Why I am leaving the Republican Party!

The fact that Risk Santorum could have actually been the nominee should scare most people. 

For the last few years I’ve been supporting Republicans, although on social issues we were far apart.  Lately though, it’s been making little sense for me to give them support when all they seem to want is to stand in the way of the Democrats attempt to solve problems.  Sure, it’s their right to believe that the Democrats are wrong, but once you lose two elections on the presidential level, as a party you must work with the opposition.  Doing nothing is simply not an option, the challenges are too great.

However, is the Republican Party even worried about solving problems.

Here are some examples of some views espoused by the Republican Party platform and/or some of the major candidates for the Presidential nomination in 2012, which have turned people away.  A large majority of the electorate is opposed this kind of thinking, and until the party can eliminate these immoderate views from the party tenet, they will continue to lose people like me.  There is little doubt that these positions helped contribute to the losses suffered by the Republican Party over the last seven years (minus the showing in 2010 mid-terms which was more or less the result of mistakes on the part of Democrats rather than the party gaining in any of the key demographics.

Here is the list (although it may not be complete, or I reserve the right to add to it, or the Republicans may add to it).

    (1).  For most people, marginal federal tax rates on people making more than $250,000 a year should be increased, but Conservatives seem to believe that if they allow them to be increased by a dime, it would be unethical.  They will not seem to allow for them to be increased to levels consistent with Reagan-era tax rates, whose recovery is idolized as the greatest ever.  Yes, the Reagan era recovery was better than the current one.  Academics can argue why.  The point is that the people don’t seem to agree with the Republican Party; and they do not seem to get it.  Part of it is that most of them signed a stupid pledge which basically kills any chance for true compromise.    

   (2). Conservative Republicans seem to think that the only real solution to illegal immigration is building an electric fence on the entire US/Mexican border, rounding up every illegal immigrant, and sending them back.  They oppose the Dream Act which allows the children of illegals that were brought here by no fault of their own, to have permanent residence as long as they have good moral character, graduate from U.S. high schools, and lived in the country continuously for at least five years; additionally, if they were to complete two years in the military or two years at a four-year college, a temporary residency would be granted for a period of six-years.  If in that six-year period they graduated from college, or had at least two-years in a bachelor’s program, or served in the military for two or more years, unless honorably discharged, they would receive permanent residency.  Why in the world anyone would not want to encourage the children of illegals to obtain these things ais beyond me.  It does not sit well with Latino voters either, evidenced by their recent voting patterns.

   (3).  They believe gay marriage, and being gay, is fundamentally corrosive to traditional marriage that it is paramount that it be outlawed.  You will hear them say they are not against gays, but just against gays ruining the institution of marriage.  Apparently the one that belongs to their god.  I was banned from redstate.com for arguing that banning gay marriage was unconstitutional.  That site is so closed minded it’s funny.  They will literally ban you for not pushing the echo chambers card carrying line.  They refuse to grasp that one cannot be both for equality for gays and against gay marriage, which is part of equality for gays.  They also don’t seem to grasp why some people compare their opposition to gay marriage to the opposition to miscegenation laws of the past.  Let us remember, people used to make the case that god did not want interracial marriages to happen.  The parallels to the 1950’s are there for anyone to see.  The former anti-miscegenation activists used to say they were not bigoted to.  I am sure they believed that, but it does not make it so. 

Just think about how close their rhetoric mirrors that of the anti-interracial marriage activist.  They both believed that that God backed their position.  They both attempted to cite natural law as reason that it should not happen.  They both felt that legalizing the action could cause the fall of civilization.  For a side by side comparison go here.

The point being that these two groups of people oppose equal treatment for all.  Strange considering how often they cite the founding fathers to advance their agenda, they seem to forget that all people being created equal part—or was that all men of created equal, don’t be surprised if one of them go there next cycle.

    (4).  Even though I am Pro-Life personally, I am tired of the divisiveness of the debate.  The law is what it is.  Women have chosen to make their own choices about giving birth.  Those that want to criminalize abortion in all instances are proven to ruin the Republican Party’s chances with women voters.  Then some people cannot seem to stop insisting that rape is anything other than a horrible act with real victims.  This is not a cut and dry issue.  Men should never walk around assuming they know what it’s like to be a woman who was raped and now faces having that person’s child.   

     (5).  It’s not just Roe v. Wade, it’s also Griswold v. Connecticut, which they want it reversed so states could possibly criminalize contraception use.

General Statutes of Connecticut (1958 rev.). The former provides:

“Any person who uses any drug, medicinal article or instrument for the purpose of preventing conception shall be fined not less than fifty dollars or imprisoned not less than sixty days nor more than one year or be both fined and imprisoned.”

I do not even need to write why this is insane.

    (6). Climate change is a difficult issue.  There are persuasive arguments on both sides. However, some conservatives have taken the tact that all the science is bunk.  We as a nation must take the science seriously, we cannot ignore it without consequence.

    (7).  Some do not believe that defense spending should be cut at all.  Look, this country needs to save money, we have to look for waste in every area. 

    (8).  Michelle Bachmann said that HPV vaccination of young women, which helps to avoid cervical cancer, will lead to mental retardation.  This lie was so bad that the medical community had to respond.  What she said was actually not just stupid, but dangerous.

This is the short list of reason this party is driving people like me out.  When major candidates for the Senate and Presidency espouse views like these, the party leadership should go out of their way to make it known these people are nuts.  They did not do this out of fear that the base would revolt.  That says a lot about the base.  This alienates everyone in the middle who tend to be centrist or care little about ideological fights.  Unless the party learns to marginalize people like this, they have little chance of coming back.  The so-called “true-conservatives” will insist Romney lost because he was not conservative enough.  Rubio, Jindal, and Christie seem to find that argument awash.  Right now the moderate is not prosaic; leaving most people to view the Republican Party as out of touch.

Take these things with the fact that Obamacare (a Republican Idea) and gun control are vital to the health of our society, it makes little sense to support the Republican Party right now.  Fiscal sanity is important, but not at the expense of Social Security and Health Care for everyone.   Until the Republican Party turns back into the one that attempted to help seniors with Medicare Part D, although it needed to be fixed, it is a party that is too extreme for me.