As a Democrat, New Jersey governor Chris Christie does not represent my interests; he does not support raising the minimum wage, he favors big business over ordinary citizens, he is against same-sex marriage and a host of other issues that we are in disagreement. He is what I consider a typical Republican and I certainly do not want him to be my president. Of course, I would favor him any day over Senator Ted Cruz, a Tea Party favorite but I am hoping for another Democrat to replace Obama when he leaves office.
My hopes are pinned on the base of the Republican Party because nowadays, there is a purity test that all nominees for the Republican ticket have to pass if they are to run for president, or for that matter, any legislative seat in Washington DC and state houses across the country. There is a consistent challenge that Republican hopefuls have to go through to prove how conservative they are, or more likely, how uncompromising and how hard right they are.
We Democrats shake our heads at such stiffness. However, we also count our blessings because when Tea Party candidates, who are always much further to the right than a typical Republican, win over a more moderate conservative in a primary election for a national seat, it raises the chances of a Democrat winning that seat instead in a general election; it has happened time after time.
In 2012, former governor Mitt Romney was finally chosen as the Republican nomination, but it was only after moving so far to the right during the GOP primary, which spoiled his chances in the general election. I must add here that the Republican base got what they deserved in Mitt Romney, someone who was willing to do a complete 180 on his politics, just to please the Tea Party faction of the GOP.
I understand we are still a long ways off from 2016 and many things could change before then. Perhaps establishment Republicans can gain much more of a foothold within their own party before that election, so that moderates have a better chance, including Chris Christie for president, as it is very likely he will run. Personally, I doubt it. The American public have watched as the Tea Party faction of the GOP have applied such a stranglehold on the party that the nation came very close to facing a default on our debt and serious damage done to the country’s economy. Fortunately, this time, better heads prevailed but how long before we again face that same thing and again, Sen. Ted Cruz or some other Tea Party radical uses their filibuster to send the nation into a financial downward spiral?
Chris Christie is a very popular governor in a blue state but he has not faced a Republican primary where he will need either to move much further to the right or face being drummed out early in the race. Christie is not Mitt Romney and he is not the type I believe, that will so easily give in to the Tea Party faction of his party. His primary opponents will also be quick to remind the party base how Christie welcomed Obama’s help after Hurricane Sandy and his moderate position on several issues. This means it is very likely that he will never get past the primaries, which is great for us Democrats.
We Democrats will be very fortunate if we get a Ted Cruz nomination from the GOP, which will mean a sure win for whoever the Democratic nomination is, though it is Hillary or even good old Joe Biden. Tea Party Republicans are still proclaiming that the Republican Party’s problem is not because it is not moderate enough but because it is still not hard-lined conservative enough. Right-wingers are complaining that Republican legislators are giving in too easily to the Democrats and that they should have held their ground during the shutdown and debt ceiling debate.
Yes, please do, tack even further to the right so that the Democratic Party can continue to win not only the White House but also both legislative branches in Washington DC and in state houses across the country, nothing would please us more.
This is a republish from my website: Fidlerten Place