[zeestephen]

Re: "In the meantime, the Republican Party has over the decades co-opted some of the original Democrat values: belief in a strong military, traditional family values including respect for religious freedom, and fiscal responsibility."

That is delusional.

When did the Republican Party NOT believe in a strong military, NOT believe in traditional family values and religious freedom, and NOT believe in fiscal responsibility?

[omni-scientist]

You’re correct, Republicans held those core values but back in the day so did the Democrats. It was their appeal to the masses that kept them more often than not dominant in national power. As my father (a WWII veteran and blue-collar worker) concisely put it: “The democrats are for the working man, the republicans are for the businessman”.