[Peace-discuss] Conservatives and the war

[C. G. Estabrook]

	CPAC and the Wars
	by Jon Basil Utley
	February 22, 2010

Antiwar sentiment was a major issue for the first time at this year’s giant CPAC 
meeting in Washington. Thousands of young conservatives attended, some 5,000, 
and for the first time, Ron Paul was voted the favorite presidential candidate 
with 31% of the vote. His speech about how governments use wars to take over 
dictatorial power was constantly interrupted with roaring applause. Top leaders 
of the conservative movement spoke, but it was Glenn Beck who carried the last 
day with mad applause, denouncing Republicans nearly as much as Democrats and 
saying, “It’s still morning in America, it just happens to be kind of a 
head-pounding, hung-over, vomiting for four hours morning." Beck is not a war 
promoter and I’ve heard him on FOX TV saying he had pretty much come around to 
agreeing with libertarians on the wars.

Republican congressional leader John Boehner had spoken earlier promising that 
next time Republicans would be different and not cave in to big government.

Speakers covered the gamut of the conservative movement including old timers and 
new comers. Speaking has been almost obligatory for hopeful presidential 
candidates. Sarah Palin was not there. Romney spoke including praise for Bush 
and Cheney and came in 2nd in the straw poll with 22%. He was followed by Sarah 
Palin with 7% and Tim Pawlenty with 6%. Gingrich and Huckabee both came in with 4%.

Most different this time was the strong antiwar contingent of mainly Ron Paul 
supporters. Even many YAFers (Young Americans for Freedom) seem to have turned 
to antiwar sentiment, judging from the voting. There were still several pro-war 
panels including one arguing how Americans needed to limit our freedoms in order 
to save ourselves from Islamic fanatics and fascism. Another argued for war with 
Iran. However, there were also important speakers arguing for constitutional 
limits on the executive, such as Dimitri Simes of the Nixon Center, Pat Nolan of 
Justice Fellowship, Bruce Fein and others, certainly much more than in Bush times.

As one who has attended these meetings all during the war years the difference 
was palpable. During Bush times, co-sponsor YAF, the Young Americans for Freedom 
Foundation brought in thousands of war wanters screaming support for Bush and 
Cheney. The YAF Foundation which funds many of the students expenses, has been 
solidly neocon, wanting wars and empire. At the meeting Neocon stalwarts were 
still speakers, e.g. John Bolton and Herb London of the Hudson Institute.

In the vast exhibit hall, instead of fighter plane manufacturers, as in the 
past, there was a big display from the American Petroleum Institute, urging off 
shore drilling and independence from oil imports by using America’s own abundant 
energy.

Speakers are organized and chosen by a committee of founders and principle 
co-sponsors who contribute to the costs. David Keene, President of the American 
Conservative Union which controls the event, has always expressed concern for 
preserving constitutional freedoms (see below) and had speakers such as Bob Barr 
and Judge Napolitano, even at the height of the war fever, who consistently 
argued for limits on executive power. Even I was allowed to speak in 2005, 
albeit for only 3 minutes, and was described by Marcus Epstein as the only anti 
war voice that year. However, this time there was solid antiwar participation.

Most notable was a panel, "Why Real Conservatives Are Against the War on 
Terror." The panel was composed of Bruce Fein, former Reagan Justice Department 
Deputy Secretary, Phil Giraldi, a former CIA station chief in Turkey and a 
columnist at Antiwar.com, Jacob Hornberger, President of the Future of Freedom 
Foundation and Karen Kwiatkowski, retired Colonel and noted antiwar writer. It 
was chaired by the American Conservative literary Editor Kelly Jane Torrance. 
Over 300 people attended and the speakers were constantly interrupted with applause.

Hornberger described the war on terror as "the greatest terrorist producing 
engine in history" and argued that "dismantling the welfare state meant also 
dismantling the warfare state." Bruce Fein detailed the illegalities of our 
losses of liberty because of the war on Iraq and urged "millions for defense, 
not a cent for empire and preemptive wars." He said that the thrill of empire 
has made America less safe and less rich and argued that "due process" is vital 
for keeping our liberties. Karen Kwiatkowski decried the waste in the military 
budget and detailed how Washington violates Sun Tzu and von Clausewitz theories 
of warfare. Giraldi described how the war has made America "hated, feared and 
less safe" in the world.

Another significant panel with top conservative leaders was about the expanding 
police-prison state in America. Titled How Many Crimes Have You Committed Today, 
it included Grover Norquist and David Keene, two of the biggest names in 
conservative leadership as well at attorney Paul Rosenzweig. It was chaired by 
Pat Nolan of Justice Fellowship , a part of Chuck Colson’s Prison Fellowship 
organization. The speakers decried how many American were in prison with long 
sentences, the largest number of any nation in the world.

They explained how the civil code was being interlaced with new criminal 
penalties, how long sentences allowed prosecutors to intimidate innocent 
suspects into pleading guilty to crimes they did not commit, the unnecessary use 
of SWAT teams to attack homes even of those growing orchids who had fallen afoul 
of some new regulation. They urged a major reform of criminal law. The title of 
the panel referred to the constant moving of the goal posts as government makes 
more and more civil crimes into criminal ones. Then in California prison guard 
unions raise donations for politicians who urge longer and more prison 
sentences. The speakers urged major reforms of criminal law because prisons are 
filled with persons who are not a threat to society.

All in all much of the meeting was a welcome reaffirmation of much traditional 
conservative thought on values, American traditions and the rule of law.

http://original.antiwar.com/utley/2010/02/21/cpac-and-the-wars/

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