Conservatism ... true conservatism, is rooted in the American Revolution and declared in the Declaration of Independence and United States Constitution. The belief that rights are inalienable (not granted), and that the federal government must remain limited to what is enumerated in the Constitution.
This battle, this battle over our God-given rights from the chains of monarchy did not end with the Revolution. It's a battle that carries on today. We our it to our forebears, who sacrificed so much. And we owe it to ourselves, our children and grandchildren ... It's time to rebuild the Republican Party.
During the 1960's, the hippies may have become hooked on the knuckle-headed belief of "freedom through coercion," bringing us today's Big Government and it's inevitable, unsustainable budget. But there was something else going on politically too ...
It was Barry Goldwater, along with his book, "The Conscience of a Conservative." Published in 1960, it went on the become the best-selling political manifesto of the 20th century! He reaffirmed the Jeffersonian conviction that a government which governs best, is a government that governs least, and he declared collectivism (communism) to be a dangerous evil. Articulating the views of our Founder's and the nature rights, he stated in the book's introduction:
The root difference between the Conservatives and the Liberals of today is that Conservatives take account of the whole man, while the Liberals tend to look only at the material side of man's nature. The Conservative believes that man is, in part, an economic, an animal creature; but that he is also a spiritual creature with spiritual needs and spiritual desires. What is more, these needs and desires reflect the superior side of man's nature, and thus take precedence over his economic wants. Conservatism therefore looks upon the enhancement of man's spiritual nature as the primary concern of political philosophy.... Man's most sacred possession is his individual soul.
Goldwater didn't win the White House, but he won back the spirit of America. And it wasn't long after, that his general platform found it's way to the White House. Because, in 1980, Ronald Reagan - the Gipper" was elected President of the United States in a landslide victory. Finally, true conservatism was back! Or so we thought ...
The lesson we should have learned from the eighties, is that bipartisanship works against conservatism. Then, after Reagan's two terms, George Bush Sr. steered the country back to the left.
Of course, this cost him the next election, when Bill Clinton won. It makes you wonder why McCain campaigns more like Bush than Reagan ... Anyways, in 1994, with the leadership of Newt Gingrich, Republicans took control of both the House and Senate once again, finally. This was the first time since the Congress of 1953-55.
The Republicans had a straightforward message and put it to paper. The "Contract with America" was to bring true conservatism back!
It didn't. They blamed the Clinton administration for stalling things, but they're the Congress. In other words, they write the law.
So we elected George Bush Jr. as President, figuring that would give us the push we needed ... I think we all know the results. We now have the largest, most intrusive and expensive federal government in the history of our nation!
There's nothing "conservative." about that! The people that claim to represent us in Washington today, can be best described as RINO's - Republicans In Name Only.
Sure ... there may be about a dozen or so we can count on ... but that shouldn't keep you from chopping firewood. Fabian (aka "creeping") Socialism has been upon us for a long time, and if the Democrats take control of both the House and Senate ...America could change forever.
Is there hope?
When Senator John McCain announced Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate, the "conservative base" was re-ignited! For one she has a great personality - a genuine good sense of humor, and by far the happiest personality of any politician out there. Plus, she comes from America's last great frontier - Alaska. Palin battled the Republican party to get where she is today. I find her sincere in her distaste for the Washington Elite and their "intellectual" comrades. She's a real frontier American!
The Weekly Standard's Fred Barnes recently interviewed Sarah Palin about her future, and I think her answer conveys a lot:
"I don't know what kind of role the Republican party would want me to play. In the past, I have not been one to be considered for anything by the hierarchy of the party. Certainly not in my state. In some sense, I ran against my party."
"I would love to promote the party ideals if we're going to live out the ideals and maybe allow other American voters to understand what the principles of the party are. We've got to be assured we have enough people in the party who will live out those ideals and it's not just rhetoric. Otherwise, I'd be wasting my time. There are a lot of things I would and should be doing."
From this Barnes concludes:
There's a model, however, for a small state governor who wants to be a national politician. It's the Bill Clinton model. While he was merely governor of Arkansas, he spoke all over the country, headed a moderate Democratic organization, courted national political reporters, and connected with a group of smart, young political operatives.
Being a member of the Washington Elite Media, of course that's what Barnes would conclude, but he's right about one thing ... there is a model. He misses when trying to describe the model however, saying Clinton.
The right model is - Barry Goldwater, Ronald Reagan, the Contract with America ... but most importantly, it's in the Declaration and Constitution of the United States of America. Every Republican should read "The Conscience of a Conservative." Goldwater can help you find your inner conservative, and you'll be very glad when you do.
"Goldwater's conservatism is not isolationism, nor is it a cold-blooded commitment to the 'haves' as against the 'have-nots.' It is the creed of a fighter who has both a warm heart and a clear mind." - John Chamberlain, Wall Street Journal
"There is more harsh fact and hard sense in this slight book than will emerge from all of the chatter of this year's session of Congress ... " - George Morgenstern, Chicago Tribune
"The Conscience of a Conservative continues to be read today because it isn't a political tract, a soulless campaign book of the sort generated by every other modern presidential effort." - Daniel McCarthy, The American Conservative
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