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Originally Posted by lighthousekeeper
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Fundamental difference between conservatives and establishment Repubs: Do you stick to principles even when it ticks off the big-money backers (conservative), or do you work to preserve the party and its position of influence from idealistic extremes (establishment)?
Most RINOs come in talking like a lion conservative, and leave like a lamb.
Bush's biggest offense was TARP - Screw conservative and constitutional economic principles, we're going to bail out our big-money backers! That was a major reveal.
No Child Left Behind was a major strike, too, because most conservatives don't see justification for federal involvement in public education.
On social issues he was hit and miss, sometimes very conservative, sometimes just clueless.
And contrary to the leftist narrative, "warmongering" is not a conservative principle. Bush's foreign policy was called conservative, but was more establishment-supporting than principle-based.
He called it "conservative." The press loved to call it conservative, because it gave conservative a bad name. But Bush's presidency was only conservative in facade.