>> Yes and no. A lot of serious conservatives are uncomfortable with mass,
>> unaccountable wiretapping and snooping at library records. And most
>> conservatives, serious and hacky, were scandalized by Bush's spending
>> habits. I can't count how many press releases I get from right-wing PR shops
>> explaining the Republicans' troubles as a departure from true conservatism.
>
> Yeah, you get those press releases now. What were they saying in 2003?
This is a great question. The way I see it, conservatives don't really stick to their philosophy; that is, the "small government" and civil liberties that they talk about all the time are fine as abstract principles, but they aren't really essential to their politics. What are essential is adherence to extreme nationalism and the desire for the death of everyone who is not them. There weren't many protests against surveillence and spending while Bush was popular; it only became an issue after he was unpopular and expendable, when it was easy to dog on him.