It Is Time to Throw the Social Conservatives Out of the GOP (Not)

redstate.com ^ | November 9th, 2012 | Erick Erickson

[MissH]

I am forty and the vast majority of my high school classmates are hard core libs - either elitist libs or leech libs. The dems have been indoctrinating young minds for generations. How can we change that? It is discouraging.

[bruinbirdman]

"Self-actualization (improvement in one’s situation) is important to nearly everyone "

One of the big reasons the Republican congress and Klintoon balanced a budget was welfare reform that included Workfare.

It would have been nice to have heard Romney pound that fact home.

Workfare didn't do any harm to Gov. Tommy Thompson in Wisconsin, either. He invented it.

yitbos

[Drew68]

Until Reagan came along, the party did not go firmly pro-life.

And how many abortions did Reagan stop?

[gusty]

I do not know if workfare harmed Gov. Thompson or not. What I do know is he lost to a radical leftist lesbian in his Senate race.

Workfare did not come close to balancing the budget. The amount of money involved was a spit into the ocean. What balanced the budget was increased revenue to the government due to economic growth, especially after the lowering of the capital gains tax. Economic growth, it works every time.

[Drew68]

I do think that Social Conservatism has a shrinking base among younger generations, and I don’t know how that is to be reversed.

I agree. And no, I don't know how to reverse it either. Fact is, social conservative issues appear to drive away more voters than they gain. In the last two decades the only social issue liberals have lost ground on has been gun control. They've soldiered ahead on everything else with great success.

[Drew68]

If we begin to chase power and control at the price of our values, we are lost as a country and the Constitutional Republic has failed.

So how does losing elections help advance conservative values? The absolute minimum job requirement for a candidate is to get himself elected. If they can't accomplish this one task, the rest of their conservative bonafides aren't worth a pot of piss.

[gusty]

It would behoove Social Conservatives to study what the NRA is doing right. Here is an issue at first glance seems to appeal only to the so called “grumpy old white guys”, but is winning the argument from sea to shining sea. Even in Moonbat states like Vermont and New Hampshire the gun issue is a winner. Thou it would take months of research to come up with an answer, I will take a swing at it with seconds of thought. To me it seems the gun people are having fun in regards to their issue. They are enthusiastic. They smile and laugh. Their conventions look like a helluva lot of fun. This appeals to people, draws them in.

[Drew68]

BS on abortion. BS. If there's one issue that the younger generation IS conservative on, it is life.

And how on earth have you reached this conclusion?

[grey_whiskers]

GOP doesn’t have to get rid of social conservatism entirely… but it’s going to have to moderate stances on abortion, gay marriage, etc.

Free Republic mission statement:"As a conservative site, Free Republic is pro-God, pro-life, pro-family, pro-Constitution, pro-Bill of Rights, pro-gun, pro-limited government, pro-private property rights, pro-limited taxes, pro-capitalism, pro-national defense, pro-freedom, and-pro America. "

SNIFF.

[DBeers]

GOP doesn’t have to get rid of social conservatism entirely… but it’s going to have to moderate stances on abortion, gay marriage, etc.

You again. I guess Romney wasn't leftist enough to be elected?

ROTFLMAO!!!!

[grey_whiskers]

Can you convincingly advocate small government conservatism while mandating transvaginally probing American women’s vaginas?

For that matter, so is English.

WTF is "trasvaginally probing American women's vaginas"?

Gramatically?

Physically?

Politically?

[RobbyS]

Since half the party gave the abortion lip-service and GHW Bush was a hypocrite on the issue,as was half Reagan’s administration,None that I know of. But it become more so, although ultimately torn. Henry Hyde did more than anyone else by keeping federal funds from going to the abortion mills. It was a matter of vice playing tribute to virtue. Of course the other party condemned the Republics for hypocrisy when their Catholic leaders were masters at double truth.

[Drew68]

We don't need to mandate probes to protect babies. We need to protect babies from being killed. Period.

How does fielding losing candidates help protect babies? How many babies did Akin and Mourdock save while giving their concession speeches?

[Zhang Fei]

Liberals are proposing this because they care deeply about the GOP and want to help us win more elections. ROTFL.

[Colonel_Flagg]

Erickson with a moment of clarity.

Without the socons, the Republican Party loses what remains of its backbone as well as any claim it may possess to moral authority. And some of us are ready to leave anyway.

[Just mythoughts]

It does have a shrinking base—at least the hardline positions do. GOP doesn’t have to get rid of social conservatism entirely… but it’s going to have to moderate stances on abortion, gay marriage, etc.

You keep posting this tripe. I am fiscally conservative because I am socially conservative. God said perverts are an abomination to Him. You want to poke your finger in His eye, go ahead, but be prepared when the hammer hits, because He has already warned what happens when the modern era becomes worse than Sodom and Egypt. Remember back in the day the pharaohs were all about baby killing. History so repeats itself.

[Bellflower]

We need to run anti gay marriage and pro life ads constantly on stations that are black and Hispanic stations, even now, long before the next election. It should be done by a religious organizations that aren’t classified as tax free so they can speak their mind. It must be hammered into the heads of blacks and Hispanics that to vote for a politician that will promote either of these sins is a vote against Jesus. Give Bible verses. The next candidate needs to be very anti gay marriage and pro life so the line drawn is a clear one that can not be disputed. These issues rather than the weak links in our party, are the strongest. The dumb RINOs just can’t understand this.

[Drew68]

To me it seems the gun people are having fun in regards to their issue.

Shooting guns is fun! Hell, even Rachel Maddow agrees with us on this one.

Meanwhile, the pro-life folks allowed themselves to get backed into a corner where they'll sweat, shake and smile to paint a picture of our wives and daughters getting raped and impregnated with a "gift from God" (unless, of course, their magic fallopian tubes tie themselves into a clove hitch).

[Jim Robinson]

FR is and always will be pro-God, pro-life, pro-family, pro-gun, pro-small government, etc., regardless of what the GOP-e RINOs wish to push.

FR is an independent, grassroots, pro-life conservative site.

Posters pushing abortion, any part of the homosexual agenda, gun-control, global warming, government healthcare, amnesty, government intrusion of any kind, etc., are unwelcome.

[Drew68]

The next candidate needs to be very anti gay marriage and pro life so the line drawn is a clear one that can not be disputed.

Yeah, that's a winner! You weren't really paying attention last Tuesday, were you?