Citing social issues, local GOP officials are abandoning their party in droves

[babsbunny]

http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/3866/jumping_ship/

Jumping Ship
Citing social issues, local GOP officials are abandoning their party in droves
By Hans Johnson
Same-sex marriage

Many local GOP officials are citing their party's increasingly conservative views on social issues -- such as abortion rights, stem-cell research and same-sex marriage -- as reasons for defecting.


A wave of GOP state legislators and other officials is defecting from the Republican Party, exposing the role that an increasingly hard line on social issues may be playing in driving out moderates. The departures weaken the GOP as it confronts another challenging election.

“I don’t think Ronald Reagan would recognize the party anymore,” Wisconsin state Rep. Jeff Wood told the Chippewa Herald on July 8.

Wood announced he was leaving the Republicans to become an independent. In a closely divided state — where each of the major parties narrowly controls one chamber — Wood’s switch underscores widespread concern over conservatives’ embrace of big government on issues such as war spending and eavesdropping.