originally posted Tuesday, March 3, 2009 at 2:35PM by me on a different blog
When Rush Limbaugh took off last Saturday on a passionate CPAC speech that laid out conservative principles, and explained many of the steps to take to build a strong future for the Republican party, I couldn't help thinking that if a Democrat were listening, they might be thinking "what the heck is this guy even talking about?" since many of the ideas of reducing the size of government, cutting taxes to help jump start an economic recovery, and personal freedoms through less government regulation, must have sounded like a foreign language to any liberals listening at the time. Fortunately, now that a few days have passed, the thinkers on the left have translated Rush's CPAC speech for easier consumption.
Here are a few excerpts from the speech with a good explanation, from a liberal viewpoint, of what the man was getting at:
1. We believe that a person can be the best he or she wants to be if certain things are just removed from their path like onerous taxes, regulations and too much government.
DEMOCRATIC TRANSLATION: Rush Limbaugh said that he wants Obama to fail.
2. You know what the cliche is, a conservative: racist, sexist, bigot, homophobe. Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen of America. If you were paying attention, I know you were, the racism in our culture was exclusively and fully on display in the Democrat primary last year.
DEMOCRATIC TRANSLATION: Rush Limbaugh said that he wants Obama to fail.
3. We want the country to succeed, and for the country to succeed, its people -- its individuals -- must succeed. Everyone among us must be pursuing his ambition or her desire, whatever, with excellence. Trying to be the best they can be. Not told, as they are told by the Democrat Party: You really can't do that, you don't have what it takes, besides you're a minority or you're a woman and there are too many people that want to discriminate against you. You can't get anywhere. You need to depend on us.
DEMOCRATIC TRANSLATION: Rush Limbaugh said that he wants Obama to fail.
4. Now, let me speak about President Obama for just a second. President Obama is one of the most gifted politicians, one of the most gifted men that I have ever witnessed. He has extraordinary talents. He has communication skills that hardly anyone can surpass. No, seriously. No, no, I'm being very serious about this. It just breaks my heart that he does not use these extraordinary talents and gifts to motivate and inspire the American people to be the best they can be. He's doing just the opposite. And it's a shame.
DEMOCRATIC TRANSLATION: Rush Limbaugh said that he wants Obama to fail.
5. The freedom we spoke of earlier is the freedom, it's the ambition, it's the desire, the wherewithal, the passions that people have that gave us the great entrepreneurial advances, the great inventions, the greatest food production, the human lifestyle advances in this country. Why shouldn't that be rewarded? Why is that now the focus of punishment?
DEMOCRATIC TRANSLATION: Rush Limbaugh said that he wants Obama to fail.
6. Ladies and gentlemen, there ought not be any poverty except those who are genuinely ill equipped. But most of the people in poverty in this country are equipped for far much more. They've just been beaten down. They're told don't worry, we'll take care of you. There's nothing out there for you anyway; you'll be discriminated against.
DEMOCRATIC TRANSLATION: Rush Limbaugh said that he wants Obama to fail.
7. Spending a nation into generational debt is not an act of compassion. All politicians, including President Obama, are temporary stewards of this nation. It is not their task to remake the founding of this country. It is not their task to tear it apart and rebuild it in their image.
DEMOCRATIC TRANSLATION: Rush Limbaugh said that he wants Obama to fail.
Etc. etc. you get the drift. Rush Limbaugh was, as they say, en fuego at CPAC, and you can get the whole transcript and see video of the speech online on Rush's Web site. The point I'm trying to make is that people on the left should be insulted by the way their leaders have tried to take what was a profound speech, a thinking person's speech, and boil it all down for their constituents into a talking point. The fact is that they assume you, the average Democratic voter, will not actually read the transcript for yourself. You won't read it, ponder it, and draw your own conclusions, no, you'll agree that Rush Limbaugh had the audacity to pray for Obama to fail.
CBS News obliges the administration by reporting on Rahm Emanuel's Face The Nation appearance using the headline: Emanuel: Rush Prays For Obama's Failure.
I ask Democrats of this country to stop for a moment and realize what is happening. Your administration is assuming that you'll swallow this blue pill of a summary of the Limbaugh speech. They know that Limbaugh is a caricature in many ways and can be easily, mindlessly dismissed by people who have already made up their minds. If you think back a few months, you were sold Obama in much the same way. Don't think about it too deeply... just believe. I'm asking you - don't let your leaders insult you like this! Be smart enough, at least, to read and analyze the CPAC speech, and decide ... for ... your ... self. Read some books by conservative thinkers and then explain your positions. You don't think we're headed towards Socialism? Good for you... then explain how the Federal defecit increased 300% in Obama's first 6 weeks in office, and we're just getting warmed up. Let's reason together. You don't like Ann Coulter? Mark Levin? Try reading a book by either author, ingesting it, and then defend your position. Don't just take the blue pill and accept what everybody says. It's like being in high school all over again. You know how some people are considered to be really cool and they turn out to be jerks, and others are considered geeky and they turn out to be Bill Gates? Look deeper.
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