An ex-fiance of mine posted this on Facebook. A little background: he, like me, is a fiscal conservative and a social liberal. He's a very intelligent man, albeit a wee bit stuffy on occasion. But for him to post this is truly a sign that the GOP is completely alienating the former moderates of the party. Quote used with his permission. I will henceforth refer to him as "EF," for "ex-fiance," because I tend to come up with odd fake names.
How embarrassing!
First the doctored emails, then Congressional voting records confirm Republicans de-funded embassy security, now the Congressional Budget office releases its non-partisan conclusion that the White House tax and spending proposal the GOP completely ignored would bring deficits down to a sustainable 2% of GDP.
Where’s the GOP leadership? Could they self-inflict any more damage? Everyone’s already taking about 2016 and, at this rate, that election will be an even bigger route than the last. How is the GOP going to restore its credibility? The Tea Party demographic base is quickly shrinking as a proportion of the population, so continuing to follow that group is sure failure. How about we move on to real issues like job creation, eliminating tax expenditures and lowering tax rates, immigration reform, gun law reform that 90% of the population supports, raising the Social Security eligibility age, means testing Medicare, developing a national energy policy that will eliminate our dependence on foreign energy, or the myriad other issues Congress could actually undertake in the national interest? Let’s leave the whining behind and get on with real governance. Therein is the path to credibility with the American public.
My response, and further discourse, below the squiggle.
I said:
Tea Party is supposedly "energized" by IRS non-scandal. The GOP leadership, such as it is, CANNOT get anything done in Congress because of loudmouthed ignoramuses such as Ted Cruz and Rand Paul. Even McCain is complaining. And you are ignoring the BIGGEST reason for GOP gridlock and failure: having failed to make Obama a one-term President, they are determined that he NOT have a legacy of economic success. Passing jobs bills, etc, would help the president. These idiots steadfastly refuse to do ANYTHING that would help the country and therefore the black guy in the White House. And as for credibility? Their base believes in Alex Jones' nonsense, listens to Rush, Beck, Fox et al, and gobbles down every bit of the lies and nonsense that they are fed. Due to gerrymandering, the GOP basically doesn't HAVE to do anything. Their idiots will still vote for them. I present to you, Mark Sanford. While I think that a GOP candidate will fail in 2016, particularly a "severely conservative" candidate, they WILL blame Obama for their failures, as usual. Democrats simply do NOT make enough noise. You are making perfect sense, and I agree with you. But the GOP won't listen. The saner heads have left the party, and Congress.
He hasn't responded to that yet, although he did answer my text requesting permission. I don't often speak of my past as an active Republican. I've mentioned serving on the board of Denver Metro Young Republicans, but I also simultaneously served on the NARAL PAC. EF is also a pro-choice Republican. He works in the financial field, and we were both part of a a heavily Republican Upper East Side social scene that included Ann Coulter and David Koch, among many others.
Totally gratitutious pic of a tipsy Ann Coulter, from my photo album. This photo may NOT be shared, as I will be identified as the culprit :( Really hoping that Ann doesn't read DKos.
My journey from there to working for OFA has been explained in previous diaries. But EF's was slow. I think that for him to express dismay with the GOP--on his personal FB page, filled with die-hard rockribbed conservatives--is an indication of a huge sea change. He does hope that the GOP can be saved: ideally to return to the 1980's, before the crazies that Reagan and Goldwater warned us about took over. I don't think that's possible. I cannot see myself voting for ANY Republican at ANY time in the future. I am absolutely enraged by their attacks on women, their callous disregard for humanity, the fact that they are OWNED by corporate interests and the NRA, and the stupid, ongoing obstruction of everything the President tries to do.
The last vestige of pretense to fiscal conservatism has been stripped from the GOP as indicated in this excellent diary. So what is left? Nothing but antis. Anti-gay, anti-women, anti-progress, anti-jobs, anti-education, et cetera. There is NOTHING good. The shameful GOP antics over cuts to food stamp programs, Head Start, disaster aid, and other safety nets are appalling.
I think it is extremely heartening that EF came out publicly and said what he did. I shall be watching his page with interest to see if anybody else agrees. He is also a firm and vociferous supporter of climate change science and a secularist. He really belongs on our side =) The old, sane, pro-choice GOP is DEAD. The GOP can't stuff the religious wackos and the Tea Party back in the barn and shut the door.