My Apology to Republicans
On November 12th I wrote an article predicting that the Republican Party nationally will move to the center on social issues like abortion and gay marriage. For various reasons I wrote too harshly. I treated Republicans as if they were a machine or a system rather than individuals, some of who are just as passionate as I am regarding abortion and gay marriage.
Also, while it is acceptable, even healthy, to speak of various problems within an organization, some of the illustrations and rhetoric I used against the Republican Party went beyond that. I apologize for this and from now on will weigh my articles as to whether I have gone too far.
Third, I provided little proof that the Republican Party, even nationally, will go the route I predicted. On one hand there are trends saying that the temptation to waver on social issues will be too high for most Republican candidates running for state-wide or swing district races. On the other hand, there are those within the local and national leadership who say that they are maintaining their conservative stance on abortion and gay marriage. It is too early to accurately predict which direction the Party as a whole will take. I assumed in my article that the former choice will be the direction taken. I should have qualified this in light of the facts or the lack thereof.
What I Maintain
Many times misunderstandings come from a lack of defining the terms of an argument. By “social conservative” I mean one who supports the active pursuit of certain moral reforms in our governments – chiefly in the eventual banning of abortion and opposition to the changing definition of marriage. Merely stating that one is pro-life and pro-marriage is not enough. I fear that many candidates merely state this yet do little to nothing to stop the moral downward trend.
While it can be argued that the shunning of candidates Akin of Missouri, Mourdock of Indiana, and Rivard in Rice Lake were only because of the embarrassing words they spoke, I argue that the shunning is deeper than that. I think it reflects a growing national trend to ignore what are considered extreme views. Stating that one is pro-life and pro-marriage is not extreme in the nation’s eyes. Being pro-life in all cases and actively and boldly trying to make abortion illegal is more and more considered extreme.
There are other examples illustrating this downward trend. I maintain that the temptation will be very strong to give up the fight to keep what is right and true. Those who are brave soldiers within the Republican Party should be aware of this and prepare for a great battle within their own party.