Last night after the close of the Democratic National Convention and again this morning, I saw comments from several conservatives that they heard “Conservative” themes coming out of the DNC and how great it was. I replied to both that what they were calling conservative were themes that had always been a part of the Democratic Party and the difference between Liberals and Conservatives wasn’t what we said but how we lived. We may not go around talking in their language about these values but we live them. Unlike many conservatives who talk about them, but seldom live them.
We’re not perfect, far from it, but we don’t claim to be. (OK, yes we have our own purity police. That’s another post for another day). The GOP attached itself to the Religious Right years ago and it was quite intentional. Read Kevin M. Kruse’s book One Nation Under God for an in-depth understanding of why and how.
One of today’s problem in politics is the number of people who have hardened themselves into inflexible positions and find it hard to extract their overall beliefs from one or two issues. Both of the individuals I mentioned above have never really paid attention to who we as Democrats were because of their hardened positions on their issues. If there is a positive to Donald Trump becoming President it is that it has taken the blinders off many Republicans who didn’t want to see what their party really represented. Many of them still talk as though Trump is an outlier. He’s not, he’s the culmination. Richard Nixon played the martyred politician to the hilt. Reagan demonstrated his bigotry when he announced his candidacy in Philadelphia, Mississippi. His VooDoo economics of trickle down enriching the rich and harming the rest. The Bush family and their demonstration of entitlement. The TEA Party using economic anxiety as a screen for their bigotry, racism and misogyny. Trump in his crudeness exposed the reality of the GOP. For that, I guess we can say thanks. It has come at a terrible price.
The Flag? We’ve always respected it. But we also recognize that some wrongs have been committed under our banner. But we can still be proud. Proud of the aspirational and inspirational aspect of what it means.
Family? We’re much broader in our definition of what it means to be a family. As Hillary reminded us, “It takes a village.”
Faith? Who’s? They define it mostly as Christian or Evangelical Christian. We’re a little more open. At least many of us are.
Character? Wow. With their cast of characters in their party, they have to ignore a lot. I’ve always understood character as doing the right thing. Doing the right thing when no one’s around to see it. Doing the right thing when there’s nothing in it for you. Doing the right thing and not expecting praise because you did. In the Christian faith doing the right thing is defined in the parable of The Good Samaritan. Most beliefs have their own version of the good Samaritan.
So to the Jennifer Rubins and the Sarah Longwells out there, welcome to who we are and have always been.
In reply to Sarah Longwell;
My reply to Jennifer Rubin;
