![]() Stalwarts of both Republican and Democratic party campaigns would, of course, tell you that "Get Out and Push" is the proper attitude when it comes to motivating voters. The Republican National Committee says the acronym dates back to 1875, at which time it meant "Gallant Old Party." And in the early days of the automobile, it gained another popular, although ultimately fleeting, translation: "Get Out and Push" - the treatment early cars often needed. Yet, so much of what today’s conservatives say-about the “establishment” and institutions (like the FBI)-could have been spouted by a Berkeley hippie in 1968.The Republican Party, on its official web site, points out that Grand Old Party - while certainly the accepted meaning for GOP, for many years - is not the original meaning, or even the only one. Conservatives have historically espoused a belief in moral absolutes, while decrying moral relativism. The biggest reversal, of course, has to do with reversals. But who is our tribe? Absent any transcendent principles or policies, how do we tell the red shirts from the blue shirts?įor the GOP, I’m pretty sure the litmus test is to be pro-Trump. But once issues and tactics become indistinguishable from the other side (except to the degree that you have escalated their worst impulses and tactics), the contest becomes a pointless power play. Likewise, conservatives have criticized identity politics and “playing the race card.” Trump, who called New York’s attorney general (who is investigating him) a “ racist,” does so with glee. Conservatives long decried the culture of victimhood, yet Trump constantly plays the victim and refuses to accept responsibility for anything (much less blame). Republican politicians boasted about being for the “rule of law” and being “constitutional conservatives.” But then, they supported Trump’s bogus “emergency” order regarding the border wall.Īnd there’s more. Now, for all their fulminating over the left removing statues and renaming schools, some of Trump’s defenders sought to rhetorically tear them down as a way of excusing Trump’s inexcusable behavior in office. Conservatives lionized the Founding Fathers and America’s past leaders. Today’s illiberal right wants to destroy it. The fundamental goal of conservatism in America was to conserve democracy. Trump, by contrast, lauded Russian President Vladimir Putin (not to mention other authoritarian leaders of places like North Korea and China).Ĭonsider a commitment to the American project, itself. Ronald Reagan famously showed moral clarity by confronting and calling out the Soviet Union as an Evil Empire. “.how do we tell the red shirts from the blue shirts? For the GOP, I’m pretty sure the litmus test is to be pro-Trump. And the changes transcend a political reordering that brought more working-class Americans into the GOP fold-swapping free trade for populist protectionism and moving past the wealthy blue blood image evoked by establishment elites like Mitt Romney. Today’s GOP is inscrutable, even deranged. The real reason concerns Trump’s attempt to avoid accountability and oversight.īut this is just one of many outrageously cynical flip-flops for the party of Trump. Why the reversal? It’s not because the police have suddenly become more abusive, and it’s not because Republicans figured out that standing against law enforcement wins votes. (Those cops’ lives don’t matter, to the Blue Lives Matter crowd.) Now, a lot of those same voices on the right are saying, “Defund the FBI.” So much for lionizing the law enforcement heroes who run toward danger. Look no further than the FBI’s search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence for proof.Īfter a 2020 election cycle that saw the “law and order” party criticize Democrats for wanting to “defund the police,” we’ve seen quite a few members of the right’s commentariat blithely wave off video of MAGA rioters beating Capitol police officers with flagpoles. But his impact on the Republican Party transcends his own moral flexibility.
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