VOLuntarilyConservative

Obviously, the best thing that the U.S. government can do is to let GM, Ford, and Chrysler continue down the path they have chosen to take, which most likely results in bankruptcy. That is the only way for the "Big 3" to emerge stronger and more slimmed down in their fight to remain even remotely competitive with foreign automakers.

The reason for the demise of American car companies is the unionization of their workforce. Plain and simple.

So it is ironic in some ways that a deal was reached to federally bail out the "Big 3" - much to my chagrin - but that the deal was scuttled last night because the unions stepped in. Apparently, the unions are more interested in going down with the ship than negotiating for a better position in a post-bail-out world.

But all is not lost, for the Bush Administration - keeping with form as one of the worst presidencies in American history - is coming to the rescue. Apparently, the strings that Congress thought it had attached to the bail-out of the financial industry weren't actually there, because Bush is going to use that money for the automakers.

We have entered bizarro world as it relates to the federal government. It is amazing to look throughout the world and see admitted socialized governments with less evidence of actual socialization than our own federal government here in a declared "democracy" with free-market principles.

It's come to the point where I hate blogging about the federal government, because it is just so daggone depressing.

Labels: Economy, President Bush, Socialism

Yes, we all know that we're paying more for everyday goods these days, but do you know how much more?

EVERYDAY COSTS (per BLS.gov)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . 2008 2000 % Change
Gasoline (per gallon) $3.28 $1.36 141%
Natural gas (per ccf) $1.30 $0.71 83%
Electricity (per kwh) $.116 $.084 38%
Milk (per gallon) - $3.87 $2.78 39%
Bread (per lb) - $1.28 $0.91 41%
Eggs (per dozen) - $2.18 $0.98 122%
Orange Juice (per gal.) $2.54 $1.82 40%
Ground Beef (per lb.) $2.33 $1.48 57%

Those inside the Bush White House often speak of President Bush's concern with his legacy as his second term comes to a close. I can't help but think that the picture painted by the above figures is this president's legacy.

Labels: Economy, Energy, President Bush

Pat Buchanan has an accurate and telling analysis of the legacy of Karl Rove, particularly as it relates to illegal immigration:

The house Nixon and Reagan built, Bush and Rove tore down, leaving rubble in its place. Rove's failure was a failure of vision. He and Bush believed the future of the party lay in adding to the Republican base the Hispanic vote, now the nation's largest minority, approaching 15 percent of the population.

They went about it the wrong way.

Pandering to that voting bloc, Bush stopped enforcing the immigration laws and offered amnesty to 12 million to 20 million illegal aliens and the businesses that hired them. Bush and Rove were going to lure the Hispanic vote away from the Democratic Party by putting illegals on a path to citizenship.

But as we saw in June, when the nation rose up in rage against the Bush amnesty, the pair did indeed unite the GOP – against themselves, and they severed themselves from the Reagan Democrats and the country.

And this parting shot:

In seeking a new GOP majority, Bush and Rove rejected the Nixon-Reagan model. Instead, they embraced the interventionism of Wilson, the free-trade globalism of FDR, the open-borders immigration ideas of LBJ and the budget priorities of the Great Society. It was a bridge too far for the party base.

Now, Rove walks away like some subprime borrower abandoning the house on which he can no longer make the payments. The Republican Party needs a new architect. The firm of Bush & Rove was not up to the job.

Buchanan may be a bit biased, as he has the connections to both Nixon and Reagan, but the numbers don't lie. For all of the successes of Nixon and Reagan towards turning this into a conservative nation, Bush-Rove have put us back to square one. It is my opinion that the Republicans can't take anything for granted in 2008 and have to campaign like a new party that has little chance of winning. Basically, we need to play at all points like we're 20-points behind, and we need to campaign everywhere. Nothing can be taken for granted.

I suppose that is the Rove legacy - a party that is going to have to scrap and claw for everything if it ever wants to achieve its goals.

Labels: 2008 General Election, President Bush

Pastor Chuck Baldwin thinks so.

I don't know. Certainly some good evidence to connect the two - both anecdotal and actual - but it certainly seems a bit of a stretch on its face.

Labels: Hillary Clinton, President Bush

I want to start this morning by calling for the repudiation of longtime GOP leader Linda Chavez by the Republican National Committee. Chavez put forth the following characterization of conservatives who don't support the Bush-Kennedy immigration bill:

"Some people just don't like Mexicans – or anyone else from south of the
border. They think Latinos are freeloaders and welfare cheats who are too lazy
to learn English. They think Latinos have too many babies and that Latino kids
will dumb down our schools. They think Latinos are dirty,
diseased, indolent and more prone to criminal behavior. They think Latinos are
just too different from us ever to become real Americans. ..."

"Unfortunately, among this group is a fair number of Republican members
of Congress, almost all influential conservative talk radio hosts, some cable
news anchors – most prominently, Lou Dobbs – and a handful of public policy
'experts' at organizations such as the Center for Immigration Studies, the
Federation for American Immigration Reform, NumbersUSA, in addition to fringe
groups like the Minuteman Project."

Is this what the Republican Party thinks of conservatives and those who wish to see the laws of the United States enforced? I am quite serious in calling for a reaction by the RNC (and FoxNews, which oft uses Chavez as a "political analyst") and a distancing of the official party from Chavez's stereotypical and ignorant remarks.

Of course, Pat Buchanan believes it's not Chavez that must go, but that it is Bush who needs to be repudiated by the GOP base.

I agree with Buchanan - treat conservatives like the proverbial whipping boy at your own peril, GOP.

Labels: Conservatism, Immigration, President Bush