Live by the Religious Right, Die by the Religious Right
It always amazes me when I hear members of the religious right claim that they are just now catching on to the way they’ve been used by the Republican Party. The Republicans treat the religious right as a collection of useful idiots, working them into a froth about culture war issues every election season, promising action on some of their pet issues (gay marriage, abortion, etc.), and then mostly ignoring them once in power.
I don’t know why the religious right hasn’t caught on to this before, but something about the Bush administration has caused them to get mad as hell and declare that they’re not going to take it anymore. If you missed it, here are some choice quotes from conservative Richard A. Viguerie’s much-discussed piece in Sunday’s Washington Post, titled “Bush’s Base Betrayal”:
In 2004, Republican leaders pleaded with conservatives — particularly religious conservatives — to register people to vote and help them turn out on Election Day. Those efforts strengthened Republicans in Congress and probably saved the Bush presidency. We were told: Just wait till the second term. Then, the president, freed of concern over reelection and backed by a Republican Congress, would take off the gloves and fight for the conservative agenda. Just wait.We’re still waiting.
Sixty-five months into Bush’s presidency, conservatives feel betrayed. After the “Bridge to Nowhere” transportation bill, the Harriet Miers Supreme Court nomination and the Dubai Ports World deal, the immigration crisis was the tipping point for us. Indeed, a Washington Post-ABC News poll found last week that Republican disapproval of Bush’s presidency had increased from 16 percent to 30 percent in one month. It is largely the defection of conservatives that is driving the president’s poll numbers to new lows…
In today’s Washington, where are the serious efforts by Republicans to protect unborn children from abortion? Where is the campaign for a constitutional amendment to prevent liberal judges from allowing same-sex marriage?
Instead of conservative action on social issues, the Republican-controlled House has approved more taxpayers’ money for an embryo-killing type of stem cell research. And it passed a “hate crimes” measure that could lead to the classification as “hate” of criticism of homosexual activity. And in the Senate, Republicans have let key judicial nominees languish, even when Bush has nominated conservatives for lower courts…
The current record of Washington Republicans is so bad that, without a drastic change in direction, millions of conservatives will again stay home this November.
And maybe they should. Conservatives are beginning to realize that nothing will change until there’s a change in the GOP leadership. If congressional Republicans win this fall, they will see themselves as vindicated, and nothing will get better.
If conservatives accept the idea that we must support Republicans no matter what they do, we give up our bargaining position and any chance at getting things done. We’re like a union that agrees never to strike, no matter how badly its members are treated.
You know things are bad when a leading conservative is turning to labor unions for inspiration…
Eli, are you ever going to examine the role conservative and orthodox jews are playing in our current political climate? Even reform rabbis are saying the problem is all religious conservatives jews included, not just the fundy block you bring up ad naseum.
Eli you could start locally and examine the relationships between conservative jews and christians in Seattle. It's getting old to read your constant harping about fundy christians, the issue has been covered to death. Nobody including The Stranger is willing to discuss what the conservative jewish political block.