Is America waking up? - Hard-core conservatives fleeing Bush’s side

[liberal N proud]

Hard-core conservatives fleeing Bush’s side

Concerns over spending, immigration policy running high, experts say

NEWS ANALYSIS
By Jim VandeHei and Peter Baker

Updated: 1:00 a.m. ET May 11, 2006
WASHINGTON - Disaffection over spending and immigration have caused conservatives to take flight from President Bush and the Republican Congress at a rapid pace in recent weeks, sending Bush's approval ratings to record lows and presenting a new threat to the GOP's 12-year reign on Capitol Hill, according to White House officials, lawmakers and new polling data.

Bush and Congress have suffered a decline in support from almost every part of the conservative coalition over the past year, a trend that has accelerated with alarming implications for Bush's governing strategy.

The Gallup polling organization recorded a 13-percentage-point drop in Republican support for Bush in the past couple of weeks. These usually reliable voters are telling pollsters and lawmakers they are fed up with what they see as out-of-control spending by Washington and, more generally, an abandonment of core conservative principles.

Coalescing around the base

It is now apparent that this floor has weakened dramatically -- and collapsed in places.

"A lot of us have been like Paul Revere and sounding the alarm for three or four years," said Rep. Tom Feeney (R-Fla.). "Conservatives forgave Bush and Congress for our past mistakes because the war on terrorism was so important . . . but now there is a great deal of unhappiness. What you are going to increasingly see is a divided Republican Party."

Dissatisfaction in the trenches

Michael Dimock of the Pew Research Center, a leading polling group, said one of the most striking findings of recent surveys is the growing number of conservatives who "don't see Bush as one of them" as they did earlier. Pew found that Bush has suffered a 24-point drop in his approval rating among voters who backed him in 2004: from 92 percent in January 2005 to 68 percent in March.

Trend worries GOP strategists

"The problem in my mind, and the only way to explain the very significant erosion is just a disgust with what appears to be a complete abandonment of limited government," said former Republican congressman Patrick J. Toomey, who runs the conservative Club for Growth. Toomey said commitment to smaller government has been the unifying idea for most elements of the GOP coalition since Ronald Reagan's presidency. "Republicans have finally had enough," he said, a sentiment echoed by several other conservative activists and lawmakers.

Unease over immigration

A new Zogby Interactive poll found that fewer than 25 percent of respondents who described themselves as conservative or very conservative approved of Bush's handling of the immigration debate. "Unfortunately, when it comes to controlling our borders, we are about a decade behind where we need to be," said Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Tex.).

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12729893/

[Oversea Visitor]

1. And they wont be back

As I say bush will destroyed the Republican Party
See all these dumb Repuke Representatives did not do nothing
Soon all out of job :rofl:

[Name removed]

5. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[rodeodance]

7. Just because they are fed up with Bush does not mean they will vote

Dem.

[marmar]

8. True...

Hopefully they just won't vote at all. I wish there was a right-wing equivalent of the Green Party that would run its own candidates and pop up on ballots all over the country this November.

[unpossibles]

10. we could write to Ross Perot

and ask him to run again.

[Oversea Visitor]

14. What make you so sure?

:rofl:

[GOTV]

19. Because they were able to turn 50% of voters...

... against the far better candidate twice in a row.

Once the campaigning starts out in earnest, none of our assumptions are safe.

Plus, in my area, I don't see many people working to assure Dem victories in November.

[Oversea Visitor]

26. Nah

2000 was legally STOLEN .... haha only US such term make some sense
2004 was decided by machine.

I think maybe you lose faith in people.

[GOTV]

27. Whether the election was stolen or not....

... they still convinced about 50% of the voters to vote for the inferior candidate twice.

They can do this. They can win in November. This is not in the bag for us.

[Oversea Visitor]

28. Where you get your

50% from haha :rofl:
Proven in 2000 Al Gore got more vote
Let just say the machine swallow votes and in some cases make new one
Oh yeah dont forget the super purge from voter list. Yeah yeah so much stuff and whee still manage to show win by TINY TINY margin.

Have some faith in American People intelligent please.
I do
I say Democrats going to win big
Murtha say maybe 40-50
Me think they will almost take every seat they contest.

Now 71% of people want change
What dont believe?
Ok now only 29% backwash support repuke.
What still dont believe?

OK JEB BUSH PRESIDENT OF USA IN 2008
What you believe that :rofl:

Only way they can win is to steal it.
Well did twice see if they can do a third time
Just keep eyes ears open

[Cosmocat]

17. Yep ...

It has taken corruption, incompetence and a total disregard for the constitution and the people of this country on the HIGHEST order for these freaks to even begin to admit this clown is a disaster ... And, it took five gosh darn years ...

It will be a real set back in the short term, but make no mistake, the next scumbag to do the "cut taxes and smaller government" meme will reel these chumps in like crappies ...

[Old and In the Way]

6. very true.

Collectively, a pretty dumb bunch with no vision other than to profit from their positions....I really think they thought they could get away with this forever....what a deliusional bunch of rubber stampers. They thought they could hide behind the boyking...big mistake.

[nadinbrzezinski]

24. I agree with you but for different reasons

and it will take a generation for this to work itself out

You will have a NEW Conservative party to replace the GOP

This also assumes clean elections and all that... but that is a whole different story

[Smarmie Doofus]

2. "Hard- core Conservatives" remain, by definition,...

...hard-core conservatives.

Not to be the proverbial wet dishrag, but the problem is not Bush; the problem is the people who elected and reelected Bush.

More specifically, the problem is the way those people *think*. Or don't.

Not much evidence that they've changed; merely recognized that their figurehead is a fool. No biggie; they'll find another.

[Old and In the Way]

3. Wait till they find out they voted for a dictator.

The boyking is going to have a rude awakening when he loses control of Congress in November.

[no_hypocrisy]

4. I knew when * proposed raising the federal debt ceiling to $10 trillion,

that would get the undivided attention and antagonism of true conservatives.

[formerrepuke]

9. Karl Rove already has a plan to combat this (the ususal strategy):

"Karl Rove, Bush's top political adviser, and GOP leaders are well aware of the problem and planning a summer offensive to win back conservatives with a mix of policy fights and warnings of how a Democratic Congress would govern. The plan includes votes on TAX CUTS, A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT OUTLAWING SAME-SEX MARRIAGE, NEW ABORTION RESTRICTIONS, and measures to restrain government spending."

...you know- the same ol' base-baiting shit; works every time.

for link, move to last paragraph:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12729893/

[tanyev]

11. Run away! Run away!

Bravely bold Sir Robin rode forth from Camelot.
He was not afraid to die,
O brave Sir Robin.
He was not at all afraid to be killed in nasty ways,
Brave, brave, brave, brave Sir Robin!

He was not in the least bit scared to be mashed into a pulp,
Or to have his eyes gouged out and his elbows broken,
To have his kneecaps split and his body burned away
And his limbs all hacked and mangled, brave Sir Robin!

His head smashed in and his heart cut out
And his liver removed and his bowels unplugged
And his nostrils raped and his bottom burned off
And his pen

Robin: That's... that's... er... enough music for now lads.
Looks like there's dirty work afoot.

[greenman3610]

12. Scarborough is running from *. I wonder when Fox will bolt...

[Virginian]

22. Savage is actually bashing Bush.

Couldn't get AAR on car radio last night. Listened to a few minutes of Savage Nation.
It started out with a racial thing. "Will the minorities give Whites the same minority rights when the current minorities gain power?"

Savage said Bush is not a true Conservative.

Then a caller got on that joined Savage in Bashing Bush for the Immigration issue and for the National Debt. Caller said he thought Bush was the Anti-Christ.

I thought, "Finally they are starting to see Bush for what he really is."

[Virginian]

23. Oh, I almost forgot...

Savage wants punishment for those who dropped the ball and allowed 9/11 to happen.

He doesn't just think they should be fired, he thinks they should go to trial.

He almost sounded like he believes they LIHOP.

It's almost frightening when a Conservative Talk Show host starts agreeing with what many of us have believed all along. Is this some sort of Rovian trick?

[riona]

13. It's just another trip to

the dressing room for a change of clothes. I wonder how many outfits it will take before the electorate wakes up.

[Virginia Dare]

15. Can somebody explain something to me?

What exactly has changed in the last 6 months? Has the chimp grown stupider? Has the administration become more fascist or inept?

From what I see, NOTHING has changed.

How is it that "suddenly" people wake up from their little dream worlds and realize that we are being screwed at every turn? How is it that the Democrats were not able to bring this to light 6 months or a year ago?


:shrug:

[liberal N proud]

16. Gas prices?

Are gas prices the final straw? That is the only thing in the last few months that isn't any different than what has been going on for 6 years.

The article never mentions it but it is the only thing I can think of.

[Virginia Dare]

21. That and Katrina apparently....

but it just amazes me how quickly he lost his supposedly "solid base". Maybe Rove was using duct tape and paperclips all this time?

[0007]

18. America scarcely has one eye open yet!

[TrogL]

20. These are "old-school" conservatives

Most "conservatives" these day are religious fundamentalists and/or fascists.

[Oak2004]

25. Even the evangelicals are deserting him, according to polls

The rank-and-file, obviously, not the leadership. But I saw a figure in the mid 40's or so of evangelicals who oppose Bush.

Recall that the protofascist rank and file was attracted with populist rhetoric. What they're getting, they're realizing, isn't very populist.

[DavidMS]

29. They will probably go the know nothing route.

We can't count on many of them being converted. We can count on many of them to stay home in 06 and 08 depending on how bad Bush finishes breaking border control. If we get both legislative and executive power by 08 our first goal should be changing the political terrain.

Hopefully Bush will break their voting habits.