THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Volume VII, Issue # 94, April 25, 2005
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Government Committed to & Acting in Accord with Conservative Principles
Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity
CONSERVATIVES WORRYING ABOUT GEORGE W. BUSH
By Alan Caruba
MANY THOUGHTFUL CONSERVATIVES HAVING SECOND THOUGHTS ABOUT THE PRESIDENCY OF GEORGE W. BUSH -- A GROWING
CONCERN AMONG CONSERVATIVES: FAILURE OF THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION TO ACT UPON THE CORE CONSERVATIVE
VALUES OF FISCAL RESTRAINT & AMERICAN NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY
FULL STORY:
A lot of thoughtful Conservatives are having serious second thoughts about President George W. Bush. His failure to act upon the
core Conservative values of fiscal restraint and national sovereignty is a growing concern.
Donations to Conservative organizations and think tanks are in sharp decline. A lot of Conservatives have decided to stop giving
financial support because they are losing faith in the ability of these groups to have any effect on Bush administration policies.
President Bush has an engaging personality, but he’s not running for office anymore. He is already a very lame duck.
In concert with Republican Party leaders in Congress, the White House has been unable to get its judicial appointments approved
and the fight over John Bolton’s appointment as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations suggests the Republican Party lacks unity
on Capitol Hill. Bolton has been confirmed four times for previous positions. Unless the GOP can unite to overcome the
obstructionism of the Democrats, it bodes ill for the Party.
If Conservatives stay home for the 2006 elections, power can shift to the Democrats.
People are increasingly worried about the huge budget deficit created by a President and a Congress that have been on a spending
binge. The national debt has increased by $2.16 billion every day since September 30, 2004. It is now a cliché that George Bush has
not vetoed a single spending bill while in office. New “entitlements” added to Medicare for prescriptions will add still more to the
rising tide of national debt. It is not if the American economy will reach a tipping point at which this accumulated debt
cannot be paid, but when the economy will reach that point.
Compounding fears is the appearance of an increasingly shaky economy that includes rising inflation and major corporations like
General Motors in trouble. Wall Street is experiencing early tremors that forecast a bear market.
An issue reaching critical mass is the matter of illegal immigrants flowing across our southern border. The assertion that they are
necessary to do the work that Americans will not is nonsense. With the exception of the agricultural sector that has always
depended on migrant workers, there are many jobs American workers would take if they weren’t already being given to illegal
aliens -- socalled "undocumented workers" -- paid in cash. Illegal workers sent $20 billion dollars home to Mexico last year!
History will record that George W. Bush secured the liberation of the Iraqi people from one of the worst tyrants of modern times.
Let us give him credit for that and for driving the Taliban out of Afghanistan. What rankles was the way the Iraq war was sold as
an eminent threat of Weapons of Mass Destruction. I cannot think of a time this nation went to war on such poor intelligence. One
gets the feeling, however, that the Bush administration has little faith in the intelligence of the American people.
Yet another distinctly un-Conservative aspect of the Bush administration has been its approach to education. The “Leave No
Child Behind” program has thrown billions at an already failed educational system. The LNCB program is so awful that whole
states are considering withdrawing from the program. And the Bush administration is pushing for programs that would require all
students to undergo mental health evaluations, thus opening the door to still more millions of them being required to take
mind-altering drugs.
As Americans confront rising gasoline prices, they are wondering if we have an energy policy. There’s scant evidence. It’s nice
to know Alaska’s ANWR may be opened up to oil extraction, but this nation hasn’t seen a new refinery built since the 1970’s,
down from 321 refineries in 1981 to 146 now. Current refineries are running at 95% capacity and, thanks to the Environmental
Protection Agency, they have to produce 45 “regional blends” of gasoline. It will be years before any oil starts to flow from
ANWR. Meanwhile, other reserves of oil and coal are ruled off-limits to extraction and use.
Finally, under the Bush administration, the federal government remains hell bent on acquiring more and more of the nation’s
landmass. It’s in cahoots with environmental organizations, offering them millions in federal funds, to assist in this travesty.
There’s even an “Invasive Species” bill floating around that would put the EPA in control of your front lawn. Why isn’t the
Bush administration out front on killing this monstrosity?
Does any of this sound like Conservative policy to you? Does it worry you that the threat of terrorism is the sole reason given
for almost any policy put forth by the White House since 9-11? If the Democrats ever get their act together, you and I are going
to be talking about President Clinton, but referring to Hillary.
LINKS TO RELATED TOPICS:
American Government & the U.S. Presidency
American Politics & Political Competition
Liberalism Versus Conservatism in American Politics
Alan Caruba is a veteran business and science writer, a Public Relations Counselor, Communications Director of the American Policy Center,
and Founder of the National Anxiety Center, a clearinghouse for information about media-driven scare campaigns. Caruba writes a weekly
column, "Warning Signs," posted on the Internet website of the National Anxiety Center
(www.anxietycenter.com). A compilation of his past columns, entitled Warning Signs, is published by Merril Press. In addition
to Warning Signs, Caruba is the author of A Pocket Guide to Militant Islam and The United Nations vs. the United States,
both of which are available from the National Anxiety Center, 28 West Third Street, Apartment 1321, South Orange, New Jersey, 07079.
© Alan Caruba 2005
Published with Permission of Alan Caruba
ACaruba@AOL.Com
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THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
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Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
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