[quote=afx114]The evangelical vote has been exploited by the Republicans for 30 years. Over that time, they’ve often voted against their own self interests — resulting in their jobs being shipped overseas, their young being shipped off to war, and their environment being ruined for corporate financial gain. For 30 years they’ve given their vote to the Republicans and what do they have to show for it? There’s no abortion ban, no gay marriage ban, and no prayer in schools. If anything, their goals are slipping even further from their grasp as time goes on.
That’s the problem when trying to use politics for further a religious agenda. You get the politicians doing the exploiting and the religious side being exploited until ultimately both sides realize they’re no longer benefiting from each other — at which point the coalition goes BOOM.
So what we have now are the extreme right clinging to their tired old canards, leaving no room for the moderates to get things done. When your constituency wants their abortion ban, gay marriage ban, and prayer in schools, what room does that leave for things like the economy, foreign policy, health care and education? You know — the things that actually affect people in their daily lives?
My guess is that the GOP will eventually jettison the evangelicals and rise again as the party of fiscal responsibility and social libertarianism — maybe under a different name. The question then becomes, can the moderates on the right win an election without the votes of the millions of evangelicals? It’s hard to say, which is why the Republicans find them selves in the predicament that they are in now.[/quote]
The plain fact is that jobs go overseas only when it makes economic sense to do so. Our tax system and high union wages is what makes that make sense. McCain realized that and wanted to do what was necessary to keep jobs here.
The folks voting against their own interests are those who are exploited by the Dems. Sure the Dems will raise the minimum wage but the real consequence of that increase is a loss of jobs and decrease in buying power as the costs of everything eventually erases any gain.
This isn’t even taking into account the budget Obama has proposed which will triple the money supply and make our already high deficits soar ( he will make W’s deficit increase 6 fold).
That is going to have huge negative effects on us all. That’s okay for the non-working poor who will get more handouts but for the working poor and the middle class who have to fund the freebies this isn’t a good deal.
Blaming the GOP for no ban upon abortion, gay marriage or prayer in the schools is just foolish. It isn’t the GOP’s fault these folks and others feelings (which represent the majority of this country not just Evangelicals) aren’t being heard on these issues. It is the fault of activist judges that have have twisted the Constitution in ways our forefathers could not have ever imagined.
Anyway it is the Dems that appoint these folks who want to create law from the bench not the GOP.
The talking points of the left seem all over your comments. The GOP has not moved to the right. I’m 50 years old and I can tell you both parties have unmistakeably moved to the left in my lifetime. In fact, the Dems have moved so much to the left that my views which were somewhat radical in the late 60’s and early 70’s and clearly part of the Dem party are now more in line with the GOP.
Obama tried to invoke the aura and image of JFK but his views on social issues, economic issues and geo-political issues and the role of the US are nothing like JFK’s. Objectively there is no similarity with Obama and JFK. JFK’s views were more in line with today’s GOP than what is now the Dem party.
Anyway both parties have moved left. Neither party has moved right. This past election was significant but not in that it changed politics forever. Folks were very upset about the state of the economy and W’s handling of a variety of issues. McCain could not separate himself from W’s policies and the Dems and the media would not let him. So he lost.
He would have lost to Hillary as well under these circumstances.
Ironically, Obama promised intelligent government yet we have the idiot who is Biden continuing to only open his mouth to change feet. We have the Obama administration embarrassing itself on the world stage trying to get NATO aid in Afghanistan, with Iran and with Pakistan. The Europeans just shrugged him off. In fact, French President Sarkozy privately dissed him big time as naive, incompetent and as a lightweight.
Obama’s bumbling of of key appointments were hugely embarrassing as it became clear high placed Dems don’t mind raising taxes because they don’t chose to pay them.
Obama’s chief of protocol needs to be fired. He lets Obama gift the Queen of England an I-Pod with his speeches? He gifts Prime Minister Gordon Brown DVD’s which by the way don’t even work in England?
Obama gives Venezuela’s repressive dictator for life, Chavez a photo op by accepting an embarrassing tome from him while shaking his hand. Obama bows to the King of Saudi Arabia and then lies about it when it’s on tape.
This is intelligent government?
Obama proven to be hapless without a teleprompter. His gaffs have been epic, particularly, when he was speaking recently at the G20 meeting. He couldn’t remember, the French motto, which was the centerpiece of his speech. He was being laughed at
by those in attendance, again on tape.
Lastly, his absurdly undemocratic views when it comes to Unions show he is all about the vote and not about what is best for the common man.
His first move as President was to take the absurd position that letting folks know they have a choice and have the option of paying less in union dues was undemocratic. How is knowledge undemocratic? Does he really think not letting somebody know that they have this option is fair? If so, he is loony.
I’m glad that I was informed I had the option of either paying $100 instead of $600 to my union. I’m sorry for many in the future who don’t get informed.
