[StBernard] MyHeritage.org: Conservative Comeback

[Westley Annis]

November 6, 2009 | By Amanda Reinecker


Conservative Comeback


Tuesday was a big day for conservatives. The landslide victories of
gubernatorial candidates Bob McDonnell
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=0flZ5hOOMNAB7gtWKM3n-Q..>  in
Virginia and Chris Christie
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=7YGhJOLbVKmFwSyxQQUGXA..>  in New
Jersey, plus the Maine referendum upholding marriage as a union between a
man and a woman, clearly illustrates that "the state of conservatism is
strong," <http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=fAG10ryI1xfUJOsrvuJmTQ..>
writes Heritage's Conn Carroll in Wednesday's Morning Bell.

But why would states that voted last year for President Barack Obama now
vote against candidates the President himself campaigned for? Heritage Vice
President Michael Franc
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=4ja-T_dRbKJWzI4wXZIU0g..>  explains
that "it's all about taxes, debt, and too much government." In short, it's
about the government's complete abandonment of conservative principles.

The results in Virginia, New Jersey and Maine confirm what has become
increasingly evident over the past 10 months: conservative principles are
very much alive and popular among most Americans.
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=7yL-9CyUew5hdbREtAXmJQ..>  

Since taking office, President Obama has made it clear he is among the most
progressive Presidents in our history. But he didn't win based on his
progressive tendencies. In fact, Carroll explains that the President led a
fairly moderate campaign: 

Obama promised to address jobs, the economy, our national security and even
hold teachers accountable for children's education. Obama promised that most
of America would receive a tax cut. He promised to win a necessary war in
Afghanistan. These are conservative principle. 

Once elected, however, the President and his allies on the Left quickly
abandoned these sound campaign promises in favor of big-government policies
that increase taxes, kill jobs, raise the deficit and weaken our national
security. As history has repeatedly revealed, there is an inherent conflict
between these progressive policies and the "overwhelming conservative
philosophy in America."

Tuesday's results exposed this conflict by demonstrating the broad support
for conservative ideals. They reflect the same sentiments expressed at tea
parties, protests and town hall meetings nationwide: enough is enough!


An even worse health care plan


On Thursday, over 10,000 people
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=bg1adcLB-Shi1sUSqTyROA..>  rallied
on the steps of the Capitol to express their concerns about the harmful
health care discussions currently under way in the House of Representatives.
The House could vote on this proposal as early as Saturday
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=VvmrP9iNC_8G7rGL-CTNtw..> , though
this timeline could slip as moderates peel off.

"Look closely at the latest House bill," writes Heritage health policy
analyst Bob Moffit in Human Events.
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=NfTIR5dtMsShGWI2BsQXQA..>  "This
1,990 page beast contains all of the problematic issues Americans has with
[the last proposal] -- and then adds more," all of which will adversely
impact the lives of all Americans. 

Moffit outlines a few of the major flaws with the House's "revised" bill:

1.	The federal government will control the health insurance market,
roughly one-sixth of the nation's economy; 
2.	A great deal of power will be granted to a newly appointed "Health
Choices Commissioner," i.e. a health czar, who would define coverage and
premiums for everyone; 
3.	Eligibility for Medicaid, a poorly functioning entitlement program
in desperate need of reform, will expand, causing benefits to decrease for
those who truly need them; 
4.	Federally mandated minimum benefits that will be subsidized by
taxpayers, regardless of whether they need the benefits or not; 
5.	Individual mandates that will require everyone to purchase
government-approved coverage or else pay an extra income tax of 2.5 percent;
and 
6.	Employer mandates that will likely force small business owners to
cut wages and lay off workers in order to meet the coverage requirements, or
pay a heavy fine per employee by choosing not to provide coverage.

And all of this will be ours for a whopping $1.055 trillion over the next 10
years -- a price tag that will surely add more than "one dime to our
deficits <http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=DqOCDHpKd9v8NUIDH97Cfg..> "
and saddle future generations with massive debt. All of this is in the bill,
but few will be able to see it, as Speaker Pelosi (D-CA) has rescinded her
pledge <http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=BJHFfWgB-vVVABh9LDMztA..>  to
post the final language online for 72 hours before a vote.

This is not real health care reform. Instead, Moffit argues, "it is a new
health care entitlement that will speed up our fiscal insolvency, push new
taxes on Americans in all income brackets and have a greater say over our
health decisions." 

In an exclusive interview recorded at The Heritage Foundation, Rep. Paul
Ryan (R-WI) explains
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=0zKbdoARKWM0FPfEXMe2fQ..>  that the
current health care bill reflects a big-government approach to
problem-solving. "The most outrageous detail in the current House bill is
the philosophy on which it is premised," he argues. "It is premised on the
philosophy that the government knows best how to organize one-sixth of our
economy."

Real reform should be a bi-partisan product, based on America's core
principles, that empowers the individual to choose the coverage that best
suits his specific needs and budget and those of his family.



> Other Heritage work of note



*	Just days after its initial launch, We Still Hold These Truths, a
new book by Heritage scholar Matthew Spalding, has proved a hit -- it was
even showcased on the Glenn Beck show
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=qzq1VaDnNWrMWWoBAv_XLQ..> ! You can
help this important book on America's first principles climb the best-seller
list by ordering your copy today and by posting your comments on Amazon.com.
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=RosptAK5Arroljuenjn9sQ..>  
	
	Spalding's book is a "roadmap to where our country should be,"
writes Heritage President Ed Feulner on Townhall.com.
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=Y_YmwF6lMqguLpYb1QAbcg..>  By
looking to the original intentions of our Founding Fathers in forming a
constitutional republic, Spalding "outlines the core principles of liberty,
details the progressive liberals' assault on those principles, and explains
why and how we must defend and reapply them if we are to save our country."

*	Wednesday marked the 30th anniversary of the beginning of the
Iranian hostage crisis, when 52 American diplomats were held captive for 444
days by Islamic militants. "The American hostages became pawns in Iran's
internal power struggle," writes Heritage's Jim Phillips, an expert in
Middle Eastern affairs.
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=tuIOzTvIAdRPCfMoI5-95A..>  The
crisis was badly mishandled by the Carter administration, which initially
ruled out the use of force. The lesson America's enemies took away from the
1979 crisis is that "terrorism works." The lesson America should take away
is that policies of engagement won't work when dealing with uncompromising
extremists. 

*	"Does President Obama match up to Candidate Obama?" Heritage fellow
Lee Edwards
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=4WNiLwA4LmJSev9lBhfGJA..>  is among
several scholars to answer that question on National Review Online. "Unlike
Candidate Obama, President Obama is not so much audacious as cautious,"
Edwards writes, "not uplifting but enervating in his rhetoric, not
non-partisan but partisan in his politics, not unpredictable but all too
predictable in his prescriptions: 'Got a problem? No problem, we the
government have the answer.' All of which accounts for his sagging
popularity and the rising tide of public protest evidenced in the town-hall
meetings, tea parties, and results of this fall's elections."



> In other news



*	Despite recent statistics suggesting an economic comeback,
unemployment surged to a 26-year high in October
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=fLnO8mkyVAObNEb-RVagXA..>  -- 10.2
percent -- and this figure could easily increase. So much for the emergency
"stimulus" package, which promised to cap unemployment at 8 percent.

*	13 people were killed
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=esoXmByu6v7ua89u2azPNA..>  in a
violent shooting at Fort Hood, a Texas Army base. Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan --
a 39-year-old military psychiatrist -- is the chief suspect in the attack.
His motives remain the subject of speculation.

*	President Obama has signed into law yet another "stimulus" bill
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=xqUdRFQmKOVoirGP4tm9hA..> . This $24
billion plan will extend unemployment benefits and subsidize housing
purchases. This is on top of the $787 billion "stimulus" bill passed earlier
in the year, which has failed to work as advertised.

*	New evidence indicates Iran has experimented with designs for an
advanced nuclear weapon.
<http://members.myheritage.org/site/R?i=-K5BbDb3FeHfi8X4yMA9wA..>