The Fractured GOP

National Review ^ | August 2, 2013 | National Review

[National Review]

The Republican party is split, but it should promote debate, not despair.

By Charles Krauthammer

A combination of early presidential maneuvering and internal policy debate is feeding yet another iteration of that media perennial: the great Republican crackup. This time it’s tea-party insurgents versus get-along establishment fogies fighting principally over two things: (a) national security and (b) Obamacare.

[National Review]

Read more at: http://www.nationalreview.com/article/354972/fractured-gop-charles-krauthammer

[o2bfree]

Looks like krauty is back on the Neo Con bandwagon. Anybody who opposes ten year wars costing over a trillion dollars is an irresponsible isolationist.

[Cringing Negativism Network]

I am all for a big roundhouse fight, now.

Don’t wait Tea Party.

Take on the GOP and take it on now. Do not wait. Stop hesitating and bring it on.

I am tired of waiting. We need an alternative.

Right. Now.

[cotton1706]

Can’t make an omlette without breaking eggs. We intend to keep fracturing it till it till all the moderates actually become the democrats that they are or are removed from power.

Arlen Specter, Charlie Crist, Lincoln Chafee, Jim Jeffords, John Huntsmen and Lisa Murkowski have led the way. Let’s help the rest out the door!

[bigbob]

Dr. K and others want to make this a fight over the GOP. It’s pretty obvious that unless and until conservatives control the money and leadership of the GOP, that is a futile exercise. We have already lost that battle.

The good news is - it’s the wrong battle.

What is needed is a new Conservative Party. Stop the dilly-dallying about how long it will take for a 3rd party to reach critical mass, etc and DO IT. Sheldon Adleson alone poured over $50 million into a candidate (Gingrich) who had zero chance of winning the GOP nomination. If nothing else, a new Conservative Party would be a better investment.

We will never know until it is tried. And as Rush often points out, Conservatism works every time it is tried.

[Jabba the Nutt]

The GOP split is between the elected officials, concerned about their own crummy careers and the base, who're concerned with the collapse of the country.

Hmmmm, whose side should we take?

[Maelstorm]

See the thing of it the majority of the GOP which is represented by Conservatives and right leaning independents is not fractured. The fracture begins in with the Washington political class which doesn’t seem to understand that we want them to take the GOP platform seriously. That we want them to take limited government seriously, that we want them to take the need for strong families seriously as a precondition of limited government, that we want them to take the constitution seriously, and that we want them to take liberty seriously. However the DC political, media, and consultant class think they can do lip service to these things all the while playing passive protector for what is ultimately a liberal progressive agenda.

They will not work to really defund Obamacare which is something that is truly bipartisan with increasing majorities of citizens strongly opposed to the bill but will invest all the top line party resources to push through an immigration bill that is critically flawed and drafted by liberals like Chuck Schumer to primarily benefit people who can’t even vote while admittedly hurting employment of the working poor and middle class.

[PoloSec]

2014 will be make or break for the Rino’s as well as the Tea Party...there has been a lot of squabbling over a third party, as I see it the Tea Party is a third party, so again 2014 is make or brake for both.

I believe an engaged citizen Tea Party can restore and renew the Republican party, to destroy and replace the Republican Party would be a long hard row to hoe.

[Maelstorm]

Absolutely. While I’m not opposed to debating issues many of those in the party are simply working contrary to the core values of the GOP and they act as an internal buffer muting our efforts, muddling the message, and running interference for far left policies that end up implemented if not by their direct effort but by default.

I’m sorry but there is no room for liberal GOP in the party. We need to be a party of constitutional governance, liberty, strong families, and national defense. We can’t win against a solidly liberal Democrat party with a neoliberal leadership/consultant class in the GOP stabbing conservatives in the back.

[indthkr]

GOP schism bump for later.....

[Jacquerie]

We might as well bark at the moon if we think reform will emerge from the DC ruling class. Electing conservatives whenever possible is necessary, but will never be sufficient. Until the states restore vertical separation of powers, our previously federal republic doesn't have a chance.

[skeeter]

What Krauthammer is recommending here has been the way of the GOP for decades.

Charles, how has it been working out for us?

I'll side with those ready for a different approach.

[Maelstorm]

The first thing I believe we need is to remove the taxing power from the federal level. If we could make the federal govt dependent on state houses to provide funding the dynamic would be forced away from centralized federal govt and the states would have real power to exert.

[foreverfree]

bump

[Jacquerie]

Interesting. Repeal both the 16th and the power to directly tax citizens? Go back to the tax requisitions of the confederation?

I wouldn't go that far, but the 16th is certainly evil.

As for the 17th, whenever Congress does or does not act, I think freepers should ask themselves what the outcome would be, if we had a Senate of the States instead of the elected demagogues we have today. For instance, would judicial nominees with a history of hostility to state powers have a reasonable chance at all of confirmation?

[Maelstorm]

You hit on what is the key problem which is hostility to state powers or simply outright disregard of them. The power of the centralized government over the states is fueled by the power to tax. I believe the moving of the funding control of federal government to the states is necessary to stop the insanity by separating the power among 50 states so that whatever laws the federal government passes the states can refuse to fund them essentially nullifying them. If this results in the fracturing of the United States then at least it can be a peaceful divorce than an outright tragedy. We have seen how the so-called separation of powers in 3 branches of the same centralized government has failed. What we need is 50 state governments acting in their own self interest to weaken the federal government but strengthen the nation. I think the reason we have the current mess is because we moved too far away from the confederation. What we have now is evil. It is a forced homogeneity of progressive liberalism enforced through federal strong-arming. Even if we hold the line for a time or in a region like the South the bad policies of the political class continues to erode the America we love growing the dependent class. I’d rather see some of it survive against the growing darkness than to lose it all.