Have Conservatives Been Betrayed?

Many Conservatives are feeling betrayed by the Bush White House and other Republicans. Let's take a look at some issues and think about what a conservative would believe about them:

1 - No Child Left Behind - Conservatives are for less govt. involvement in your life. Bush's No Child Left Behind is a betrayal of that principle in that it dictates to your locally-elected school board what to do. In other words, Washington knows better how to educate your child than you do. Is this conservatism?

2 - Medicare Prescription Drug Plan - Conservatives are for less govt. spending. Bush's Medicare Prescription Drug Plan is busting the budget and adding huge amounts to the national debt. Is this conservatism?

3 - Dubai Ports World deal - Hiring a company from a Muslim Middle Eastern country to guard our ports is what Bush proposed. Sending jobs overseas and outsourcing our national security, is this conservatism?

4 - Hurricane Katrina Response - Is our nation secure when we can't even help our own people in need? News helicopters were able to fly over New Orleans, but we couldn't get National Guard helicopters to rescue our citizens. Are we ready for terrorist attacks in America? Is this conservatism?

5 - Family Values and the Republican Party - Conservatives tout the family as being all-important. Let's take a look at Republican leaders and their personal value history: Fred Thompson - divorced, John McCain-divorced, Newt Gingrich - divorced his wife who was dying of cancer, had an affair while he was impeaching Clinton, Rush Limbaugh and his wife have 4 divorces between them, George Will - divorced, Rudy Giuliani- twice divorced and had a very public affair while he was Mayor and still married, Ronald Reagan - divorced, Rep. Bob Barr of Georgia - married three times. Barr had the audacity to author and push the "Defense of Marriage Act." (Which marriage are you defending?) Is this conservatism?

6- Amnesty for Illegal Aliens - Bush proposed amnesty for illegals - This is a pretty clear violation of conservative principles. You DON'T let law breakers off the hook. (Scooter Libby is an exception.) Is this conservatism?

7 - Military Service - Conservatives and Republicans are the party of the military. They tell us that all the time. Let's look at some GOP leaders and their military service: Bush - Went AWOL from the National Guard after his dad got him into the Guard around a long waiting list to avoid Viet Nam. No one has come forward to say they served with him in Alabama in 72-73; Dick Cheney- DNS (did not serve) ; Karl Rove - DNS; John Ashcroft - DNS; Bill Frist - DNS; Paul Wolfowitz, DNS; Fred Thompson-DNS; Trent Lott - DNS; Jack Kemp had a bad knee from football-DNS; Rick Santorum, DNS; Condi Rice - DNS; Rudy Giuliani - DNS, Jeb Bush - DNS; Mitt Romney - DNS; McCain served and was a war hero. Why was he bashed by the Bush campaign in 2000? Minority Leader Mitch McConnell- DNS; Minority Leader John Boehner-DNS; Minority Whip Roy Blunt-DNS; Dennis Hastert-DNS; Dick Armey-DNS; Chuck Hagel - 2 Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star in Viet Nam; Tom DeLay-DNS; Where were all you conservatives when America needed you? FYI - Democrats who served: Ted Kennedy, Tom Daschle, Richard Gephardt, Al Gore, John Kerry, Bob Kerrey - Medal of Honor Viet Nam; Daniel Inouye- Medal of Honor WWII; Charles Rangel - Bronze Star Korea; Wesley Clark - 38 yrs in the Army including Supreme Commander of NATO; former CA governor Gray Davis-Bronze Star Viet Nam; Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) -- Navy Cross, the Silver Star Medal, two Bronze Star Medals, and two Purple Hearts in Viet Nam; Jack Murtha (D-PA) - 37-year career in the U.S. Marine Corps, Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts;

Let's stop making an assumption that one party is the party of the military and the other party is weak on national defense. Also, consider that those who have sacrificed the most in war may be the ones who are most careful when considering going to war. Also, consider how war may affect your family personally. Do you think Bush would have been so quick to go to war if his daughters were on the front lines?

8 - National Debt and Big Government - True Conservatives are upset when we have an unbalanced budget and a national debt. Republicans have betrayed this principle. It used to be the Democrats who were the "tax and spend" party and now we have the Republicans who are the "no tax and big spend" party. Consider that the national debt tripled under Reagan. Consider that the last President to achieve a balanced budget was Clinton. Do you remember the summer of 2001 when the big debate was how to spend the surplus? The Dems wanted to begin paying down the national debt and the GOPers wanted to give it to the people in the form of a tax refund. The greatest cause of the current record national debt increase is the tax cut (Congressional Budget Office-2004). This administration and Congress is not fiscally conservative. Do you realize that the federal govt. has added a million jobs since Bush took office? Govt. has gotten bigger under Bush, not smaller. And that costs money!