The Scott4Gov Issues Vacuum

There’s something else sticking in my craw about the anonymous Scott4Gov blog that I riffed about on Friday…

I’m a big fan of conservatives who aren’t afraid to talk about big issues and lay a plan on the table and accept the political consequences.  Take Paul Ryan, for example.  Here’s a strong conservative who has proposed a bold and realistic reform agenda and is taking that message nationwide.  Ryan is at the heart of the debate over the future direction of America – rust belt European welfare statism vs. the proven classical Adam Smith capitalism that built the United States.

Contrast that to what is being peddled by the Walker campaign’s unofficial mouthpiece, the anonymous blog www.Scott4Gov.com.

Just last week, Scott4Gov cut loose with a profound pronouncement on… wait for it… the Mark Neumann campaign’s devious plot to amass Facebook friends.

Yep – that’s right.  Conservatives are mired in a battle for our survival – and the survival of the principles that have built America – and the Walker campaign is talking about how one of their opponents is getting his Facebook friends.

Meanwhile, here is what Paul Ryan, a real conservative leader, was talking about last week while the Walker campaign was splitting hairs about Neumann’s Facebook fans:

“As Washington is moving fast to takeover other sectors of our economy, we are learning more about the costly consequences of their most recent overreach on health care. President Obama reiterated a number of false promises throughout the partisan health care campaign, including a pledge that his overhaul would lower health care costs and would not increase taxes on individuals making less than $200,000 a year. This week’s double-whammy from CMS and CBO exposes the emptiness of the President’s rhetoric, confirming what Americans feared throughout the debate.”

“Rather than fix what’s broken in health care, this deeply flawed law will exacerbate the problems in health care. Two independent, nonpartisan analyses make clear that the onslaught of mandates, controls, taxes, and entitlement spending will impose a heavier burden on American families, including those already struggling to make ends meet. We must begin anew to mitigate the disaster from this health care debacle: let’s repeal this costly misstep and replace it with patient-centered, fiscally-responsible reform.”

Scott4Gov make no bones about the fact that they’re conservatives.  Problem is, they rarely argue issues.  Their blog seems to be reserved for the usual politically-underhanded vitriol and trashing of opponents – not discussion of issues.  Garbage like this is what has made conservatives unappealing to everyday voters.

Worse, their material is insulting to the intelligence of every conservative and feeds the perception that conservatism is dying as a viable, mainstream political ideology in Wisconsin and America.  On Scott4Gov, you will see no deep discussion about how to eliminate Wisconsin’s structural budget deficit… no serious detailed policy proposal about revitalizing small business… no honest breakdown of the impact of government regulations on the common man.

In short, blogs like Scott4Gov are part of the problem for conservatism.  They only serve to feed the general perception that conservatives are out for power for themselves – instead of the truth that conservatism empowers the individual and creates a pathway to wealth and opportunity for anyone willing to work hard.

It’s sad that so many conservatives have fallen for this crap.  Our movement may have a good year at the ballot box in 2010, but we have much deeper long-term issues that need to be addressed.  And the red meat being served up by Scott4Gov is part of the problem.