Posted by
Lisa on Wednesday, May 28, 2008 2:09:06 AM
Believe it or not, there is a Republican left with some credibility
on fighting wasteful spending by our Congress -- Senator Tom Coburn.
Senator Coburn has been consistent in this area, but unfortunately many
of his colleagues have refused to follow his lead, and that of other
senators like SC's Jim DeMint. There aren't enough fiscal conservatives
in Congress, and we have seen the negative results when Democrats and
Republicans agree to waste our money. Now there are many so-called wise
men, telling the Republicans that we are losing because we aren't
compassionate enough, or that we need to abandon the ideal of limited
government completely to gain the favor of those independents and
moderates. Even people who started out believing that government is the
problem have changed their minds to be more tolerant of activist
government -- including Newt Gingrich. It is an almost irresistible
proposal -- that there can be a way to merge the activist government
policies of the left with the free-market impulses of the right. I'm
not convinced that this is the case, or if it is possible, that Newt
has come up with the right balance.
Here's a sample of what Senator Coburn had to say:
As congressional Republicans contemplate the prospect
of an electoral disaster this November, much is being written about the
supposed soul-searching in the Republican Party. A more accurate
description of our state is paralysis and denial.
Many Republicans are waiting for a consultant or party
elder to come down from the mountain and, in Moses-like fashion,
deliver an agenda and talking points on stone tablets. But the burning
bush, so to speak, is delivering a blindingly simple message: Behave
like Republicans.
Unfortunately, too many in our party are not yet ready
to return to the path of limited government. Instead, we are being told
our message must be deficient because, after all, we should be winning
in certain areas just by being Republicans. Yet being a Republican
isn't good enough anymore. Voters are tired of buying a GOP package and
finding a big-government liberal agenda inside. What we need is not new
advertising, but truth in advertising.
Truth in advertising. That "compassionate
conservatism" is a euphemism for wasting our money on more worthy
causes than the stuff the Democrats want to waste our money on. That we
need to get back to what Republicans said we believed about reducing
earmarks and government bloat. That we should be principled enough to
hold our fellow Republicans accountable when they forget what kind of
message got them where they are today. Like Senator Coburn said,
"spending other people's money isn't compassionate". There's nothing
wrong with heartless conservatism when it eliminates excuses for out of
control spending and massive pork projects.
This is where Republicans have gone wrong. The voters
didn't reject conservatism, they rejected dishonesty. Republicans
promoted one agenda and delivered something different. The scandals
sure didn't help us, but at the end of the day those who stayed home in
2006 and those who voted for Democrats sent the same message.
Republicans didn't deliver what they promised, and they deserved to
lose. Congressional Republicans still haven't gotten the message. They
are blaming their losses on the stubborn conservatives who refuse to
abandon principle to win elections. Some of our "leaders" have
suggested that we need to expand our coalition to include independents
and moderates, and that we should do this by watering down our
governing philosophy so that those people agree with us. As long they
keep following that dimwitted advice, Republicans will keep losing
elections.
Crossposted at Organized Chaos.