How Ronald Reagan Destroyed Conservatism (McCain, Congress, Iran, nationalist)

[Mike from back east]

Here's an insightful piece in Britain's Financial Times, a bastion of conservative viewpoints, at least financially. The article is worth reading.

Excerpt:

- Battling my way through Palin’s book, I began to wonder how American conservatism had come to this. Ms Palin’s book is smug, lightweight, nationalistic, entirely free of original ideas. How has this woman become the darling of the American right? ... then I realised – the rot set in with Ronald Reagan. This might seem an odd conclusion, since President Reagan is a conservative hero ... ideas now known as “Reaganism" are profoundly subversive of the most important conservative values. Traditional conservatives disdain populism and respect knowledge. They believe in balancing the government’s books. And they are pragmatists who are suspicious of ideology. Reagan debased all these ideas – and modern American conservatism is still suffering the consequences.


There's good info in the article detailing the how conservatives, or at least much of the GOP membership, traded their legendary intellectualism for common ignorance, which we see on public display in town hall meetings and tea party mob scenes.

Yes, I voted for Reagan both times, but was appalled all along at trickle down economics, tax cuts made with red ink, the S&L scandal, arms for hostages and much more.

History's long view of Reagan will be mixed; his worst failing being that he set the stage for the unmitigated disaster that was Bush-43, an economic calamity that has been unfolding for several years, and the 2008 election debacle that was McCain/Palin.

[sanrene]

Hilarious.

Reagan was conservatism and led the movement brilliantly.

Remember when he came into office the Highest marginal tax rate was approx 70%.

Think on that! Working to give up 70% to the government.

His policies resulted in the greatest expansion of revenues to the Treasury in history.

A great man, a great leader, a great president.

Btw, the FT is NOT a conservative publication.

[newonecoming]

Originally Posted by sanrene

Hilarious.

Reagan was conservatism and led the movement brilliantly.

That he did.

Originally Posted by sanrene

Remember when he came into office the Highest marginal tax rate was approx 70%.

Yip.

Originally Posted by sanrene

Think on that! Working to give up 70% to the government.

Have done.

Originally Posted by sanrene

His policies resulted in the greatest expansion of revenues to the Treasury in history.

Yes but at what cost? The 15X run up in stock prices is going to just come down to less than where it was when it started. The total debt in America is at 350% of GDP. At the peek in the Great Depression it was only 260% to 299% depending on the source. The taxes on that stock market bubble are not sustainable income. His policies ruined America.

Originally Posted by sanrene

A great man, a great leader, a great president.

Well....

http://longwavegroup.com/publication...22_Dow1000.pdf

[twista6002]

A great man LOL. See Iran-Contra

[ergohead]

Does anyone here think Reagan's policies changed after he was shot, and possibly, because he was shot?

[summers73]

Grenada. Iran-Contra. Massive buildup of deficit. Reducing taxes and still spending gobs of money is NOT conservative, not by a long shot.

[kovert]

The trend toward increasing the debt began under Reagan.

Talk about revisionist history, Keynes and Roosevelt helped set up a system to REDUCE DEFICITS.

Originally Posted by kovert

"What happened between 1945 and 1971, we lived within a framework called the Bretton Woods framework, which had been constructed by Roosevelt, President Roosevelt, and John Maynard Keynes and others after the war as a way of preventing the crisis of the 1920s and the '30s. It ensured that when a country built up a deficit, it was then required to, if you like, structurally adjust its economy, cut back and restore itself to balance."

All the members of the Rush & Beck revisionist school of history are flat out LIARS.

Roosevelt & Keynes helped set up a system to REDUCE DEFICITS, NOT EXACERBATE THEM!!!

Its unbelievable how the cult of Beck gets away with playing fast and loose with the facts.

[Fleet]

Originally Posted by summers73

Grenada.

What about Grenada? Marxist rebels attacked and killed the island's prime minister and overthrew the island's constitutional government. Communist Cuba had fortified it and taken U.S. citizens hostage. Reagan sent troops in after leaders of other Caribbean islands asked him to intervene. So why are you whining about Grenada?

Massive buildup of deficit. Reducing taxes and still spending gobs of money is NOT conservative, not by a long shot.

The Democrat-controlled Congress back in the '80s spent, on average, 2.8% more than Reagan asked for. And a cumulative 24.5% over 8 years. Every balanced budget Reagan presented to Congress was declared DOA by Tip O'Neil.

[burdell]

Originally Posted by twista6002

A great man LOL. See Iran-Contra

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Let's not look behind the facade

[burdell]

Originally Posted by Fleet

What about Grenada? Marxist rebels attacked and killed the island's prime minister and overthrew the island's constitutional government. Communist Cuba had fortified it and taken U.S. citizens hostage. Reagan sent troops in after leaders of other Caribbean islands asked him to intervene. So why are you whining about Grenada?

You mean the invasion denounced by the UN as a flagrant violation of international law? I guess the UN is only handy when violations of its sanctions can be used as alleged justification for other invasions.