Bush's record calls
into question his conservative label
By David T. Pyne
web
posted June 10, 2002
President
George W. Bush, having won an extremely close and hard fought election
in November 2000, has been attacked by liberal Democrats for being "too
conservative" almost from the time he was elected. However, Bush's
overall record since assuming the office of President calls into question
the general perception that Bush is a conservative. During his first few
months, Bush seemed to set a commendable course as a moderate conservative.
Some of Bush's notable conservative accomplishments include his decision
to withdraw the US from the strictures of the ABM Treaty, the US victory
in the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan, the passage of the biggest
defense spending increases since Ronald Reagan and the appointment of
a Secretary of Defense who is committed to furthering US national security.
President Bush also succeeded in preventing a Communist return to power
in Nicaragua and has passed limited, but vital protective tariffs to help
protect America's dying steel industry under heavy assault from America's
steel-dumping trade partners.
During the past year, Mr. Bush's conservative accomplishments have been
undermined by his other actions, which indicate an increasing and unwelcome
tilt toward the left, likely prompted by advice from Colin Powell and
Karl Rove who advocate appeasing liberals both in regards to his domestic
and foreign policies. On the domestic side of the house, the Bush record
has been a disappointing one as the President has submitted balanced budget-cap
busting budgets which will return the US to a time of $200 billion a year
deficits increasing government spending 15 per cent over two years, a
far higher rate of increase than his more liberal predecessor. Bush also
signed the radical Ted Kennedy education bill, which federalizes education
and provides tens of billions more a year for the liberal-dominated Department
of Education to indoctrinate America's children in their socially liberal
value-free philosophy. Bush's record on social issues has been decidedly
mixed with his support of federal funding for grisly stem-cell research,
his failure to reverse pro-abortion executive orders signed by Bill Clinton
in 1993, and his appointment of pro-abortion activist and White House
Counsel, Al Gonzalez, to lead his Supreme Court nominee search team.
President Bush has undertaken a major effort to remake the GOP in "his"
image, alienating many of his conservative supporters in the process.
He has engineered a successful liberal takeover of the California Republican
Party by a man who has branded all pro-lifers as extremists. Bush has
supported moderate to very liberal candidates against their more conservative
opponents in California, North Carolina, Tennessee and elsewhere throughout
the country, appointed a pro-choice Governor to head the Republican National
Committee and helped install a liberal abortion supporter as RNC Treasurer.
In addition, Bush has attempted to push through his proposal through Congress
to grant amnesty to two million illegal immigrants in the US in a bid
to buy the Latino vote in America and appease Mexican President Vincente
Fox. Most troublesome of all to Republicans, Bush broke a campaign promise
in signing the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform bill. This Democrat
congressional majority insurance bill will have the effect of legislating
a permanent Democrat party stranglehold on the majority of both houses
of Congress, reversing the hard-won and historic gains by the Republican
congressional majority during the past decade. Initial implementation
of this bill in the 2004 election cycle will likely result in the defeat
of scores of Bush's loyal Republican supporters in Congress.
On foreign policy, Bush supported PLO terrorist Yasser Arafat in power
and repeatedly urged Sharon to halt Israel's counter-terrorist operations
until Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon finally succeeded in persuading
him to change course and find enough moral clarity to support the Israeli
war against the Palestinian terrorists. However, Bush still supports a
Palestinian state, something that not even Bill Clinton would support.
In addition, the Bush Administration actually tried to enlist Iran, listed
by the State Department as the greatest State sponsor of terror including
Al Queda, as a strategic partner to fight terrorism back in September.
In pursuing relations with Communist China, the President has opted to
pursue a Clintonian policy of accommodation, if not outright appeasement.
Last year, Bush signed an executive order to permit the sale of significantly
more advanced supercomputers than those allowed to be sold by the Clinton
Administration. He has also championed the awarding of permanent most
favored nation trade status and WTO membership for Communist China, whose
record on killing hundreds of thousands of its political and religious
dissidents, forcing tens of millions of Chinese women to have abortions
every year, threatening nuclear incineration of American cities and continued
unrestricted sales of advanced nuclear warhead and ballistic missile technology
to America's enemies leaves much to be desired. The Bush policy of appeasing
the Butchers of Beijing has had the effect of rewarding them for their
'bad behavior' while encouraging future offenses and escalated threats
against our Free Chinese allies on Taiwan.
Bush has also forged a new, overly trusting relationship with the Russian
Federation led by former KGB spymaster, Vladimir Putin. Bush has pledged
to destroy and dismantle 75 per cent of the US strategic nuclear deterrent
that has kept the nuclear peace for nearly sixty years, signed an agreement
admitting Russia as a full partner with veto power in NATO, and offered
to jointly develop US missile defenses with Russia. It is not at all clear
that Russia can be trusted to keep its treaty obligations, let alone serve
as a reliable US ally. President Bush also supports the implementation
of a Clinton-era plan to disarm the US Army of its tanks, tracked vehicles
and much of its artillery that will likely result in the unnecessary deaths
of thousands of American soldiers if they are called upon again to fight
a major war.
For the good of the country, President Bush should move away from governing
from the mushy middle and return to governing to the center-right. He
may need to do so in order to regain lost conservative support and avoid
a major conservative challenge in the 2004 presidential election.
David T. Pyne, Esq. is a national security expert who works as an
International Programs Manager in the Department of the Army responsible
for the countries of the former Soviet Union and the Middle East among
others. He is also a licensed attorney and former Army Reserve Officer.
In addition, he holds an MA in National Security Studies from Georgetown
University. Mr. Pyne currently serves as Executive Vice President of the
Virginia Republican Assembly. He is also a member of the Center for Emerging
National Security Affairs based in Washington, D.C. Mr. Pyne serves as
a columnist for American-Partisan.com, OpinioNet.com and America's Voices.
He is also a regular contributor for Patriotist.com. In addition, his
articles have appeared on Etherzone.com and AmericanReformation.org where
he serves as a policy analyst. (c) David T. Pyne, 2002