by Allen Dennis | August 30th, 2009
If TR were alive today, he would be in the forefront of those seeking to change the status quo, just as he did in his own day. Today's Republicans bear no resemblance whatever to Theodore Roosevelt. They have no policies and no ideas except "No."
When Theodore Roosevelt died in 1919, Republican progressivism died with him. The party lurched almost immediately to the right, and, with a few notable exceptions, it has been moving farther right ever since.
Theodore Roosevelt would not recognize today's Republican Party, and it most certainly would not recognize or welcome him.
Nearly all Americans realize that we are beset by domestic crises: health care, energy, and the environment, to name just a few.
If TR were alive today, he would be in the forefront of those seeking to change the status quo, just as he did in his own day. In fact, he advocated universal health insurance in the campaign of 1912, almost a hundred years ago. Dealing with climate change and renewable energy sources? The great conservationist would be leading the charge.
Today's Republicans bear no resemblance whatever to Theodore Roosevelt. They have no policies and no ideas except "No."
Health care? Do nothing. The status quo is fine; obstruct change.
Energy? Do nothing. The status quo is fine; obstruct change.
The environment? Do nothing. The status quo is fine; obstruct change.
Large financial institutions and laissez-faire capitalism? The status quo is fine; obstruct change.
These professional obstructionists should learn a lesson from the elections of 1936. Franklin Roosevelt won re-election by an electoral vote of 523 to 8. Republicans held only 16 of 96 seats in the Senate, and only 189 of 435 seats in the House of Representatives.
American voters punished Republican obstructionists, and the party almost never recovered.
We should not be in favor of this happening again. The nation needs a strong Republican Party. However, arrogant talk show hosts, "do nothing" politicians, conspiracy theorists, and quite an assortment of philanderers, prima donnas, and egomaniacs have become the public face of the Republican Part today, and make it look like a collection of hypocritical crazies. They are a disgrace to the party of Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt.
The party must change, and change swiftly. Otherwise, 2012 will make 1936 look like a Sunday school picnic. The Republican Party is in on life support. Unless a new generation of idea and solution-oriented Republicans emerges, the Republican Party may well go the way of the Whigs. It is a sad thing to watch a major political party fall victim to its dark side.
The right-wing fringe is leading the Republican Party over a cliff to its destruction. When people actually say that President Obama does not have a valid birth certificate, and that Sarah Palin is remotely qualified to be president, can it be taken seriously about anything?
We should all hope for drastic and rapid change in the Republican Party. This country deserves a strong two-party system, where creative thinking and concern for the people are present in both. The Republican Party is on the verge of committing politicide and going down the drain of history. Will any brave Republicans step forward to rescue it? Let us hope so.
Truly amazing. You are someone on the right who gets it. I knew it was possible. Keep up the good work!
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