It’s equally obvious that he’s referring to Gov. Huckabee when he that Fred won’t “promise a chicken in every pot.” Exposing Sen. McCain and Gov. Huckabee as liberals who don’t have a core philosophy. Reagan and Goldwater had a core philosophy. Fred does, too, because he developed his philosophies after reading Goldwater’s Conscience of a Conservative”, which should be must reading for conservative activists.

Here’s another section of Limbaugh’s endorsement letter: (more…)

According to this Washington Post article, Fred Thompson got upset when told about his supporters getting push polled. Here’s how Fred got to the bottom of things:

At a steak house in this small town west of Columbia, a man in the small crowd told Thompson that many people had gotten such calls in the past 24 hours. Thompson asked anyone who had received such a call to raise his or hand. At least a dozen hands shot up. The former senator said he’d heard of push polls accusing him of supporting partial birth abortion.

“They’re taking the most outrageous, easily disproved things that they can come up with. It’s amazing to me. Its so ham-handed,” Thompson said. “I had a 100 percent pro-life voting record over 8 years.”

Trey Taylor, 41, told The Post that he’d gotten a call in which, after he’d revealed his preference for Thompson, a recorded voice said Thompson had lobbied on behalf of a “radical” pro-abortion organization. The recording then cited Huckabee’s anti-abortion record.

According to this CBS article, Fred’s called on Gov. Huckabee to put a stop to the calls:

Fred Thompson called on Mike Huckabee to put a stop to push polling calls that misrepresent Thompson’s record. “I find it ironic that this man would talk about cleaner politics and rising above the fray,” Thompson said, “while this is going on right under his nose.”

At an event in Prosperity today, a Thompson volunteer stood up during the audience questions portion and said a lot of people had received negative phone calls that “misrepresented your record.” “Really?” Thompson asked, seeming genuinely surprised. “Could I ask you to raise your hand if you got a phone call like that?” Roughly half the 75 people in attendance raised their hands. (more…)

To say that Mike Huckabee doesn’t have a steadfast governing philosophy is understatement. This article offers sufficient proof of Huckabee’s ‘flexibility’ in his attempt to be all things to all people.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee yesterday continued to move to the right on immigration during this year’s presidential campaign, signing a pledge to enforce immigration laws and to make all illegal aliens go home.

The pledge, offered by immigration control advocacy group Numbers USA, commits Mr. Huckabee to oppose a new path to citizenship for current illegal aliens and to cut the number of illegal aliens already in the country through attrition by law enforcement, something Mr. Huckabee said he will achieve through his nine-point immigration plan.

“Some would say it’s a tough plan. It is, but it’s also fair and reasonable,” Mr. Huckabee said.

It’s also the opposite of Huckabee’s policy before the presidential spotlight got shined on him. It’s obvious that he’s pandering now after getting slammed for wanting to give illegal immigrants in-state tuition. This happened just a day after his flip-flop on signing a federal ban on smoking.

In other words, he’s saying whatever he thinks will gain him a few extra votes. That isn’t that dissimilar from John McCain’s approach. It doesn’t much courage to be all things to all people. It takes steadfastness to stand for the same underlying principles year after year, decade after decade. (more…)

The Politico’s Ben Smith has confirmed that Senate Judiciary Chairman Pat Leahy has endorsed Barack Obama:

“We need a president who can reintroduce America to the world, and actually reintroduce America to ourselves,” Leahy said in the conference call, saying Obama carried the “hope” to end the war in Iraq and to bring “healthcare for all.”

He also compared the decision to support Obama to supporting John F. Kennedy for president.

Here’s the full article:

Two sources familiar with the senior Vermont senator’s plans say Patrick Leahy will be endorsing Obama in an 11:00 a.m. conference call today.

Leahy’s spokesman, David Carle, wouldn’t confirm the senator’s plans, but did suggest a reporter pay attention to the call, which the Obama campaign is touting as a “major endorsement.”

If Leahy endorses as expected, it would be the latest in a string of Senate validations for Obama, and to the extent that endorsements play a role in voters’ decisions, Leahy’s, along with those of Senator John Kerry and others, could counterbalance charges that the Illinois senator lacks readiness or establishment credibility. Like Kerry, he’s also a liberal stalwart and a veteran of battles with the Bush Administration.

UPDATE: “We need a president who can reintroduce America to the world, and actually reintroduce America to ourselves,” Leahy said in the conference call, saying Obama carried the “hope” to end the war in Iraq and to bring “healthcare for all.”

He also compared the decision to support Obama to supporting John F. Kennedy for president.

This raises several questions, including why Leahy didn’t endorse Sen. Clinton. This can’t mean that Team Hillary is happy. Though they won’t admit it publicly, I’ll bet that they’re fuming inside.

This also has to have the Obama campaign smiling. To the extent that endorsements matter, this is a big get. It’s something that lets Obama say that he’s a serious candidate endorsed by serious men.

Technorati Tags: Obama, Patrick Leahy, Endorsements, Hillary, Election 2008

Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog

Mike Huckabee is thought to have the gift of gab. According to this quote, Gov. Huckabee didn’t have that gift going yesterday:

”Folks, I don’t know what you are going to hear, about that I’m not a conservative, but when you cut taxes, and you increase the per capita income, you improved the schools, and you rebuild the roads, and you preserve the national resources, and you streamline government, your government grows at a rate that is half that of the average of all states,” Huckabee said, his voice rising. “Call it anything you want to, but anybody with an I.Q. above broccoli calls that conservative, rock-solid, kind of leadership.”

I’ll start this fisking with the tax thing. When you cut some taxes a little bit but raise other taxes alot, you aren’t a conservative.

Next, let’s talk about the education issue. You aren’t a conservative when you get endorsed by the NEA, especially when you tell them that you’d veto any school voucher legislation that made it to your desk.

Next, let’s talk about the things that Gov. Huckabee didn’t talk about. When legislators here in Minnesota tried passing the DREAM Act, it was supported almost exclusively by the DFL. (DFL is Minnesotan for flaming liberal.) Mike Huckabee supports giving in-state tuition to children of illegal immigrants. At least he did before flip-flopping and saying that he’d deport every illegal immigrant in the US.

BTW, the outcry against Minnesota’s DREAM Act was so loud that the DFL dropped that out in conference committee.

If Mike Huckabee is the GOP nominee, I won’t vote for him. I’ll focus solely on local races. It’s time that the GOP faithful rejected Gov. Huckabee’s flippant one-liners and his inconsistent beliefs.

Technorati Tags: Mike Huckabee, Taxes, DREAM Act, Education, School Vouchers, Immigration, Election 2008

Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog