For some reason there are those on the right still trying to enforce purity of thought on the conservative coalition, and are willing to throw John McCain under the bus to ensure the GOP is rid of what some folks love to disparagingly refer to as RINOs (Republicans In Name Only). Being an Independent Conservative this purity putsch has never applied to me directly, though I have felt its heat on occasion. Anyway, it seems the new line is McCain must lose so the party can be “revived”:

Steven Greenhut argues that it’s time for the Republican Party to suffer a major defeat this year. The GOP has turned into (as one conservative who’s voting for Obama said) a “dead rotting carcass with a few decrepit old leaders stumbling around like zombies in a horror version of ‘Weekend at Bernie,’ handcuffed to a corpse.”

As Greenhut points out, Thomas Jefferson once wrote that “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.” According to Greenhut, one can also take this sentence less literally; the GOP has turned into a party of zombies, of hacks; an electoral bloodshed is necessary to ‘refresh’ the party.

Suicide has never really been a proven path to rebirth. What these people want is a GOP that toes their line, not one that represents the broader views and opinions of conservative policies, if ‘conservative’ is defined as the opposite of ‘liberal’. To oppose high government taxes and meddling in personal decisions, conservatives offer a variety of opinions on a better way. Some on the Libertarian end of the conservative spectrum would argue government should be out of all efforts at a safety net. Others, like me, find the Bush prescription drug benefit a great step forward to minimizing the cost of the safety net and removing wasteful spending on emergency room care. 

Whose right? Who knows. History does tell me that the public safety net grew from two major events. The first was the abhorrent corporate abuses of humanity that arose during the dawning of the industrial age.  At that time Workers’ Rights was a real necessity. The second event was World War II, where a grateful nation outpoured its heart and thanks to all those who fought and sacrificed. It is not hard to see the argument for assisting a widow and her children because the husband/father was buried on some plot of foreign soil.

It is not important what view is right on a specific issue. What is important is we honor our fellow Americans who came before and sacrificed much to give us the most impressive free democracy the world has ever experienced. What is important is we let the people speak, and we do so with respect. And when we lose the debate we lose with respect and dignity, to reflect upon the process.

This excludes the idea of purity to a cause. It also excludes the idea of ‘punishing’ others for not agreeing with us – in any sense of the word. The GOP does not need to lose this election to satisfy anyone on the right. The only ones that works for is the antithesis of Conservatism: Liberalism and Socialism. What the GOP needs is people willing to work together and sacrifice to win some battles and progress and refine the Conservative vision. 

It is interesting that McCain, a maverick who shakes up the conservative views with differing ones, is considered a danger to ‘reviving’ the GOP. One would think he is just what the doctored order, if the plan is to generate new ideas not typically held by the conservative leaders. Yes, we need new blood, new ideas and new common ground to fight together on. Because the one thing that Bush did was win all the big battles, and by extension removing the common ground of the broader conservative movement from the field of battle! When he was done, we had most of all that the conservative coalition could agree on done.

Now we need to adjust and move forward. Splintering and losing ground is not the answer – at least not a viable one.

Tags: 2008 Election, Conservatives, GOP, Independents, Liberals, Moderates