Sorry guys, have to paste this into two posts because there are word count limitations.
It is one thing to be a genuine conservative or a libertarian-leaning conservative and identify as a Republican so you can get elected to office in the American two-party monopoly system. It is one thing to register to vote as a Republican so you can vote for what you think is the lesser of two evils in the Republican primary. It is one thing to hold your nose and vote Republican so you can keep those evil Democrats out of office. But it is another thing altogether to say that you are proud to be a Republican.
Here is former Texas governor and GOP presidential candidate Rick Perry in his book Fed Up!:
I am a proud Republican. As frustrated as I am at many in my own party for their waste and incompetence, and as many good friends as I have in the Democratic Party, I am firmly convinced that there is no comparison between the two political parties in modern, twenty-first-century America. As I have said before, “Republicans often aren’t on the right page—indeed, some aren’t even in the right chapter. But most are in the right book. Most Democrats today, on the other hand, can’t even find the library.”
When asked by CNN’s Candy Crowley if he would ever consider leaving the Republican Party for the Democrats or a third party, Kentucky senator Rand Paul replied:
No. I’ve always been a Republican, and I’m one of those people who actually is a real lover of the history of the Republican Party from the days of abolition through the days of civil rights. The Republican Party has a really rich history. In our state, I’m really proud of the fact that the ones who overturned Jim Crow in Kentucky were Republicans fighting against an entirely unified Democrat Party. So I am proud to be Republican. I can’t imagine being anything else.
And here is Representative Justin Amash of Michigan, the chair of the House Liberty Caucus: “I’ve always been a Republican, I’m proud to be a Republican and I plan to stay a Republican.” That was in 2013. Here is a statement from 2014: “I’m proud to be a Republican.”
But why would anyone say that they were proud to be a Republican?
The Republican Party is the party of Lincoln. Republicans who like to accuse Obama of being dictatorial have forgotten all about their beloved Lincoln. He issued a proclamation that freed no slaves. He destroyed the country to save the union. He presided over the first income tax. He supported an amendment to the Constitution that would have prohibited the federal government from ever interfering with Southern slavery. He shut down Northern opposition newspapers and imprisoned Northern political dissenters. He oversaw the deaths of 500,000 to 800,000 Americans. He destroyed the system of states’ rights and federalism created by the Founding Fathers. Why would anyone be proud to be a Republican?
The Republican Party is the party of the drug war. Although Republicans say they are the party of the Constitution, they show their contempt for the Constitution by their ardent support of the unconstitutional drug war that has ruined more lives than drugs themselves. Republicans are the greatest advocates of locking up people in cages for possessing substances the government doesn’t approve of. Why would anyone be proud to be a Republican?
The Republican Party is the party of the warfare state. Closing a domestic military base is implausible. Scrapping a weapons system is out of the question. Cutting the bloated defense budget is inconceivable. Invading and occupying other countries is viewed as defensive warfare. Bombing, maiming, and killing whomever the government labels as “the enemy” is viewed as defending our freedoms. Why would anyone be proud to be a Republican?
The Republican Party is the party of empire. Republicans support the stationing of troops and the maintaining of foreign military bases all over the globe—including in Germany, Italy, and Japan even though World War II ended 70 years ago. Closing an overseas military base is unthinkable. Bringing all of the troops home is unimaginable. Why would anyone be proud to be a Republican?
It is one thing to be a genuine conservative or a libertarian-leaning conservative and identify as a Republican so you can get elected to office in the American two-party monopoly system. It is one thing to register to vote as a Republican so you can vote for what you think is the lesser of two evils in the Republican primary. It is one thing to hold your nose and vote Republican so you can keep those evil Democrats out of office. But it is another thing altogether to say that you are proud to be a Republican.
Here is former Texas governor and GOP presidential candidate Rick Perry in his book Fed Up!:
I am a proud Republican. As frustrated as I am at many in my own party for their waste and incompetence, and as many good friends as I have in the Democratic Party, I am firmly convinced that there is no comparison between the two political parties in modern, twenty-first-century America. As I have said before, “Republicans often aren’t on the right page—indeed, some aren’t even in the right chapter. But most are in the right book. Most Democrats today, on the other hand, can’t even find the library.”
When asked by CNN’s Candy Crowley if he would ever consider leaving the Republican Party for the Democrats or a third party, Kentucky senator Rand Paul replied:
No. I’ve always been a Republican, and I’m one of those people who actually is a real lover of the history of the Republican Party from the days of abolition through the days of civil rights. The Republican Party has a really rich history. In our state, I’m really proud of the fact that the ones who overturned Jim Crow in Kentucky were Republicans fighting against an entirely unified Democrat Party. So I am proud to be Republican. I can’t imagine being anything else.
And here is Representative Justin Amash of Michigan, the chair of the House Liberty Caucus: “I’ve always been a Republican, I’m proud to be a Republican and I plan to stay a Republican.” That was in 2013. Here is a statement from 2014: “I’m proud to be a Republican.”
But why would anyone say that they were proud to be a Republican?
The Republican Party is the party of Lincoln. Republicans who like to accuse Obama of being dictatorial have forgotten all about their beloved Lincoln. He issued a proclamation that freed no slaves. He destroyed the country to save the union. He presided over the first income tax. He supported an amendment to the Constitution that would have prohibited the federal government from ever interfering with Southern slavery. He shut down Northern opposition newspapers and imprisoned Northern political dissenters. He oversaw the deaths of 500,000 to 800,000 Americans. He destroyed the system of states’ rights and federalism created by the Founding Fathers. Why would anyone be proud to be a Republican?
The Republican Party is the party of the drug war. Although Republicans say they are the party of the Constitution, they show their contempt for the Constitution by their ardent support of the unconstitutional drug war that has ruined more lives than drugs themselves. Republicans are the greatest advocates of locking up people in cages for possessing substances the government doesn’t approve of. Why would anyone be proud to be a Republican?
The Republican Party is the party of the warfare state. Closing a domestic military base is implausible. Scrapping a weapons system is out of the question. Cutting the bloated defense budget is inconceivable. Invading and occupying other countries is viewed as defensive warfare. Bombing, maiming, and killing whomever the government labels as “the enemy” is viewed as defending our freedoms. Why would anyone be proud to be a Republican?
The Republican Party is the party of empire. Republicans support the stationing of troops and the maintaining of foreign military bases all over the globe—including in Germany, Italy, and Japan even though World War II ended 70 years ago. Closing an overseas military base is unthinkable. Bringing all of the troops home is unimaginable. Why would anyone be proud to be a Republican?