Discuss Jonah Goldberg's Nov. 11 Op-Ed column

For once, Goldberg has done something other than regurgitate Republican talking points. What he doesn't mention--but is clear for anyone who wants to check the archives--is that he was a Bush cheerleader until it was no longer en vogue among conservatives. That's what I like about the information age: hacks like Goldberg have nowhere left to hide.

Jack @ 4:04 PM PST, Nov 11, 2008

When you say "conservative" you need to define whether you mean Policies or Values. Many people who voted Liberal policies also voted Conservative values [ie. against Prop 8] These include Hispanic and Black voters who are being forgotten as having voted against these Values.

Gray @ 3:58 PM PST, Nov 11, 2008

My understanding was always that the pillars of traditional conservatism were two things: small government and fiscal responsibility. On what planet is W. a traditional conservative?

b-man @ 3:57 PM PST, Nov 11, 2008

As Bush departs, just as with Clinton, America has had enough. And though Bush did reach across the aisle, as in passing Kennedy's NCLB plan, which overfunded education beyond inflation, most ignore that fact. A President tries, and in the end, is indeed responsible for the problems of his own administration. 8 years may be too long for one man to lead America. Yet Reagan's memory tops Clinton and Bush. Carter's presidency was too big for one man, yet Reagan's changed the world dramatically. But Bush didn't lose, he won entry into a very exclusive club, that only the future can fairly measure.

Richard @ 3:56 PM PST, Nov 11, 2008

The LAT must really be in desperate straits to keep JG in their employ. It's time to dump this opinionated young man.

ArchiesBoy @ 3:32 PM PST, Nov 11, 2008

Just to clear things up, you cannot impeach someone who is not in office.

guy.thompto@workwiseinc.com @ 3:22 PM PST, Nov 11, 2008

Wow. Look at the comments already posted. Boys and girls, this is your mind on drugs. Now that we are in a race to see how fast we can become Germany or France, we should sit back and realize that the American dream is on life-support. Here we are, propping up GM and Ford when that same money spent on start-ups would truly make a difference. We thought dinosaurs were extinct. Nope, they've just been hiding in the Democrat party.

guy.thompto@workwiseinc.com @ 3:20 PM PST, Nov 11, 2008

Bush was a "compassionate conservative" when it came to big business, but not people. "Bush's prescription drug benefit -- the largest expansion of entitlements since the Great Society -- was hugely controversial on the right." Likewise for the left and the center because it was a huge giveaway to the pharmaceutical companies. Government is supposed to protect its citizens. Instead Bush appointed lobbyists to run the government. Deregulation and foxes guarding the hen houses led to food poisoning, mining accidents, crane mishaps, collapsing bridges, etc... That is not conservatism; it is criminal.

serena1313 @ 3:12 PM PST, Nov 11, 2008

"limited government, low taxes and strong defense" but you also adopted "traditional family values" which then morphed into "traditional heterosexual white American nuclear families". This is where the social conservatives took the party. And the fiscal conservatives never rebuked them, because they realized that faction was useful. The other thing Goldberg doesn't address is the conservation of traditional capitalist roles which has led to the dissolution of the middle class.

marcotico @ 3:02 PM PST, Nov 11, 2008

I am a liberal, and I never thought GWB was a conservative. (Try not to characterize others' thinking for them.) Bush is a neoconservative radical, not a traditional conservative. Liberals respect traditional conservatives. Neither liberals nor traditional conservatives respect the agenda or actions of George W. Bush.

Netizen @ 2:57 PM PST, Nov 11, 2008

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