Next Steps

 

In 2008 I voted for a Democrat for President for the first time. I did so, not because I agreed with everything that all Democrats said, then or now, but because first and foremost, I had come to believe that ensuring access to healthcare was a fundamental good, which would benefit all of us. One of those benefits was reducing abortion. There were other reasons too, but that was the chief one. That President Obama proposed to take the conservative Heritage Foundation's approach further gave me confidence that he was the right person for the job.

When Republicans pledged to make Obama a one-term President, and absolutely refused to work with him, their true colors started to show though. I believe that was the point that the Republican party started down the path that led to yesterday's assault on democracy.

But returning to why I first voted for a Democrat, I realized that I simply did not agree with several basic conservative ideas, especially when elevated to the point of dogma. For example, the idea that private enterprise is ALWAYS better than a government approach, the size and use of the military, foreign wars and what not, and the priority we should place on the national debt. (It seems we are all in agreement on that last one, at least for the next two weeks. Get ready to hear all about the national debt next month.)

I suspect that in the coming months, with Democrats in charge of both houses of Congress and the White House, they may go too far, and I will not always agree with what Democrats say. For that reason, while I have been vociferously opposed to President Trump, I don't usually advocate for any particular politician. They can advocate for themselves.

Fundamentally, I changed who I voted for because the Republican party and I both changed. There are Republicans like Mitt Romney, John McCain, and John Kasich (RINO's they are now known as in the Grand Old Party of Donald Trump) that I would vote for over some Democrats, especially if any given Democrat were to adopt a position as radically left-wing totalitarian as Donald Trump is fascist.

I stopped voting for Republicans, because Republicans did not represent my ideals.

I want to encourage you to help continue this trend.

In the next election, based on what has been perpetrated by a Republican President these past four years, and which culminated in yesterday's assault on democracy, consider if someone else can better represent you.

Lest we say that it is not Republicans but Donald Trump and a relatively small group of supporters that have done this, remember that Trump was selected from a slate of 14 options that included so many men and women more qualified then this child with totalitarian impulses.

He was democratically selected. He is the standard beror, chosen by the Republican people. He has been enabled for four years. People that finally stood up to him yesterday, Pence and McConnell for example, they helped bring this about. If what you saw yesterday is not you, leave the party. Change who you consistently vote for, even though you do not consider yourself a part of that party. (Like I'm not a Democrat, but I consistently vote for them right now.)

Now, here is the catch. Do not grow attached to any given alternative to the Republicans. In time they too may try the ties that bind us. Stand apart. Advocate for public policies you believe in. But don't unequivocally join a tribe.

Let Trumpism and the rotting Republican party be a cautionary tale.

Instead, enlargen the walls of the tent, and let all who love democracy come in.

Where should Republicans go from here? Here are my thoughts as an outsider, with lots of Republican friends I respect.

First, we need a healthy Republican party, or some follow-on to the party. I as an American first, want this for two reasons. First, because we need checks and balances, and without a loyal opposition of high integrity, Democrats will run off the rails. It's just human nature. Second, because the people that voted for all the Republicans up and down the tickets across the country are not going away (unless I can convince them to all vote for Democrats i.e. my post above LOL). But seriously, all people need good representatives.

While I am not likely to agree with Republican public policy positions or vote for them any time soon, I want them to exist and be a healthy party, with good representatives of high moral character.

If we could raise up a new party, that would be fine, but I don't think that is likely. I would say clean house, but I am not sure that is any more likely in the short term.

You may see an extremely conservative minority party emerge that is more professional, and less totalitarian than Trump. One led by people like Pence. But that would render them a regional party.

Republicans should not hold power in any significant way in the near term. They have forfeited that right temporarily. (That is, that is what should happen if the majority of voters agree with me.) But Republicans will re-emerge. And they should.

It is said that when a Supreme Court justice writes a minority (losing) opinion, they write for the future. Sometimes their minority position, or something like it is adopted at a later date. It is a sign post saying, "not all agree, there is a better way." We need Republicans to write the minority opinions, that we may return to in time if Democrats make poor choices. (And they will make some.)

Or to use another analogy from the world of law. We need a prosecutor, a defense attorney, and a judge and jury, in every case. Each has a role to play. Even when the defendant is guilty as sin.

In the short term I don't personally want Republicans to win elections. (Not because I am a Democrat, but because I don't agree with their public policy positions.) But they will win some, and we need them there to hold Democrats responsible--just as a good defense attorney holds a prosecutor accountable to doing their job the right way. A good prosecutor is a professional who respects the Constitution, in part because there is a defense attorney there to make sure that happens.

We need checks and balances. If the Republican party is rotten, then there is no one to hold Democrats accountable, and we need them held accountable.

Then, if Republicans evolve, and if things change over time with the passing of a generation, as they surely will, and if Democrats overreach, as they surely will to some extent, then you may just see me vote for a Republican again someday. Maybe. But not likely anytime soon.