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South Park Conservatives: The Revolt Against Liberal Media Bias

Brian C. Anderson

South Park Conservatives: The Revolt Against Liberal Media Bias Brian C. Anderson Amazon Price: $21.21
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Total reviews: 54 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Surprisingly good--3 1/2 stars.... 3 out of 5 stars.
2 of 4 people found this review helpful.

This book was given to me and almost got sent to the thrift store. I've never watched much South Park and I'm kinda tired of political books. However, just before getting rid of the book, I took a look at the chapter on South Park and got hooked. I had no idea the South Park episodes were full of so much political satire. It always seemed to be a show that made fun of everything, but as this book pointed out--their biggest target is the left-wing. This book is about more than just South Park--other highlights are the chapter on the right-wing blogosphere and conservative comedy.

Not Perfect - But Insightful and Amusing 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 1 people found this review helpful.

South Park Conservatives is a gem of a book; short, to the point, and leaving its reader (so long as you're right of center) with a renewed sense of hope. Starting with the same premise as so many other authors (Bernard Goldberg comes to mind), Anderson lambasts the hopelessly biased media. Rathergate is only one count of many in his indictment.

He is also, fitting for a fellow who is the editor of City Journal, willing to look at the disturbing degree to which modern liberalism is inherently illiberal. These are the people who whole-heartedly buy into Marcuse's doctrine of "liberating tolerance" and Rawls's argument that political debate must only take into account "reasonable" doctrines; both thinkers' constructs obviously have no place for conservatism or conservative principles. Thus liberal attempts to depict Republicans and conservatives as racist, misogynistic and homophobic bigots is part of their own internal effort to throw conservatism out of the bounds of "reasonableness." This is also, of course, a liberalism with a penchant for ironic Orwellianism and double speak, and the unspoken rule that free speech ends if you don't agree with them. See the treatment at Columbia of the Minutemen (or closer to home, the treatment at Duke of David Horowitz). Further this is the group that refuses to see bias in anyone that agrees with them; thus they can justify calling Dan Rather objective while working themselves into a lather over anyone who airs a conservative perspective. By extension, this is why Democrats are making noises about reinstating the "Fairness Doctrine" (itself an Orwellian misnomer) - because only those that disagree with them are biased and in need of balancing.

But whereas this is as far as many go, Anderson rightly points out that things are changing. Quickly. Sure liberals still hold on to the Big 3 (whose viewership is plummeting) and many major newspapers, to say nothing of large swathes of the academe. But technological revolutions have given rise to a new media - talk radio, cable news, the internet - where Republicans are either a major force or effectively dominate. Rush and O'Reilly are the face of this new media. And they're not just disseminating the conservative message like never before, they (and especially the blogs) are holding the mainstream media accountable, calling BS when (often) appropriate, and forcing them to cover stories that would otherwise be ignored as incompatible with the liberal meta-narrative.

He also suggests that times are changing on campuses around the country as conservative principles, journals, College Republicans chapters, etc. are flourishing. He's quick to point out that the faculty, overwhelmingly liberal, still hold the high ground, but that conservatism is no longer invisible on campuses. Some of his interviewees suggest that this is the result of liberal indoctrination, a sort of classroom blowback; universities also act as a sort of ideological forge where faced with liberal nonsense in all its absurd glory, students embrace and refine their conservative principles.

But what Anderson doesn't point out is that these very instruments of conservative campus revival also suggest that liberals are doomed to another generation of failure. The modern Republican revolution - 1994 to the present (?) - has been grounded in ideas, in alternatives to tired Democratic policies (no matter how you frame it, tax and spend is still tax and spend, and cut and run is still cut and run!); the next generation of conservative activists are already getting introduced to that culture of innovation. Their liberal counterparts , in contrast, are too often picketing against some new "injustice" or soaking up the latest drivel of race/gender/class studies - nice if you're seeking a career in navel-gazing, but absolutely insufficient if you're going to shape the future of the nation.

Finally, the title itself points to an entertainment industry that is in places reacting viciously to the PC nonsense and condescension that characterize the Left as a whole and especially its Hollywood incarnation. Leading the charge here is Comedy Central's South Park - not so much conservative as anti-liberal, gleefully destroying liberal idols and mocking liberals such as Al Gore, Rob Reiner, and Michael Moore. Priceless stuff really.

South Park Conservatives isn't an equally intellectual counterpoint to Bloom's Closing of the American Mind; it isn't meant to be. Rather, it chronicles some critical evolutions in the media and suggests that incessant griping about liberalism's chokehold on the MSM is overwrought, that it is in many ways a colossus with clay feet. It's got a message, but it's light enough to be a beach read. Go forth and enjoy.

Editorial Review:

For the better part of 30 years, liberal bias has dominated mainstream media. But author and political journalist Brian Anderson reveals in his new book that the era of liberal dominance is going the way of the dodo bird.

Reckless Disregard: How Liberal Democrats Undercut Our Military, Endanger Our Soldiers, and Jeopardize our Security

Robert Patterson

Reckless Disregard: How Liberal Democrats Undercut Our Military, Endanger Our Soldiers, and Jeopardize our Security Robert Patterson Amazon Price: $16.95
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Total reviews: 89 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Great read, tells it like it is.... 5 out of 5 stars.
15 of 23 people found this review helpful.

Which is why libs hate it. They don't want the truth to be told because if it ever was (which is to say if CNN and other lib talkers told the whole story), nobody would even think about voting for them.

Bush is the right president because unlike Bill, George doesn't just shake his finger at enemies while getting off on interns. He actually sees a war when its right under his nose, and doesn't ignore it. Clinton spread out our military while cutting their numbers back drastically. Thus, he proved that, just like other Liberals like Carter, he is ignorant to the ways of war. Then again what do you expect from a draft dodger who protested Vietnam in the UK while our actual patriotic americans (something that NO liberal will ever be) were dying in Vietnam?

Key facts here
* In the 45 years prior to the Clinton years, we deployed armed forces beyond our borders 8 times. In Clinton's 8 years in office, he deployed our forces 44 times. So we went from one deployment ever 5.6 years to 5.5 deployments a year. Why? Clinton used the armed forces as a peace keeping force in any and every area he could. To him, our men and woman in uniform could be sent in very small groups all over the world to be international police. He was ignorant to the job of being Commander In Chief. Maybe if he handn't been a traitor to the US in the 60's and actually served his time via his draft notice, then he might understand what honor and duty meant. Instead he he focused on "on her" and "booty."

* Clintons inaction during all the terrorist attacks we had in the 90's made us look weak. Afterall, if an enemy never fights back are you going to surrender or are you going to cheer in victory and fight more? Like Patterson says in this book "Pacifism never won wars, soldiers did."

I'm proud to be an American because of what our constitution and those who protect it stand for. From time to time we find those that live up to it, such as Reagan and Bush. Luckily enough Americans agree, as the red and blue election map of 2004 showed. As for those that want to point to our problems and try to find a better way, that is what needs to be done. Yet for those like Clinton, Kerry, Ted "the swimmer" Kennedy, Howard Dean, Nancy Pelosi, and anyone who follows them and is ignorant enough to believe the war and Bush are wrong, I say to you "read this book" so that you might actually be able to learn from history. Then again, you liberals make it and art at ignoring history. In the end your beliefs and cries of protest are backed only by socialists, communists and extremists. Thus you are they, they are you. You have no home here, you are not Americans. To be an American requires more than just living here. You need to support the Americn ideals, which you do not. A die hard anti-war on terrorism liberal is basically saying "I don't believe we should be free, its ok for terrorists to attack us, leave them alone." Thus you are nothing more than an athiest who says he is a Christian.

Do us Americans all a favor you socialist libs - if you hate America so much, then move somewhere that you think is better. Like Alec Baldwin, you won't though because you know no other country is going to put thier butts on the line to save yours. People like Mr. Patterson here are the ones carrying on the American ideals, you libs are the ones who do all you can to destroy them.

Editorial Review:

Reckless Disregard shows how liberal Democrats are wasteful of American military lives, and have committed themselves to policies that are inimical to America's national security. This is a frontline soldier's report on how liberalism and national security don't mix.

From Crayons to Condoms: The Ugly Truth About America's Public Schools

Steve Baldwin, Karen Holgate

From Crayons to Condoms: The Ugly Truth About America's Public Schools Steve Baldwin, Karen Holgate Amazon Price: $18.94
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Editorial Review:

What's really going at your local public school? In From Crayons to Condoms: The Ugly Truth About America's Public Schools, Steven Baldwin and Karen Holgate let parents, concerned teachers and students speak for themselves about the dismal state of government education in America today.

The conclusion? Today's schools are laboratories for disaster, where failed methodologies and policies continually find new life thanks to bureaucracies more interested in maintaining power than in educating.

Lavishly armed with your tax dollars, government at every level encourages mass social experimentation on our kids - success optional. In From Crayons to Condoms you'll discover...

    * The lesbian gym teacher who hands out a paper called "101 Ways To Do It Without Going All The Way" in every class.
    * The "Inventive Spelling" curriculum which demands of parents that they "avoid giving in to our natural desire to correct the mistakes" because it's "harmful to the children"
    * The "innovative name-calling" program for kindergarteners and first graders that teaches new words and concepts like "dyke" and "faggot."
    * The required courses in "death education" that actually encourage teen depression and suicide.
    * The math classes in which students write down how they "feel" about math problems...as opposed to learning fractions, algebra and multiplication tables.
Today's public schools are not just rife with bizarre, inaccurate textbooks and failed teaching practices - they encourage classroom activities that produce dangerous, even deadly, results.

Can our schools be saved? Yes say the authors, but only if parents are informed and ready to fight for their children every step of the way. The stories in From Crayons to Condoms: The Ugly Truth About America's Public Schools are sure to horrify and energize anyone concerned about today's kids - and our nation's future.

What Color is a Conservative?

J. C. Watts, Chriss Winston

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Total reviews: 25 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Another example of dishonest conservatism 1 out of 5 stars.
4 of 22 people found this review helpful.

Watts, football player turned politician, indicates his obsession with racism and politics by trying to defend political conservatives as non-racist even when it's obvious that these were the same lunatics in both parties that allowed the racism wackiness to spiral out of control in the south back in the 1960s and still does today nationwide albeit more subtely. The only reason rural voters in his area ever kept the guy in office was because he was a corporate conservative who enjoyed the art of bait and switching voters on culture hot button issues such as guns and abortion all the while keeping the economic mess as silent as possible. Sorry Mr. Watts, but good conservatives would never have sucked up to your cultural bait and switch tricks if it weren't for political in-correctness. You know you're just a neoconservative radical and not a honest conservative and you're not fooling most African Americans anyway.

Editorial Review:

The first black to hold a Republican Party leadership position, Congressman J.C. Watts shares his inspirational story as well as hopes and plans for the future of America.

Hunting the Tiger: The Fast Life and Violent Death of the Balkans' Most Dangerous Man

Christopher S. Stewart

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A gripping investigation into the extraordinary career of Serbia’s legendary warlord.

Zeljko “Arkan” Raznatovic began his life as a petty criminal, a juvenile delinquent adrift in the floundering state of Yugoslavia. He would eventually become famous throughout Western Europe: as the “smiling bank robber”; as a Houdini-like fugitive from multiple prisons; and even as a state-sponsored assassin. Stories of motorboat robberies and daylight bank heists would follow him from country to country. Yet however impressive his criminal reputation seemed at first, it was only the beginning of his path to infamy.

Following Yugoslavia’s chaotic descent into madness in the 1990s, Arkan would become not only a gangster but one of Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic’s most valued henchmen in the country’s civil war. He rallied Belgrade’s notoriously violent soccer hooligans, paired them with inmates from Serbia’s prisons, among other brutal street thugs, and trained them to become his ruthless foot soldiers, known as the “Tigers.” During the war, the men rampaged through Croatia and Bosnia---killing, raping, burning, and looting. As they earned a reputation as Serbia’s most feared death squad (accused of genocide by The Hague tribunal), Arkan became one of the region’s wealthiest men. A national hero, he married the country’s greatest pop star---the so-called “Madonna of the Balkans”---in a ceremony that was compared to that of Prince Charles and Princess Diana.

His fame and good fortune, however, could not last. In 1999, as NATO bombs fell on Belgrade, The Hague’s International War Crimes Tribunal indicted Arkan for crimes against humanity, the United States called for his arrest, the world media chased him, and mobster rivals wanted him dead. His days were numbered, and just after the Serbian New Year, he was shockingly assassinated in the crowded lobby of a high-profile Belgrade hotel.

In Hunting the Tiger, journalist Christopher S. Stewart tells the spectacular, bloody, and often nebulous story of a man who was equal parts James Bond, James Dean, Billy the Kid, and Al Capone. In a region still in the throes of sectarian conflict and wracked by the aftermath of decades of violence, Stewart gives us an engaging first-person look at one man who became a symbol of an intensely combustible and illicit age, and who played both villain and hero at a profound historical moment.

 

From the New Deal to the New Right: Race and the Southern Origins of Modern Conservatism

Joseph E. Lowndes

From the New Deal to the New Right: Race and the Southern Origins of Modern Conservatism Joseph E. Lowndes Amazon Price: $27.30
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Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The role the South has played in contemporary conservatism is perhaps the most consequential political phenomenon of the second half of the twentieth century. The region’s transition from Democratic stronghold to Republican base has frequently been viewed as a recent occurrence, one that largely stems from a 1960s-era backlash against left-leaning social movements. But as Joseph Lowndes argues in this book, this rightward shift was not necessarily a natural response by alienated whites, but rather the result of the long-term development of an alliance between Southern segregationists and Northern conservatives, two groups who initially shared little beyond opposition to specific New Deal imperatives.

 

Lowndes focuses his narrative on the formative period between the end of the Second World War and the Nixon years. By looking at the 1948 Dixiecrat Revolt, the presidential campaigns of George Wallace, and popular representations of the region, he shows the many ways in which the South changed during these decades. Lowndes traces how a new alliance began to emerge by further examining the pages of the National Review and Republican party-building efforts in the South during the campaigns of Eisenhower, Goldwater, and Nixon. The unique characteristics of American conservatism were forged in the crucible of race relations in the South, he argues, and his analysis of party-building efforts, national institutions, and the innovations of particular political actors provides a keen look into the ideology of modern conservatism and the Republican Party.

Europa, Europa

Solomon Perel

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Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

"You must stay alive!"

With his mother's parting words ringing in his ears, fourteen-year-old Solomon Perel set out from Nazi-occupied Poland hoping to find safety across the new Soviet frontier. Like large numbers of other Jews fleeing the Germans, Perel faced staggering odds against his survival. What actually transpired was far different from what anyone could have imagined. By a startling twist of fate, the young Jew found unexpected refuge . . . as a student in an elite Hitler Youth school. Now this extraordinary and true story appears in English translation for the first time. With searing power and passion, Europa, Europa recounts Solomon Perel's harrowing struggle living a nightmare from which there seemed no escape.

By the time Solly, as he was called by his family, left Poland that night in 1939, he was already an experienced refugee. Sensing the oncoming Nazi terror, his family had fled Germany several years before. This time, however, the family could not stay together and the youngster would soon be on his own.

Reaching the Soviet shore after a dramatic river crossing, Perel was placed in a Russian orphanage, where he was accepted into the Komsomol, the Communist organization for young people. Then came June 22, 1941. When Hitler invaded the Soviet Union Perel was ordered, along with the other Jewish children, to flee into the interior. He fell into the hands of the German forces. Paralyzed by fear, and with a courage born of despair, Perel told his captors that he was, in reality, an ethnic German. To his astonishment, he was believed, and from that point on, his survival centered on his ability to conceal his true identity.

Taken under the wing of the Wehr-macht unit, Perel experienced combat, and was lauded as a model of German youth contributing at the front. Then, in an extraordinary turn of events, Perel was transferred back to Germany, and awarded a coveted spot in an exclusive boarding school training Hitler Youth to face the challenges of the Fúhrer's vision of postwar Europe. Tormented by the ethical struggle of his position—in effect, joining the ranks of those attempting to exterminate his people—at the same time Perel lived in terror of what seemed the inevitable discovery of his real identity.

Europa, Europa is a profound, unflinching, and unforgettable account of a young boy's perilous journey toward manhood, trapped in a world gone mad, and tortured by the role he played. Solomon Perel's inner turmoil, remarkable courage and resourcefulness, and above all, his fierce determination to survive come across with searing force. This deeply moving memoir is an important and controversial contribution to our understanding of the complexity of life under the Third Reich.

"The kernel virtue of this book is its honesty and scrupulous self-examination of one who survived through a deception. Remarkable and memorable." — Rheinische Post

"This book will move human hearts." —Berliner Morgenpost

"The book gets under one's skin. It is a . . . book that penetrates into the essence of humanity." —Peiner Allegemeine Zeitung

In Defense of America

Bronwen Maddox

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Editorial Review:

The world has turned against the United States. Anti-American sentiments have swept the globe. Foreign leaders, pundits, and ordinary people decry the United States, at best proclaiming their heartbreak that the American values they once admired have vanished, and at worst condemning America as a criminal state beyond redemption. The invasion of Iraq, America's refusal to sign the Kyoto accords, detention without trial in Guantanamo and torture in Abu Ghraib, the spread of American movies and fast food into every corner of the globe--all have contributed to a feeling that the United States, once a force for good in the world, is abusing its position as the world's sole superpower.

How wrong they are.

In this provocative, brilliant book, acclaimed foreign affairs columnist Bronwen Maddox shows how critics of America take the best of it for granted and exaggerate the worst. They give the United States too little credit for their own freedom and wealth, and struggle to fend off a monolithic American culture that does not exist. She shows how opponents often unfairly equate American mistakes with moral failings, and how the United States frequently makes its own case badly, even when it is on strong ground. And she reveals a world in danger of fighting to keep the giant at bay, when the harder task is to give America good reason to keep engaged.

Persuasive and important, In Defense of Americais essential reading for anyone who cares about our place in the world, and our future.

Bully Boy: The Truth About Theodore Roosevelt's Legacy

Jim Powell

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What Hath TR Wrought?

“I don’t think that any harm comes from the concentration of power in one man’s hands.” —Theodore Roosevelt

The notion that Theodore Roosevelt was one of America’s greatest presidents is literally carved in stone—right up there on Mount Rushmore. But as historian Jim Powell shows in the refreshingly original Bully Boy, Roosevelt’s toothy grin, outsized personality, colossal energy, and fascinating life story have obscured what he actually did as president.

And what Roosevelt did severely damaged the United States.

Until now, no historian has thoroughly rebutted the adulation so widely accorded to TR. Powell digs beneath the surface to expose the harm Roosevelt did to the country in his own era. More important, he examines the lasting consequences of Roosevelt’s actions—the legacies of big government, expanded presidential power, and foreign interventionism that plague us today.

Bully Boy reveals:

• How Roosevelt, the celebrated “trust-buster,” actually promoted monopolies

• How this self-proclaimed champion of conservation caused untold environmental destruction

• How TR expanded presidential power and brought us big government

• How he heralded in the era of government regulation, handicapping employers, destroying jobs, and harming consumers

• How he established the dangerous precedent of pushing America into other people’s wars even when our own national interests aren’t at stake

• How this crusader for “pure food” launched loony campaigns against margarine, corn syrup, and Coca-Cola

• How Roosevelt inspired the campaign to enact a federal income tax that was supposedly a tax on the rich but became a people’s tax

Bully Boy is both a groundbreaking look at a pivotal time in America’s history and a powerful explanation of how so many of our modern troubles began.


From the Hardcover edition.

Conservatives Betrayed: How George W. Bush and Other Big Government Republicans Hijacked the Conservative Cause

Richard A. Viguerie

Conservatives Betrayed: How George W. Bush and Other Big Government Republicans Hijacked the Conservative Cause Richard A. Viguerie Amazon Price: $16.47
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Total reviews: 8 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

A Well-Written Conservative Salvo Against Betrayal in Republican Ranks 5 out of 5 stars.
14 of 15 people found this review helpful.

~Conservatives Betrayed: How George W. Bush and Other Big Government Republicans Hijacked the Conservative Cause~ describes the intellectual bankruptcy of so called 'Big Government Conservatism,' which is an oxymoronic cliche if there every was one. Neoconservatism was the product of Old Left New Dealers that vacated the Democratic Party because of its perceived social radicalism in the 1960s and 1970s. Though, they were very much content with the New Deal welfare state and hoped to make it operate more efficiently. They gravitated towards Republican-affiliated think tanks and the halls of political power. Eventually they became the core intellectual intelligentsia of the two successive Bush administrations, with neocons holding key cabinet positions. Neoconservatives laud the statesmanship of Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman. Viguerie observes, "As he pursued these policies, President Bush's strongest support came from Big Government Republicans and from so-called 'Big Government conservatives' who, of course, are not conservatives at all." Viguerie continues, "Now, these 'Big Government conservatives' -- sometimes confusingly called 'neoconservatives' -- have not been shy about their intentions to hijack (or, from their point of view, 'lead') the conservative movement. Irving Kristol, often called the 'grandfather of neoconservatism,' wrote in The Weekly Standard (August 25, 2003) of `the historical task and political purpose of neoconservatism:' `to convert the Republican Party, and American conservatism in general, against their respective wills, into a new kind of conservative politics suitable to governing a modern democracy.'" Viguerie hits the nail on the head -- the Republican Party has been hijacked. It's no longer helmed by the principled conservatives who once called for fiscal conservatism, limited government, and devolving power and authority back to states and localities in favor of dual federalism and the Tenth Amendment.

In this trenchant analysis, Vigurie offers a principled conservative broadside against the current Republican administration under George W. Bush and the Congress. The Republicans have given us a failed foreign policy and a failed domestic policy. After the publication of this book, conservative voters tired of the status quo apparently stayed home, and a few switched sides. Hence, the new Democratic Congressional majority in 2007 has made its ascendancy. The Republicans had their shot for a true blue Republican Revolution and making good on the promises of 1994, but they blew it. He demonstrates how the Republicans have compromised on every major front, whether in the culture war or in maintaining some semblance of fiscal responsibility in the federal government. As political humorist P.J. O'Rourke penned, "The Democrats are the party that says government will make you smarter, taller, richer, and remove the crabgrass on your lawn. The Republicans are the party that says government doesn't work and then they get elected and prove it." The Republicans have certainly proved that government doesn't work, and Vigurie documents it chapter-by-chapter.

Viguerie surmises the failure of twentieth-century American liberalism as its rejection of "the core principles and values of Western Civilization." The Judeo-Christian foundation has been swept aside and supplanted with moral relativism and ever-increasing government. But as Viguerie notes, "Moral relativism only breeds moral chaos, and ever-bigger government simply doesn't work. Big Government doesn't solve problems, it magnifies them." Mindful of the Republican Party's failure, Viguerie concedes that "much of the machinery of the conservative movement has been hijacked by people who do not believe in the core principles of conservatism." For all practical purposes, the political Left defines and dominates the American political discourse, and the GOP establishment more often than not is parroting the rhetoric and agenda of the Left (p. xxi). If left to examine the federal budget bloat, and the growth of federal spending during the last few years under a Republican President and Republican Congress, many conservatives would have trouble believing that its not Democrats calling all the shots. Despite, fervent Democratic criticism of the contemporary Republican administration, the Left perhaps accomplished much more of its agenda with the Republican Congress at the helm than it ever did during the Clinton years. For the past six years, the GOP had a virtual lock on the federal government controlling a majority in both houses of the Congress and having a man in the White House. So, they must take the blame and accept accountability for this despondent state of affairs.

In 1994, with the so called Republican Revolution, the prospect of devolution of usurped authority, from the feds back to the states seemed quite tenable. However, within a few years came the concurrent disillusion and realization amongst principled conservatives that it was simply politics as usual in Washington, D.C. When the GOP finally gained ascendancy in the twenty-first century - controlling both the White House and Congress - their betrayal of conservative principles was made manifest for the world to see.

The Republican disloyalty to the conservative principle of keeping education as a local matter is another example of rank GOP compromise. The U.S. Department of Education got its start in 1979 during the Carter years as a payoff to the Leftist teacher's union which favored aggressive centralization of education policy and a national curriculum, in spite of its dubious constitutionality. As Viguerie observes, between 2000 and 2005, discretionary federal spending on education increased an astounding 60 percent. The No Child Left Behind Act has demonstrated an array of unintended consequences, such as compelling teachers to teach for the test while it impedes the quality of programs for exceptionally gifted students.

Richard A. Viguerie deserves praise for putting loyalty to principle over partisan loyalty. He flat out says that if certain principals amongst Republican leadership aren't worth voting for than don't vote for them. Nonetheless, he urges conservatives to take their party back, and I believe the GOP can still be a vehicle for conservative, constitutionalist political activism. As a supporter of the 2008 Ron Paul Presidential campaign, I believe there is hope for a serious grassroots Republican activism that is principled, conservative and constitutionalist. The American Conservative Encyclopedia writes of Vigurie, "Of all the conservative activists in the field of politics over the last few decades, perhaps none has had as profound an impact as Richard Viguerie." Vigurie gained acclaim for his innovation in direct mail campaigning which practically set the stage for the Reagan Revolution, mobilizing the conservative electorate. Viguerie is a man who believed in that rhetoric about limited government and free-markets that Reagan uttered in his First Inaugural. He still thinks conservatives should stand their ground and contend in earnest for it.

Other recommendations:
Impostor: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy by Bruce Bartlett

Editorial Review:

An essential training manual for all conservatives, Conservatives Betrayed challenges the political right to implement a nationwide conservative agenda and serves as a warning to the Republican Party to fall in line if it hopes to remain in power.

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