(2) The religious right's social agenda.
Without the religious right there is no GOP party.
I agree. However, if the religious right pushes its social agenda too strongly, social moderates and social libertarians will drift away from the party.
My wife is a good example. She votes Republican, but would not vote for a GOP candidate who pushed for a hardline religious right social agenda.
There are, IMHO, three major GOP planks: social conservativism, fiscal responsibility and limitation of government. If you focus too much on one of these 3 areas while ignoring the other two, you lose voters.
"Without the religious right there is no GOP party" - Not true. There may not be a GOP MAJORITY, but there would still be a party. Whether you want to hear it or not - public opinion just does not support the complete abolition of abortion at this time. If the GOP wants to be a minority party again, just outlaw abortion. We ought to work slowly at the margins, and not lose our cool. If we can send it back to the states (which is where it ought to be anyway IMHO), great. Seek to minimize the damage and make abortion less frequent and less tolerated.
Re #37:
" Without the religious right there is no GOP party."
Oh, I wouldn't say that, necessarily.
Up here in the true-blue Sheeple's Republik of Maine, there would only be about 2/3 of a Republican Party (the ones who see to it that O.Snowe and S. Collins have lifetime incumbancy and any primary challenger will be generally hung out to dry by their own Party)... the rest of the Country?;... about half, I'd reckon.
What is erroneously called the "religious right" IS America!
We are a nation formed by believers in GOD! We are NOT a theocracy but we live by the WORD.