Subject: End of Day -- 1/11/08

To: Friends and Supporters

From: Gary Bauer
Campaign for Working Families

Date: Friday, January 11, 2008

 

The Problem

A lot of us are frustrated about the GOP's obvious shift in recent years away from conservative principles. A few years ago, the GOP Congress spent money like the proverbial "drunken sailor," which is actually an unfair insult of sailors. When Reagan was elected, he tried to get rid of the federal education bureaucracy. We failed, but at least we tried. Under this administration, the education bureaucracy has grown like a weed, and so has the budget. Are your schools any better? Of course not! Add some GOP scandals to this drift away from conservative principles, and you have a demoralized movement.

The GOP presidential debates haven't been encouraging either. When he talks about the war with Islamofacism, Congressman Ron Paul, sounds like he is reading from Ahmadinejad's press releases. Other candidates sound conservative, but their conservative records go back only three or four years! Huckabee is great on life and marriage but sadly sounds like John Edwards on economics and "drowns" when he deals with foreign policy issues.
That may not matter to some, but it matters to me - we are at war. Has conservatism really come to this - candidates able to express a coherent conservative message on some issues but not able to present a comprehensive conservative philosophy?

A Ray of Hope

Last night's GOP debate in South Carolina may represent a turning point.
Senator Fred Thompson was a changed man, boldly presenting a consistent conservative message. He lambasted the media for failing to report the success in Iraq. He confronted Giuliani on illegal immigration, telling him over and over again that allowing illegals to stay in the country, is an amnesty no matter what else you try to call it. He repeatedly emphasized his pro-life commitment. He showed a mastery on foreign policy and aggressively argued for tax cuts to prevent a severe recession. And he told our friend Mike Huckabee that too many of Huckabee's positions are liberal, not conservative, including:
* Calling for the closure of Guantanamo Bay prison - doing so would result in those jihadist thugs being brought to the U.S., where they would get the protection of our Constitution.
* Supporting taxpayer-funded benefits for illegal immigrants, and opposing efforts to require an ID to vote in Arkansas.
* Attacking Bush's foreign policy.
* Being endorsed by the far left New Hampshire National Education Association.
* Call for a federal smoking ban. (What happened to limited government?
Do we really want federal bureaucrats deciding what we eat, drink, etc.?)

Now you know I have always felt Thompson is the closest candidate to Reagan. But I wasn't the only one who thought he was the winner last night. The Fox News focus group overwhelmingly agreed that Thompson won.
The media have been very hostile to him, but even commentators on the major networks said he hit a home run. And major conservative publications were effusive in their praise today, with the "dean" of those publications, Human Events, endorsing him for president this morning. The GOP race may have taken another turn.

 

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