Compassionate Conservatism Run Amok

The September 25, 2005 Porkopolis post 'Hey, Big Spender!' featured Peggy Noonan's excellent WSJ piece on President Bush's 'Whatever It Takes' promise to out spend the Democrats in rebuilding New Orleans.

Yesterday, Ms. Noonan, follows up with the serendipitously titled 'Hey, Big Spender' Opinion Journal piece which asks the following provacative questions:

Mr. President:

Did you ever hold conservative notions and assumptions on the issue of spending? If so, did you abandon them after the trauma of 9/11? For what reasons, exactly? Did you intend to revert to conservative thinking on spending at some point? Do you still?

Were you always a liberal on spending? Were you, or are you, frankly baffled that conservatives assumed you were a conservative on spending? Did you feel they misunderstood you? Did you allow or encourage them to misunderstand you?

What are the implications for our country if spending levels continue to grow at their current pace?

What are the implications for the Republican party if it continues to cede one of the pillars on which it stood?

Did compassionate conservatism always mean big spending?