Because the republican party does not believe in what Ronald Reagan believed in at all.
In fact, I’d say that the republican party loathes what Ronald Reagan believed in.
Most of the Party is made up of TEA Party and old Reagan (used-to-be) democrats. It is just those in leadership positions, the country-clubbers, who try to convince everyone that they speak for the entire GOP.
A very useful exercise that hardly anyone takes me up on, is to compare both the party platforms. The Republican Party platform is put together by the grassroots TEA Party-types. WE are the Party and it is truly reflected in the platform. And that is why the country-clubbers try to minimize its effect.
The Republican platform is getting more and more conservative every four years. :)
You’re right. The GOPe would rather have big government and more opportunities for graft than to win elections. They see conservatives and Reagnites as their enemy, not Democrats.