Act, don't re-Act.

The past several years have seen some amazing polarization in politics. It seems that each candidate who gets voted in is even more extreme than the previous one. A far-right politician goes too far right, the public cries out and over-compensates by voting in someone who is too far left. It is a pendulum of reaction that is causing some of the worst partisanship ever seen in our country. I have always believed in the notion that it is not wise to "base policy on the outlyers." And yet, this seems to be the norm, rather than the exception in the world of politics.

Case in point: Abortion. The left-wing radicals (meaning the ones we continually vote into power) believe in a woman's right to choose to the point of (in many cases) wanting partial-birth abortion legalized. The right-wing radicals (again, the ones with the voices) believe that Abortion is always wrong, no matter what. The American public as a whole (I believe around 70%) believe a similar statement: Abortion in the cases of things like rape are a necessary process, but abortion used as birth control is the problem. So why is it, if even 50% of the population believes in a similar statement, that we continue to elect the extremists?

Barack Obama was elected as an answer to the unpopular stands of George Bush. Anyone who doesn't think so, look back at the election footage. The slurs against McCain were rarely about any of his personal plans or goals, he was portrayed as "four more years of Bush." It was the same pendulum. We elected someone who was extremely right, got tired of it, and then reacted by electing someone extremely left. Already, Obama's popularity has plummeted. He has broken nearly ever campaign promise made, except for healthcare, and less than 1/3 of the country supported the healthcare bill that he forced through. His popularity polls the day after the vote were the lowest that he has ever seen. So, the GOP, once again, sees the pendulum swinging their direction. I believe that the GOP will pick up many seats in the Novemeber elections as they look at their representatives as people who "sold out."

But what will happen in another 2 years?

I think that everyone who considers themselves a part of the GOP needs to ask themselves this question. A huge choice in presenting itself, and the choice is this: Do we act, or do we react? Reacting will bring about more of the same...the current aganda is so liberal that the belief will be to nominate the most conservative candidates that can be found...thus perpetuating the problem and further polarizing the two parties.

Instead, my advice to the GOP is to ACT. I believe that 70% spoken of earlier have similar beliefs: concerned about the size of government, concerned about rights being infringed upon (and don't be smug, I'm still talking about Bush's legacy), concerned about being over-taxed, concerned that bailing out the rich failures at the cost of the average american was, and is, not the correct answer. By the way, those thoughts are ALL the founding principles of the Republican party. The problem is that the Republican party has been hi-jacked by special interest groups, just as they accuse the democrats of. A true Republican believes in...well...the Republic. State sovereignty, small federal government, and fiscal responsibility are no longer the battle-cry of the GOP. State's rights are fine...unless the religious right is against it, then is should be federally illegal (abortion, gay rights, etc). Small federal government is fine...unless it is controlling something that we don't want to bother with (education, banking, etc). Fiscal responsibility is fine...until it cuts a program that we like.

A TRUE republican does NOT base their vote upon social stands, that is the voice of the religious right. And despite the fact that I am proud to be a Christian, the Religious Right's Agenda has railroaded the GOP into being a party that has lost touch with it's roots. It's time for those Republicans, who believe in the basic fundamentals, to recapture control of the party. If it does not, the GOP is going to splinter into factions...one that has a religious agenda, and one that more closely mirrors the moderate views of the nation as a whole. While those factions split the vote of the GOP and the conservative Independents, the Democrats will gain more and more power...while the Conservatives wonder what happened.
Act, don't re-Act.

gotta love the electronic age

the following link is a series of democrats discussing GW Bush's desire to use reconciliation tactics in 2005 to pass a bill outlining "the nuclear option." These same democrats are now trying to SHOVE an unpopular healthcare bill (current polls have it's support at around 36%) down the throats of americans by use of...you guessed it...reconciliation. Any use of this parlimentary trick is deplorable and a law should be enacted to plug the loop-hole.
It is a sad day when, for the first time in my life, I see the Government as being the biggest obstacle to the success of Americans. Politics should be about honor and leadership and vision, not about power, greed, and spin.


http://www.breitbart.tv/obama-american-agenda-flashback-dems-should-not-pass-healthcare-with-a-50-plus-1-strategy/?utm_source=Illinois+Policy+Institute&utm_campaign=e6bfb8326c-March+4%2C+2010+E-letter&utm_medium=email