The False Apostles

I love to hear radio pundits like Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity wail about John McCain and pontificate as to their bona fides in securing the legacy of Ronald Reagan. Limbaugh sits back, puffs on his cigar and hints that he may not support the GOP nominee in 2008 because preserving conservative ideals are what’s at stake.

That sounds great. I’ve always been a Limbaugh fan (though I haven’t had much use for Hannity). I just wonder … where were Rush and Sean in 1976? How about 1980? When Limbaugh went national in 1988 he had nothing but love for then Vice President George H. W. Bush, a man worthy of great respect but never a leader of the movement. He dived right in with Bob Dole in 1996, and his criticism of George W. Bush has been pretty rare, until enough listeners pointed out that President Bush is no more a movement conservative than is Rudy Giuliani. Where was the grave concern over a GOP Congressional majority that simply sold our principles down a muddy river? Do we want a Speaker Pelosi? Of course not, but a Speaker Boehner would only be marginally better.

Why, then, should we listen to their views as to the “conservatism” of McCain, Romney, Huckabee, Giuliani, or Mickey Mouse?

If we are truly interested in finding an (even a less than perfect) heir to our late leader, Ronald Reagan, we should look to those who served the Reagan Revolution. Ask Peggy Noonan:

 

On the pundit civil wars, Rush Limbaugh declared on the radio this week, “I’m here to tell you, if either of these two guys [Mr. McCain or Mike Huckabee] get the nomination, it’s going to destroy the Republican Party. It’s going to change it forever, be the end of it!”

This is absurd. George W. Bush destroyed the Republican Party, by which I mean he sundered it, broke its constituent pieces apart and set them against each other. He did this on spending, the size of government, war, the ability to prosecute war, immigration and other issues.

 

If the Limbaughs and Hannitys of the world are right, why would Phil Gramm be supporting John McCain? Gramm is so honorable a man that when he decided to cross the House aisle he wouldn’t do it without first giving his constituents the opportunity to throw him out of office. What about Jack Kemp? What about Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) - a strong social conservative and probably the most fiscally conservative member of Congress?

I admit it, I’m a proud McCain supporter. That’s not the point. Paul Weyrich and Morton Blackwell are supporting Mitt Romney. I may not agree with their choice, but I respect their opinion.  These folks, along with many others were conservative long before it was either cool or profitable.

If they (Limbaugh, Hannity, et al) were as concerned about the future of America as they are ratings, these false apostles of the Reagan Revolution would listen to the people who have lead our movement. People like Limbaugh and Hannity wouldn’t be where they are today if it wasn’t for men and women like Gramm, Kemp, Weyrich, Blackwell, Phyllis Schlafly and Richard Viguerie who were (and are) the battalion commanders of a vast army that started marching in 1964 and continue to do so today. Sure, we (us foot soldiers) don’t always agree with each other but we know our goal - to reach that “Shining City Upon a Hill”.

BTW - When Ronald Reagan delivered that speech in 1974, John McCain was in the audience and acknowledge by the Governor.  Where were Rush and Sean.

Technorati Tags: 2008, conservatism, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, Rudy Giuliani, Ronald Reagan, GOP

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