Lincoln Would Weep - By E.J. Dionne, Jr.

[kpete]

Lincoln Would Weep

By E.J. Dionne, Jr.

Republicans are unhappy with their field of presidential candidates and yearn for someone who will come along to save them. But here’s what the GOP doesn’t want to confront: Its problem lies not in its candidates, but in itself.

The candidates appear much smaller than they are because the party’s primary voters and core interest groups insist upon cutting them down to size. To win a Republican nomination, a candidate has to move right, recant absolutely any past position that violates the current conservative catechism, and never dare to speak the truth that solving our deficit problem will require new revenues—aka, taxes.

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Today’s GOP is committed to one proposition above all others: reducing the size of the federal government. In this, Republicans resemble no group so much as conservative Democrats from the 1850s—minus, it must be said quickly and with gratitude, the shameful position such Democrats took on slavery. Even nullification and secession talk is now in vogue among some Republicans.

Imagine what would happen today to a Republican who said this: “Having never been States, either in substance or in name, outside of the Union, whence this magical omnipotence of ‘State rights’ . ... Much is said about the ‘sovereignty’ of the States; but the word, even, is not in the national Constitution. ... ” Abraham Lincoln spoke those words on July 4, 1861, and believed so much in the national government that he waged a bloody war to save it. Can you imagine any Republican quoting Lincoln on states’ rights during the 2012 debates?

the rest:
http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/lincoln_would_weep_20110515/

[Fumesucker]

1. I generally like Dionne but this line here is bullshit..

Today’s GOP is committed to one proposition above all others: reducing the size of the federal government.

The GOP has no intention of reducing the size of government, they just wish to shift the benefits all to the rich and the burden of paying for those benefits all to the poor.

[barbtries]

3. good point.

it's just what they say. watch what they do.

[n2doc]

4. Yep. Just look at the size of government increase from 2002-2006

When they controlled EVERYTHING.

[Wednesdays]

2. "Republicans (are like) conservative Democrats from the 1850s..."

"minus...the shameful position such Democrats took on slavery."

Are you absolutely sure that's not today's GOP position on slavery? :shrug:

[Javaman]

5. a little known and not publicized fact about Lincoln and the republican party...

in 1864, Lincoln ran under the National Union Party. It was to attrack southern Dems.

But you would never hear a repuke state this today.