The Ron Paul strain of the TP is interesting since it has principles, some of which go hard against the GOP grain (anti-imperialism, against the theo-cons).
On Sat, Mar 13, 2010 at 11:48 AM, Robert Naiman <[email protected]> wrote: > more interesting to me is the potential split between the pro-Empire > and anti-Empire Tea Partiers. we need more anti-Empire Republicans. > > > On Sat, Mar 13, 2010 at 9:10 AM, Jim Devine <[email protected]> wrote: >> Is there any way to exploit the gap between the "social conservatives" >> (anti-abortos, etc.) and the money libertarians within the >> broadly-defined GOP movement? >> >> New York TIMES / March 12, 2010 >> Tea Party Avoids Divisive Social Issues >> By KATE ZERNIKE >> >> For decades, faith and family have been at the center of the >> conservative movement. But as the Tea Party infuses conservatism with >> new energy, its leaders deliberately avoid discussion of issues like >> gay marriage or abortion. >> >> God, life and family get little if any mention in statements or >> manifestos. The motto of the Tea Party Patriots, a large coalition of >> groups, is “fiscal responsibility, limited government, and free >> markets.” The Independence Caucus questionnaire, which many Tea Party >> groups use to evaluate candidates, poses 80 questions, most on the >> proper role of government, tax policy and the federal budgeting >> process, and virtually none on social issues. >> >> The Contract From America, which is being created Wiki-style by >> Internet contributors as a manifesto of what “the people” want >> government to do, also mentions little in the way of social issues, >> beyond a declaration that parents should be given choice in how to >> educate their children. By contrast, the document it aims to improve >> upon — the Contract With America, which Republicans used to market >> their successful campaign to win a majority in Congress in 1994 — was >> prefaced with the promise that the party would lead a Congress that >> “respects the values and shares the faith of the American family.” >> >> Tea Party leaders argue that the country can ill afford the discussion >> about social issues when it is passing on enormous debts to future >> generations. But the focus is also strategic: leaders think they can >> attract independent voters if they stay away from divisive issues. >> >> “We should be creating the biggest tent possible around the economic >> conservative issue,” said Ryan Hecker, the organizer behind the >> Contract From America. “I think social issues may matter to particular >> individuals, but at the end of the day, the movement should be >> agnostic about it. This is a movement that rose largely because of the >> Republican Party failing to deliver on being representative of the >> economic conservative ideology. To include social issues would be >> beside the point.” >> >> As the Tea Party pushes to change the Republican Party, the purity >> they demand of candidates may have more to do with economic >> conservatism than social conservatism. Some Tea Party groups, for >> instance, have declined to endorse J. D. Hayworth, who has claimed the >> mantle of a fiscal conservative, in the Republican Senate primary in >> Arizona. But these groups find his record in Congress no more fiscally >> responsible than the man he seeks to oust, John McCain. >> >> The Tea Party defines economic conservatism more strictly than most >> Republicans in Congress would — the Tea Party agrees about the need to >> do away with earmarks, but the Contract, for example, also includes a >> proposal to scrap the tax code and replace it with one no longer than >> 4,543 words (a number chosen to match the length of the Constitution, >> unamended.) It would limit the growth of federal spending to inflation >> plus the percentage of population growth and require a two-thirds >> majority for any tax increase. >> >> <clip> >> >> >> New York TIMES / March 11, 2010 >> Outraged by Glenn Beck’s Salvo, Christians Fire Back >> By LAURIE GOODSTEIN >> >> Last week, the conservative broadcaster Glenn Beck called on >> Christians to leave their churches if they hear preaching about social >> or economic justice, saying they were code words for Communism and >> Nazism. >> >> This week the remarks prompted outrage from several Christian >> bloggers. The Rev. Jim Wallis, who leads the liberal Christian >> antipoverty group Sojourners, in Washington, called on Christians to >> leave Glenn Beck. >> >> “What he has said attacks the very heart of our Christian faith, and >> Christians should no longer watch his show,” Mr. Wallis wrote on his >> blog, God’s Politics. “His show should now be in the same category as >> Howard Stern.” >> >> In attacking churches that espouse social justice, Mr. Beck is taking >> on most mainline Protestant, Roman Catholic, black and Hispanic >> congregations in the country — not to mention plenty of evangelical >> churches and even his own, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day >> Saints. >> >> <clip> >> >> >> >> >> -- >> Jim Devine / "Segui il tuo corso, e lascia dir le genti." (Go your own >> way and let people talk.) -- Karl, paraphrasing Dante. >> _______________________________________________ >> pen-l mailing list >> [email protected] >> https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l >> > > > > -- > Robert Naiman > Policy Director > Just Foreign Policy > www.justforeignpolicy.org > [email protected] > _______________________________________________ > pen-l mailing list > [email protected] > https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l > _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
