82Marine89
01-27-2008, 11:29 AM
Read the entire article located at the link and after reading the last paragraph ask yourself which current presidential candidate or candidates fit the description. For me, the name McCain came to mind.
The article...
I have been avoiding the discussion of who I am supporting for the Republican presidential nomination in deference to urging others to thoroughly examine the platforms, agendas and records of all those in contention. Only by taking the time to circumvent the agenda-driven propaganda of the mainstream media (and in some cases its non-coverage of certain candidates) can we truly understand who each candidate is and what he – or she – stands for. With both my first and second choices now out of the race I believe it is time to examine the Conservative communities troubling propensity to self-destruct and the accurate definition of the term “RINO.”For the record, the two candidates that represented my vision of what leaders should be were – and still are to a certain extent – Fred Thompson and Duncan Hunter. Both of these men are strong on defense and understand that no other issue really amounts to much if we lose the wars against Islamofascist aggression and the American Fifth Column. Given that, they too realize that our tax system, in dire need of restructuring, caters to congressional opportunism and financial malfeasance and that the government ought to start diminishing its role in Social Security so that we can lessen our government’s “tax footprint” and continue the creation of an ownership society. They both have considerably more experience in government and non-caustic inside-the-beltway politics than any of the Democrats running for the White House yet they still hold true to the belief that elected officials serve their constituents.
Both of these good and decent men are now out of the race and are so for many reasons, chief among them: a lack of adequate media coverage and a lack of support from those who should have known better. Now we are left with yet again another election where we – we who place the well-being of our nation before special interest litmus tests and victory at the cost of compromise – are left with the task of electing the “lesser of two evils.”
There has been much talk this election cycle about the principles championed by Ronald Reagan and whether or not the Reagan Coalition is dead. While I was a staunch supporter of Ronald Reagan, throughout his presidency and before, I was – and still am – more a supporter of the principles that he, I and many others felt were important for the well-being of our nation. To be certain, there were some issues that I felt less passionate about than he did but in my support of him and the conservative movement those differences fell to the priority of the issues upon which there was agreement; issues important to the immediate well-being of our country.
That being said, we must all realize that Ronald Reagan’s “big tent party” was not a galvanized contingent of people who agreed on every issue. Reaganites of the era did not all belong to the same special interest groups or successfully pass every litmus test imposed. Ronald Reagan’s “big tent party” was an association of individuals and groups who – at their cores – understood Reagan to be a torch bearer for the basic principles of conservatism, even if he didn’t pass every litmus test imposed.
Ronald Reagan didn’t strive to placate the most intricate tenets of every conservative special interest group; he strived to lead the country in a direction where each advocate or special interest group would be able to quest for their ideals independently of government. He championed a path to responsible, limited government and a civically responsible ownership society so that those with ideals different from his own could take their causes directly to the people instead of trying to socially engineer through congressional action or judicial activism.
In essence, Ronald Reagan said, “…this is what I stand for and I am willing to lead,” not, “I am willing to follow the path where you would have me lead you.”
Click for full text... (http://www.therealitycheck.org/2008/01/25/examining-republican-self-destruction-and-the-term-%e2%80%98rino%e2%80%99/)
The article...
I have been avoiding the discussion of who I am supporting for the Republican presidential nomination in deference to urging others to thoroughly examine the platforms, agendas and records of all those in contention. Only by taking the time to circumvent the agenda-driven propaganda of the mainstream media (and in some cases its non-coverage of certain candidates) can we truly understand who each candidate is and what he – or she – stands for. With both my first and second choices now out of the race I believe it is time to examine the Conservative communities troubling propensity to self-destruct and the accurate definition of the term “RINO.”For the record, the two candidates that represented my vision of what leaders should be were – and still are to a certain extent – Fred Thompson and Duncan Hunter. Both of these men are strong on defense and understand that no other issue really amounts to much if we lose the wars against Islamofascist aggression and the American Fifth Column. Given that, they too realize that our tax system, in dire need of restructuring, caters to congressional opportunism and financial malfeasance and that the government ought to start diminishing its role in Social Security so that we can lessen our government’s “tax footprint” and continue the creation of an ownership society. They both have considerably more experience in government and non-caustic inside-the-beltway politics than any of the Democrats running for the White House yet they still hold true to the belief that elected officials serve their constituents.
Both of these good and decent men are now out of the race and are so for many reasons, chief among them: a lack of adequate media coverage and a lack of support from those who should have known better. Now we are left with yet again another election where we – we who place the well-being of our nation before special interest litmus tests and victory at the cost of compromise – are left with the task of electing the “lesser of two evils.”
There has been much talk this election cycle about the principles championed by Ronald Reagan and whether or not the Reagan Coalition is dead. While I was a staunch supporter of Ronald Reagan, throughout his presidency and before, I was – and still am – more a supporter of the principles that he, I and many others felt were important for the well-being of our nation. To be certain, there were some issues that I felt less passionate about than he did but in my support of him and the conservative movement those differences fell to the priority of the issues upon which there was agreement; issues important to the immediate well-being of our country.
That being said, we must all realize that Ronald Reagan’s “big tent party” was not a galvanized contingent of people who agreed on every issue. Reaganites of the era did not all belong to the same special interest groups or successfully pass every litmus test imposed. Ronald Reagan’s “big tent party” was an association of individuals and groups who – at their cores – understood Reagan to be a torch bearer for the basic principles of conservatism, even if he didn’t pass every litmus test imposed.
Ronald Reagan didn’t strive to placate the most intricate tenets of every conservative special interest group; he strived to lead the country in a direction where each advocate or special interest group would be able to quest for their ideals independently of government. He championed a path to responsible, limited government and a civically responsible ownership society so that those with ideals different from his own could take their causes directly to the people instead of trying to socially engineer through congressional action or judicial activism.
In essence, Ronald Reagan said, “…this is what I stand for and I am willing to lead,” not, “I am willing to follow the path where you would have me lead you.”
Click for full text... (http://www.therealitycheck.org/2008/01/25/examining-republican-self-destruction-and-the-term-%e2%80%98rino%e2%80%99/)