Frank Rich: Earth To GOP The Gipper Is Dead

[Poiuyt]

"While 10 white, middle-aged Republicans spoke glowingly at the recent debate about the lasting legacy of of former president Ronald Reagan, their party continues to crumble under the weight of the Bush Administration," Frank Rich writes this week in his Sunday New York Times column.

"Much as the Republicans hope that the Gipper can still be a panacea for all their political ills, so they want to believe that if only President Bush would just go away and take his rock-bottom approval rating and equally unpopular war with him, all of their problems would be solved," writes Rich. "But it could be argued that the Iraq fiasco, disastrous to American interests as it is, actually masks the magnitude of the destruction this presidency has visited both on the country in general and the GOP in particular."

"By my rough, conservative calculation -- feel free to add -- there have been corruption, incompetence, and contracting or cronyism scandals in these Cabinet departments: Defense, Education, Justice, Interior, Homeland Security, Veterans Affairs, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development."

more -

http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Frank_Rich_Earth_to_GOP_Gipper_0512.html

[bleever]

1. It's like "Weekend at Bernie's" over at the GOP.

If someone could photoshop Ronnie's likeness on to this, it'd be much appreciated:



"He may be dead, but he's still the life of the party!"

[Ilsa]

14. That would be great! Guiliani, Reagan and McCain! nt

[jmowreader]

20. This is a half-ass job, but try this

If someone could get me a 300dpi scan of this, I can do better.

[bleever]

26. Totally rockin'!

That's great. Thoroughly DUzy material.

:applause:

[Phredicles]

2. Shrubism is Reaganism taken to its absurd conclusions;

I hope people are beginning to figure that out.

[Ilsa]

13. The koolaid drinkers can't. They have no critical thinking skills.

They believe what they are told to believe, religious or otherwise. They believe in the inerrancy of the Bible and the GOP.

[peaches2003]

17. Haven't budged an inch

I keep up with a lot of rw websites just to see what they are thinking. The faithful 28% have not wavered at all. It's unbelievable.

[Spinzonner]

3. Oh, I don't know

Even in his current state, Reagan would be preferrable to Shrub

[Phredicles]

4. Make that ESPECIALLY in his current state...

[givemebackmycountry]

6. Ha! Ha! ---Now that's funny.

I don't care who you are.

:toast:

[Ilsa]

11. RR was practically in his current state from 1985-1988. nt

[Gregorian]

12. That's the ticket! Reagan/McCain 2008

Or maybe even Reagan/Nixon.

I'm sorry. I've gotten completely illogical.

After just watching a documentary on Guantanamo, I feel more than illogical.

[Hissyspit]

5. dupe

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x874521

[JeffR]

7. Hate to take issue with Frank Rich

but what these cretins are crumbling under is not only Bush, but Reagan himself. I draw little distinction between the two. And as far as I'm concerned, they've reaped what they've sown. To hell with all of them.

[MissWaverly]

8. yes, esp. since much of Reagan's admin, Bush Sr. was in control

I know from a friend that visited the WH that Reagan had Alzheimers while he was still president, I wonder how much of his legacy
was influenced by Bush, Sr.

[JeffR]

9. Good point

Yet another aspect of the phoniness of the Reagan veneration we've all had crammed down out throats.

[MissWaverly]

22. people confused Reagan the man, with Reagan the president

Reagan was a father figure to most Americans, they didn't see the deregulation of the S&Ls, the denial of birth control pills to
the poor and other shortsighted policies that we are still paying for.

[Jade Fox]

15. It was ridiculously clear that something was wrong....

with Reagan by his second term. Once again, the press was not reporting the painfully obvious, and we now have this collective amnesia about just how bad that second term was.

[MissWaverly]

21. and what about the president's annual physical

and the rubberstamp that was given on his competency, surely they knew as well.

[EFerrari]

24. It's hard to believe Rich doesn't know that. Maybe he didn't

want to deal with both the Bushites AND the Reaganites at the same time? I wish he'd have made the point, though.

[Ilsa]

10. Perhaps Rich should have listed the Cabinet Depts that have NOT

had rampant scandals. Oh wait, there isn't anything left, is there?

From raw story:
Rich looks back on the optimism with which Bush and Karl Rove into the White House, noting that his fellow Times columnist Maureen Dowd wrote that "We may say a final, welcome goodbye to the wedge issues that have divided Americans by race, ethnicity and religious conviction." Tracing the continuing decline of the Republican party, Rich points out that "the pressing matters that the public cares passionately about -- Iraq, health care, the environment and energy independence -- belong for now to the Democrats."

[rasputin1952]

16. Reagan's legacy is illusion...just as bush has drawn that

illusion into a bloody reality.

[girl gone mad]

18. Is there a better link than rawstory?

I'd prefer not to visit that site.

[muriel_volestrangler]

19. Here - the full article

http://freedemocracy.blogspot.com/2007/05/frank-rich-earth-to-gop-gipper-is-dead.html

[Poiuyt]

23. Why don't you like Rawstory?

[Joe Chi Minh]

25. "By my rough, conservative calculation -- feel free to add -- there have been

corruption, incompetence, and contracting or cronyism scandals in these Cabinet departments: Defense, Education, Justice, Interior, Homeland Security, Veterans Affairs, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development."

... on an industrial scale.