It seems that every day there's another story or op-ed about how the Republican Party has lost its way and is no longer the party of conservatism. Yesterday, former DNC press secretary
Terry Michael joined the list of commentators attacking the not-so-conservative-anymore GOP. But have conservatives really lost their way, or are we seeing the Republican Party strip away its alliance of convenience with libertarians and embrace fully a truly conservative ethos. Now that it's in charge, it doesn't need to be anti-government. It is the government.
Terry Michael, former Democratic National Committee press secretary, outlines clearly the contrast between the GOP of today and the GOP of tomorrow.
The competition for the vote-rich middle of the electorate has turned formerly conservative Republicans into social welfare Democrats. Many in the party of Reagan apparently see no conflict between anti-government rhetoric and middle class neo-populist pandering (of the kind former Democratic Sen. John Edwards is peddling, in his perpetual presidential campaign.) A party that used to rail against socialized medicine has embraced prescription drug legislation, due to bloat an already busted-budget next January -- to satisfy both the ravenous appetites of elderly entitlement consumers and the corporate welfare aspirations of pharmaceutical manufacturers.
. . .
Somewhere in heaven, with his mind restored, Ronald Reagan must be wondering how his party lost its.
As a "libertarian Democrat" Terry Michael has in the past encouraged the Party to rediscover its Jeffersonian roots and pick up disgruntled libertarian voters that are unhappy with the direction the GOP is going off into. His message is "Government: Assure liberty by staying as far away as possible from our bank accounts, our bedrooms and our bodies. Spread pluralistic democracy and free markets by example, not by force. Restore the moral authority of the mid-20th century civil rights movement, by fashioning public policy around individuals, not tribal identity groups."
It has become common place to discuss how the Republican Party is no longer conservative. But I don't find that to be a fair criticism of the GOP. James Wilson, an active libertarian blogger, points out that what we've been calling conservatism isn't what we think it is.
But it seems that those things that conservatives used to believe in, or are supposed to believe in, are indeed libertarian ideas. Think of what has been popularly associated with conservatism: deregulation, tax cuts, balanced budgets, an "America First" foreign policy, local and state instead of federal crime control, against welfare, against pork barrel spending, against a federal role in education, support for the Second Amendment and the Tenth Amendment.
But what is conservatism without the libertarianism? Strong support for the military, opposition to social liberalism imposed by judicial activism (especially abortion), and ... what? Vague "law and order" positions, no consensus position on trade, seemingly no more or less opposed to immigration or the War on Drugs than other Americans.
It is wrong to believe that decentralist policies can only be pushed by the Right. Recently a group of left-wing activists put forth the "The Middlebury Declaration" calling for a reexamination of the issues of separatism and self-determination. Some may be familiar with works from the 1970s such as E. F. Schumacher's "Small Is Beautiful." I personally have been a fan of Murray Bookchin. While these are often radical intellectuals, it's certainly possible to be left-wing and in favor of decentralization. We should be able to campaign against big government and big corporations not because we're anti-government or anti-corporation, but because we're anti-big.
It is important to not only point out the inconsistencies of the Republican Party with its anti-government rhetoric and pro-government policies. We need to challenge its current status as the only party that offers libertarians a home outside of the minor and ideologically extreme Libertarian Party. The disconnect between rhetoric and policy has weakened the Republican brand among libertarians. But they'll still win unless the Democrats do something.
One way you can do something is to work with others that want to reach out to libertarians and bring them into the Democratic Party. The Democratic Freedom Caucus is a small but growing group of such activists. You may also want to check out our blog at Freedom Democrats.
So far the DFC has recruited two former Libertarian Party members to join the Democratic Party and run for Congress. Of particular interest is Frank Gonzalez, who ran in the Florida 21st in 2004 with almost no money ($12,000), no name recognition, and no major party support. Simply on the strength of his campaigning and determination to work the grassroots, he finished with 27% of the vote. This would be an amazing total for a third party candidate, what is even more amazing is that this percent is better than any other Democrat that has challenged Republican incumbent Lincoln Diaz-Balart. With the support of the Democratic Party Frank Gonazlez can win in the Florida 21st. He's focusing clearly on the issues that divide conservatives from libertarians and encourage a liberal-libertarian alliance: the war in Iraq, the invasion of civil liberties and irresponsible fiscal policy. He's also focusing heavily on the Cuban trade and travel restrictions, which is causing more harm to the people of Cuba than it does to Fidel Castro.
If you're interesting in supporting Frank Gonzalez, consider making a donation through the Freedom Democrats' Act Blue account.