Will The Real Conservatives Please Stand Up?

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I’m flipping through the news channels and I found myself on MSNBC on Friday watching Chris Matthews interview one of the “stars” of the Republican cause South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford. So I keep it on the station because I’m always up for watching a good debate. Then as the interview goes on Chris asks the question I want to ask every single Republican or so called conservative in Washington so I know who to boot and who to keep. He asks him “What would YOU cut should be you president?” Immediately my ears perked up. Now this is what I’m talking about. As usual he let me down just like all the other so called conservatives out there.

After Chris asked the question the stuttering and stammering began. He really didn’t know how to answer the question. So Chris asked again and this time says “Name a program, any program you would cut.” After two minutes of stuttering and attempting to keep it to local politics he finally answered he would reform Social Security. As usual the joke of a party called the Republican Party strikes again. I’m all for overhauling Social Security in fact I think we need to let the states handle programs like this and not our federal government. I however really don’t want to delve into Social Security because I want to delve into another issue and that is the farce called Republican ideology. Below is our 2008 budget and receipts….

The President's budget for 2008 totals $2.9 trillion. Percentages in parentheses indicate percentage change compared to 2007. This budget request is broken down by the following expenditures:
• Mandatory spending: $1.788 trillion (+4.2%)
o $608 billion (+4.5%) - Social Security
o $386 billion (+5.2%) - Medicare
o $209 billion (+5.6%) - Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)
o $324 billion (+1.8%) - Unemployment/Welfare/Other mandatory spending
o $261 billion (+9.2%) - Interest on National Debt
• Discretionary spending: $1.114 trillion (+3.1%)
o $481.4 billion (+12.1%) - Department of Defense
o $145.2 billion (+45.8%) - Global War on Terror
o $69.3 billion (+0.3%) - Department of Health and Human Services
o $56.0 billion (+0.0%) - Department of Education
o $39.4 billion (+18.7%) - Department of Veterans Affairs
o $35.2 billion (+1.4%) - Department of Housing and Urban Development
o $35.0 billion (+22.0%) - Department of State and Other International Programs
o $34.3 billion (+7.2%) - Department of Homeland Security
o $24.3 billion (+6.6%) - Department of Energy
o $20.2 billion (+4.1%) - Department of Justice
o $20.2 billion (+3.1%) - Department of Agriculture
o $17.3 billion (+6.8%) - National Aeronautics and Space Administration
o $12.1 billion (+13.1%) - Department of Transportation
o $12.1 billion (+6.1%) - Department of the Treasury
o $10.6 billion (+2.9%) - Department of the Interior
o $10.6 billion (-9.4%) - Department of Labor
o $51.8 billion (+9.7%) - Other On-budget Discretionary Spending
o $39.0 billion - Other Off-budget Discretionary Spending
The Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan are not included in the regular budget. Instead they are funded through special appropriations.[1]
Estimated receipts for fiscal year 2008 were $2.66 trillion.
• $1.25 trillion - Individual income tax
• $927.2 billion - Social Security and other payroll tax
• $314.9 billion - Corporate income tax
• $68.1 billion - Excise tax
• $29.2 billion - Customs duties
• $25.7 billion - Estate and gift taxes
• $50.7 billion - Other
Now you can feel free to add around $400 billion to the military budget for all of the off budget military spending that our government LOVES to do. You know what I want to hear from the Republicans? I want to hear them talk about getting rid of the Dept of Education. I want to hear them talk about getting rid of the Department of Energy, Agriculture, & Homeland Security. HUD & DHS? Gone. These are states issues. If the states want these programs they can levy taxes and take care of it themselves. Why should people in Montana pay FEMA taxes to pay for people who CHOOSE to live in high risk areas? I want to hear them talk about the world empire we run the bases in nearly 100 countries and the continual policing of the world. We spend nearly $1 trillion dollars a year running the world empire why aren’t we talking about cutting this?

The fact is we won’t hear the Republicans talk about cutting any of this because they are a farce. They’re a joke, every single one of them but one or two in Washington. In fact the only person I hear about talking about cutting government to its Constitutional size is Ron Paul but yet the Republicans shove him aside and right him off as some whacko. No Republicans what’s whacko is the continual claims of you’re for small government but can’t list anything you would cut but Social Security. What’s whacko is continuing this ideology of tax breaks but no spending cuts. What’s whacko is your party in general PERIOD and until I and others who consider ourselves fiscal conservatives see you talk about these kinds of cuts you will be still known as a fake. Oh and last but not least try selling some freedom. True freedom ALWAYS sells not legislative morality. Times are changing folks and if you want freedom loving young fiscal conservatives you better wake up because your party is getting older and older…..

reply to post by tjeffersonsghost


I know you invest a lot of time, energy and hours into the belief that Republicans are scum, but you are missing the boat entirely.

There is NO SUCH THING, as a two party system in your country. It's all an illusions, two heads, on the same beast. So to spend hours arguing for one side or the other is both pointless and irrelevant.

If you want a change in your country, do your part in denying the ignorance that MSM portrays, do something to stop it, and do something about exposing the entire corrupt cabal that runs this country and ultimately the world.

reply to post by king9072


King my thought process is to FORCE change on one of the parties. The party Im focusing on is the Republicans because they claim to be for small government. I just want them to live up to their words that's all. Is that to much to ask?

Well said J's Ghost. I don't know if there are any true conservatives left within the political system in the U.S. There are certainly those that massage the soundbites, and others who speak out from time to time.

Conservatives want a smaller government -- one that is more in line with what the writers of the Constitution presumed to want -- ....... and I don't know where to find them. I haven't seen a major political candidate that I thought was a clear conservative in a long time. Perhaps Huckabee was in that zone, but even he seemed more a republican to me.

Good work on your thread. On another of your threads I focused on what I felt were broad-brush sweeping generalizations, and while that is something I think obscures the message, perhaps I was a bit narrow-minded in my focus.

Keep up the good work

reply to post by king9072


IMO, here are the differences between Dems and Reps. Please take with a grain of salt.

You know you're a Democrat if...
-You support the Green agenda
-You are middle class and lower
-Not necessarily religious/Christian
-Support non-abstinence only education
-Are pro-choice
-Are a hippie and/or vegetarian
-Support peace and verbal negotiation
-Dislike large organizations

You know you're a Republican if...
-You have a nice car, some extra money to spend
-You like to hunt
-You are more religious/Christian
-Like prayer and religion in schools
-Support abstinence-only education
-Are pro-life
-Own a gun or ten.
-Like your country to be big and bad
-Dislike large government

But... I'm an extreme liberal and I don't mean to insult anyone.
But there are for sure two "groups" in America



[edit on 5/16/2009 by ravenshadow13]

reply to post by argentus


Trying to spread the word my friend that's all. Education is power and right now we need to empower the sheeple.

reply to post by tjeffersonsghost


I don't suppose you noticed that is not his budget.... The new budget is 3.6 trillion... just sayin'

reply to post by tjeffersonsghost


Perry and Sanford? You know back in the 90's Perry was bushes righthand man and paraded him around during his presidency when the "patriot act" and the torture of "suspects" were to be carried out, not to mention the lies regarding the Iraq war. He certainly had no problem throwing texas behind bushes back. Regarding sucession? Please, if perry saw the fine print regarding sucession he would be keeping his mouth shut, but he most probably didnt bother to figure out the complications for texas becoming independent because, well, he never took the idea seriously and he knows this is all an early campaign styled run. After all his running against another pro-sucessionist come 2010.

It shouldnt be any surprise to you regarding the do-nothing republicans. After 8years of draining the nation of its hard earned wealth here they stand still calling out for fiscal conservatism as if they gave damn meanwhile increasing military expenditure by $1 trillion over a 6 year period following the Clinton administration, another $600 billion on Iraq, $200 million counting daily, and another $1 trillion worth of tax cuts that did little to nothing, instead we get the nation wide financial collapse. They talk of freedom and yet these folks have no issue discrimminating against their own citizens on the bases of their own private lives in the case of sexuality. They have no issue dumping religous laws down everybodies throats while muttering freedom.

Dont be fooled by many of the former republican supporters here who proclaim their stance against the "two party system" because by 2012 they'll all be right there behind their republican candidates. The "impartiality" ploy jut doesnt stand anymore.

[edit on 17-5-2009 by Southern Guardian]

reply to post by argentus

Conservatives want a smaller government

I hope that is not so corporations and banks can rule the day totally unregulated, AND be rewarded generously for their ongoing failures!
The government sometimes is the only protection the people ever
have from unbridled corporate greed. Go figure.
Corporations are not usually on the side of the people.
Unless they need some more drones.
You would think the bailouts would be a purty big wake up call.
Ah, you know, life in the land of the greed.........