In 1980, a realigning election took place. The campaign of Ronald Reagan and the efforts of his supporters in the following decades transformed the Republican party. A political awakening of Christians brought in votes for the party that suddenly billed itself as not only superior policy-wise, but morally. The free market was persuasively tied to personal liberty and convinced even some of the poorest Americans that regulations on financial institutions and consumable goods represented a direct threat to their liberty and economic advancement. What followed would see the electoral fortunes of the party rise ever higher, until reaching a climax with near domination of the executive and legislative branches. They used this unique opportunity to reduce the national debt, trim the overextended branches of the government, and ensure the American people against government intrusion.
This last bit did not happen, obviously. Debts piled up, public services continued, and the government was found again and again to be knowingly violating the privacy rights of its citizens. Many began to cast doubts on the direction of the party. Now, factions have begun infighting. The party has been led by those who have for three decades stirred their constituents into a frenzy, convincing them that the opponents of the party would literally destroy America. Facts have become malleable to agenda as conservatives have disputed everything from scientific consensus to the mainstream interpretation of the effects of the New Deal. As the party splinters, some of that vehemence has turned inward.
Glenn Beck Doin' His Thing
Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh lead a lunatic fringe that has grown to near majority status, likely representing a good portion of the 30% of Americans who refused to give up on George Bush and those who opposed him for not going far enough. The economic conservatives who once looked at religious America as an opportunity for advancement now look in horror as the fanatical and nationalistic monster they created breaks free of its restraints and seeks dominance. One need not look further than the Birther movement to see the extreme to which some have gone. Though saner conservatives would like to dismiss them as a miniscule but vocal minority, there is evidence that 58% of Republicans doubt or outright deny the President’s eligibility. Worse still, this includes 70% of white southerners.
This is dangerous to our country as the fringe seems only to be gaining in momentum. Republican representatives will be forced to make the choice between giving credence to these claims or being attacked by their own party, as Representative Mike Castle (R-DE) so unpleasantly discovered. Castle has since turned away from the traditional “town hall†meeting to one conducted over the telephone. Many Republican politicians, wary of such confrontation have done the same, such as my own Representative, John Kline. By desperately trying to keep control of their message by limiting their contact with their voters, they may find a challenger from the distant Right come election time.
The GOP is in a very unpleasant situation. The old guard seems to be finding the new reality hard to face. Even Ann Coulter, author of Treason: Liberal Treachery, has alienated herself from her average readers by stating that the claims are untrue. If the sensible members of the party cannot address these claims they will find themselves hung out to dry as the division exacerbates or someone co-opts the party and swings it yet further to the right.
