There's reluctance among conservatives to see the ideological flaws of the current crop of president-wannabes but unless we're willing to line up each one of the 11 Republican contenders and strip off his 3 piece posturing to look deep into his political past, we'll simply be fooling ourselves (again) when it comes to supporting a candidate for president.
Much like a woman who wants to get married so badly she ignores those 'deal-breaking' flaws, when it comes to the Republicans vying for the nomination, we just don't want to face the truth, because well, it would hurt too much to say, once again, "He's not for me," and move on, when there might not be anyone else to move on to. That kind of thinking always leads to desperation and ultimately disappointment.
For those who've been saying "he's good enough, you can't have everything" I offer the following perspective of the Republicans in the '08 lineup.
Mitt Romney: Nice hair, easy on the eyes, good suits, and lousy standard-bearer for the pro-life, pro-family, pro-limited government constitutionalist crowd.
First off, Romney's lightning bolt conversion to a pro-life candidate isn't fooling many. His RomneyCare health plan, which he signed into law just over a year ago, forces the taxpayers of Massachusetts to pay for the gruesome slaughter of thousands of pre-born children in the state each year.
Romney campaigned for Governor of Massachusetts as a pro-choice candidate, and was endorsed by a pro-abortion political group. Regarding his position on abortion he said: "... [W]hen asked, will I preserve and protect a women's right to choose, I make an unequivocal answer: Yes."
If, after hearing Romney wax conservative in the recent GOP debates you're confused about Romney's stand on abortion, marriage, gun control, gay rights or immigration, don't feel too badly. Up until recently he was a hard core liberal on all of those issues.
Now Mitt's hoping people will pay attention to what he says these days, not to what he did while governor of Massachusetts. While in office, Romney:
- supported and promoted legalizing homosexual civil unions
- opposed the Boy Scouts' ban on homosexual scoutmasters
- refused to endorse original Massachusetts' constitutional amendment defining marriage as between one man and one woman
In 2002 Romney had this to say about some of the most draconian gun laws in the nation: "We do have tough gun laws in Massachusetts; I support them," Mitt said. "I won't chip away at them; I believe they protect us and provide for our safety."
Fred Thompson: Sorry folks, the kindly actor you've come to know through the TV series "Law and Order" is not who you'd like him to be. Despite the polls (AP/ IPSOS 6/9/07) which tout Thompson as a darling among conservatives, most are apparently ignorant of his political pedigree. Like his friend, McCain and other GOP leaders, he is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a main group behind the North American Union.
Thompson's "Pro-Life" position in his own words: "Abortions should be legal in all circumstances as long as the procedure is completed within the first trimester of the pregnancy."
After 8 years as a US Senator from Tennessee, Thompson racked up some votes that should be cause for concern. He voted YES:
1. in support of the McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Act- the law to silence grassroots conservative groups.
2. to expand NAFTA. Modeled after the European Common Market, NAFTA was a first step toward open borders in North America and the North American Union.
3. on allowing more foreign workers into the US for farm work. (Jul 1998)
4. on authorizing use of military force against Iraq. (Oct 2002)
5. for permanent normal trade relations with China. (Sep 2000)
6. for funding for the National Endowment for the Arts. (Aug 1999)
7. to fund the GOP Medicare prescription drug benefit debacle.
Thompson also seems to believe in a robust military presence worldwide and apparently advocates continued US military involvement in Iraq. (Freemarketnews.com) Prior to his run for U.S. Senate, he was a Washington lobbyist for 20 years.
Newt Gingrich: Not even close... In 1995 the 104th Congress' House of Representatives, led by Speaker Gingrich was made up of 73 spanking new representatives who had their sights set on reducing the size, scope and cost of the federal government. They weren't allowed to. Gingrich saw to that.
Remember Newt's "Contract with America?" While it was portrayed as a way to fix our country's problems it did nothing of the sort. The policies therein were unconstitutional, NATO was expanded, the feds got more control of law enforcement, laws affecting children and more. Within a year Gingrich's approval rating had tanked. CFR member Gingrich tried to portray himself as a true 'conservative' twelve years ago, now he's doing it again as a possible candidate for the 2008 GOP presidential nomination.
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