Is Our Republican Children Learning Yet?

In 2007, filmmaker Max Blumenthal took us on this little walkabout through the College Republican National Convention – the creche in which new, young Conservative idiots are taught the Ways of the Sith.

For those of you with the memory of a slab of Formica, these were the days before the election of 2008 –  before the sniveling cowards of the GOP decided manifest their deep belief in Personal Fucking Responsibility by putting on funny hats, slipping out the back door and pretend en masse that they'd never even heard of George W. Bush.

These were the days during which the strutting, young imbeciles of Conservatism were seeing all their lies about Iraq burn down around them in real-time.

These were the days when Conservative rhetoric about the war had degenerated from worshipful paeans to the limitless genius of Dubya and triumphalist sneering at cut-and-run, terrorist-loving Liberals... to toxic, over-the-top, hysterical gibberish.

These were the days when Republican military incompetence had broken the army; when troops were being burned out from multiple, “back door draft” redeployments and recruitment standards were being lowered again and again.

These were the days when the need for fresh, young heroes to head out and fight the war for which they had so vigorously and volubly cheered had never been more acute.

These were the days when America's most elite gathering of preening, Dubya wannabees all suddenly found they had better things to do.

But of course, that's only half the story.

Seven years have passed since the Last Days of the Dubya Era – years during which every lie on which these vicious children had been raised has been thoroughly and publicly crushed.  So while it is certainly the case that the Geezers of Conservatism have spent the last seven years digging their heels in ever deeper and suppressing their gag reflexes ever harder so they could swallow the ever larger doses of Hate Radio lies necessary to keep reality at bay...

..what about those Fine Young Cannibals of the 2007 College Republican National Convention?  Those then-twenty-somethings, who were college-educated and (one would hope) not yet ossified beyond the point where admitting error is impossible,  

You would think that if anyone stood a chance of escaping gravity well of Conservative lies it would be the younglings.

But you would be wrong...

Ralph Kettell (Colby '09) has gone on to a rewarding career as a video tracker for various Republican candidates:

Trackers Film Candidates for Maryland Governor for Campaign Gaffes

By Abby BrownbackPublished October 27, 2010

FoxNews.com

ANNAPOLIS - If Gov. Martin O'Malley or former Gov. Bob Ehrlich slips up on the campaign trail, they better hope Ralph Kettell and Patrick O'Brien aren't around.

As a campaign tracker employed by the Maryland GOP, Kettell follows O'Malley with a video camera, recording his conversations with voters, staff and the press...

Justin York (University of Central Florida '10) is now one of the “30 under 30″ rising stars of Florida politics:

Meet Justin York – one of the “30 under 30″ rising stars of Florida politics

By Peter Schorsch on May 24, 2013

...

During the 2006 campaign cycle, as a young College Republican, I volunteered for the Republican Party of Florida. We campaign generally for the statewide GOP ticket. During a special election in early 2007, I campaign heavily for Tony Suarez in Florida House District 49. It was tough campaign and a close loss but I enjoyed spending time campaigning in the district. I also was the student coalition chair for John McCain’s 2008 Florida primary campaign. I actually made it onto the McCain 2008 Central Florida Team in early 2007. I was an early and ardent supporter. During 2008, the UCF CRs and myself campaign heavily for the McCain-Palin ticket as well as local Florida House races—Eric Eisnaugle, Steve Crisafulli and Scott Plakon. In 2012, in addition to working on the Romney campaign, I heavily volunteered for John Mica’s congressional campaign, Marco Pena’s Florida House campaign in District 49, and Jason Brodeur’s Florida House campaign in District 28.

...

The people I most admire in politics are:

There are many politicians I admire—some of whom I know personally. But one who stands out in my mind is former President George W. Bush. I admire his commitment to a world free from tyranny. I also admire the depth of his compassion for our wounded veterans, and his efforts to let them know how grateful America is for their service and sacrifice. And his PEPFAR initiative to rid Africa of the scourge of AIDS, HIV and malaria has saved millions of lives.  I hope to one day similarly to have the opportunity to do so many good works for so many people.

I also admire Sen. John McCain. After having read Faith of My Fathers, I was inspired by his patriot’s faith in America. He is and continues to be one of this nation’s toughest and most tenacious advocates for a nation inspired by noble ends committed to noble deeds.

...

David Clary (University of Illinois '09) has left very few internet footprints, but this is still out there:

"Being a Republican is about still believing in the American dream of hard work, ingenuity, and success." -David Clary Bloomington, IL

Rachael Davis (University of Arkansas, '09) has gone into the private sector and we wish her well.   But before she left...

Young Republicans president hopes for end of financial crisis

By Larry Burge from 2008

The Grand Old Party lives on at the UA campus through the efforts of Rachael Davis, the UA College Republicans chair.

Davis is a fiscal conservative double-majoring in political science and Spanish and minoring in Latin American studies. She plans to graduate in May 2009.

"I have a lot of respect for any college age student who has a political opinion, even if I don't agree with them," Davis said. "It lets me know they care about what's going on in their world. That's how you become a responsible citizen."

Davis grew up in Greenbrier, a small town north of Conway with a population of about 3,000. "I can definitely associate with Gov. Sarah Palin," she said.

Palin is the Republican vice president nominee running with Sen. John McCain R-Arizona for the presidential election.

"The only thing that is going to save our democracy is to get back to what our founding fathers believed," she said."Th1only way for a democracy to survive and be a real democracy is for its citizens to become educated, for them to take part in the process. This is the government of the people. When many living in our society don't bother to vote. That's not a democracy.

"The sad thing is, especially my generation in my age group, they don't seem to care that 70 percent of the nation is making our decisions for us," she said.

"My number one reason for supporting the Republican candidates is that I am a fiscal conservative," Davis said.

The traditional Republican Party supports a platform with supply-side fiscal policies and social conservative values. They advocate less governmental spending to lower the federal debt, smaller government, fewer earmarks and less entitlement programs attached to spending bills, along with lower tax rates.

"Both my parents are CPA's [certified public accounts], so I have a good understanding of how the IRS works. From that understanding, I believe in a limited government. Because a business is always going to be run better in private hands than the government can do it," she said.

"I tend to be more a Ron Paul Republican. Actually I'm doing my thesis on him," Davis said.

"The problem [in the current U.S. financial crisis] goes back a long way," she said. "It got out of control when we moved further and further away from the gold standard to back our currency, because it allowed for increased inflation."

...

Ms. Davis also held a couple of jobs in politics (FYI, constituent services is hard, long, necessary work so good on her):

Rachael Davis

Writer at California Independent Voter Network (CAIVN) from 2009 to 2009

2009 - 2010

Constituent Services Representative - U.S. House of Representatives

The fate of Clint Peterson (University of North Texas '08, who could not serve in Iraq because he was a “catcher for years in baseball”) could not be ascertained. He is presumed to have been fragged by his own troops in Vietnam.

Josh Bellis (Wabash,  '08) is -- surprise! -- a Fox News employee:

Manager, Business Development

Fox News Channel

June 2012 – Present (1 year 10 months) New York, NY

Manager, College Digital Strategies

Fox News Channel

June 2011 – June 2012 (1 year 1 month) New York, NY

Will Lusk (University of Central Florida, '09) had a little campaign finance problem in college --

SGA Sen. Will Lusk, who was found in violation of major campaign statutes in September 2009, was appointed to be an elections commissioner for the upcoming Senate elections in late July 2010. 

Lusk was found in violation of attempting to bribe and blatant disregard of elections statutes, according to a Future report in September 2009. 

Lusk appealed the election commission's decision, but the SGA Judicial Council upheld the violation in October 2009.

-- and has since gone on to be a "Colony Director" (one who helps set up frats, that apparently are too poor to afford a spellchecker) --

In April of 2013, members of Sigma Pi's Executive Office will embark on a four day trip to Tampa, Florida. The Univesity of South Florida is the site of Sigma Pi's next expansion effort slated for fall 2013. The trip to Tampa will include meetings with University staff, administrators, USF students and meetings with undergraduate fraternity and sorority representatives.

In addition to the work on campus, Sigma Pi's staff will complete a training program with the now established alumni advisory board for the USF colony. Alumnus Will Lusk (IK '09) will serve as Colony Director and he is working to establish a full board of advisors who will work together to help the undergradute men of the USF colony on the road to successfully chartering, and beyond as an outstanding chapter of Sigma Pi. Will, a founding father from nearby University of Central Florida knows the chartering process well and is excited to begin the program with the undergradutes and his Sigma Pi alumni brothers.

-- and this:  

Pasco County Republican Executive Committee
Committeeman
 March 2013 to Present

Associate Editor
Homeland Security Outlook
Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Defense & Space industry
February 2013 – Present (1 year 2 months)

A.J Fluehr (Penn State, '08) is now an attorney in private practice. But before that, guess who worked as an Online Editor for Tucker Carlson's odious "Daily Caller"?

Online Editor
Daily Caller
Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Online Media industry
June 2009 – June 2010 (1 year 1 month)

Edit articles, aggregate content, design homepage content display, monitor analytics and traffic, write short stories, compile and edit two morning emails to registered users.
Staffer
John McCain 2008
Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Political Organization industry
July 2008 – November 2008 (5 months)

Intern
Executive Office of the President
September 2007 – December 2007 (4 months)

Dana Peloso (Roger Williams, '08, who opted out of serving in Iraq due to medical reasons) ran for office a few years ago.  His campaign bio says, in part, that he "served as a volunteer firefighter in Plainfield for six years and works as a dispatcher for American Ambulance."  So congratulations on those debilitating medical problems clearing up after graduation!

In 2011, Kent Alexander (University of Southern Mississippi, '09) also ran for office as the Representative from District 93.  His campaign literature reveals the following:

Representative District 93
REPUBLICAN

Kent Alexander
...

Top Issues:

Lower Taxes: It is your money not theirs
Job Growth: Putting Mississippi back to work
Less Government: Mississippi is heading in the right direction
Education: Investing in Mississippi's future

Why should I vote for you?

I would like to reform many of the government assistance programs that absorb so much taxpayer money and gives people no incentive to stand on their own two feet. I believe in a "hand-up instead of a hand-out." This is one of the reasons that I am running for state representative. I want to explore ways for people to become more self-sufficient and empower the private sector to help with this effort. Mississippi is the most charitable state in the union. We take care of our own, but we should not rob hard-working citizens to do it. 

Reducing waste, eliminating needless programs, and keeping taxes low will grow our economy and keep government out of where it should not be. A large government breeds corruption and usurps our liberties. Less government creates opportunities and reduces costs and promotes growth. With freedom comes responsibility.

So is our Republican children learning yet?

Evidence suggest Hell no.