Gregg Jackson, old friend and co-founder of this show, returned to WRKO and Pundit Review Radio recently to discuss his new book, We Won’t Get Fooled Again. The book, co-authored with nationally syndicated radio host Steve Deace, does the following,
“We Won’t Get Fooled Again is an in-depth expose of the so-called Religious Right, the most reviled and feared voting bloc in the past 30 years of American politics. However, despite all of the attacks and the acclaim, there is little evidence the movement actually has accomplished any of its objectives, which is why Gregg and Steve sought out leaders in the movement to get their take on where the fight for righteousness in America went wrong. Readers will be agonized, traumatized, but also galvanized by what these Christian leaders have to say.â€
Reading the book, I couldn’t help but remember back a few years ago, sitting in a hotel room in Florida with my family, watching Gregg emcee CPAC and introduce people like John McCain and George Will. What an accomplishment I thought. His first book was self-published and ended up in the Top 10 on Amazon political books and was praised by the likes of Thomas Sowell and Walter Williams. Big time right there. Sure, we had the radio show, but his book, the success and all the work that went into it, is what got him up there.
In this new book, I learned a few things I hadn’t known about that CPAC experience. I never realized how disappointed he was by the willingness of party leaders to compromise on core issues. Instead of the wonderful experience I had imagined it to be, it was something of an awakening. Gregg does not spare himself from criticism. He, and Steve as well, include themselves among those Christian conservatives who made too many compromises on core issues where there should have been bedrock conviction. I really liked this aspect of the book. The honesty, the confession almost. By seeing in themselves what they are criticizing in others, it gives the argument they are making real credibility. As do the numerous interviews with Christian conservative activists from across the country. Here’s a quote from JC Watts Jr., former (R) congressman from Oklahoma.
“In ‘We Won’t Get Fooled Again’, Steve and Gregg expose what I discovered long go, that there has been a conservative industry created. Consultants, pundits, media types and even some in the faith community use push button issues to drive us to the polls to vote for certain candidates to protect their deal. Conservative voters have to ask the tough question: ‘Are we moving the dial?’ This is a must read for every conservative voter and if you start reading it, you won’t want to put it down.”
Make no mistake about it, Gregg and Steve are looking for some absolutes in a world of compromise. They are asking Christian conservatives to follow their teachings and stand firm on Life issues, especially. They make no case for rigidity on tax policy or anything of the political realm. To me, it’s no different than a conservative Catholic like Rick Santorum believing that all Catholics should adhere to, and vote according to, the church’s teachings. I respect people who do that. I may not agree with it, but I respect it. What I have a problem with is when you start imposing your beliefs on others. This book does not do that. It is simply asking politically active Christian conservatives to take a fresh look at the movement, their beliefs and their politics. Are they in alignment?
For an outsider to the movement, to any movement really (RINO is not a movement as far as I know.:) I found the book fascinating. It is politics within politics. A similar argument or assessment is going on about the GOP in general, and the social con approach and the RINO, independent voter friendly approach. Sometimes, internal political battles are the most interesting.
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