Jeff Wartman

Don’t be fooled by the empty rhetoric of Arlen Specter.  Out of political self-preservation, he switched parties.  No ideological change occured — he himself said that none of his opinions have changed.  He won’t be voting differently.  He did this for one reason, and one reason alone:  he couldn’t win the Republican primary, so he jumped parties to give himself a shot at re-election. 

So don’t let his empty rhetoric fool you.  Moderation is alive and well in the Republican Party.  As a moderate, I can verify some details.  I go to 5-10 meetings per month of various Republican groups:  Will County Republican Central Commitee, Will County Young Republicans (of which I am Vice-Chair and Treasurer), Frankfort Township Republican Organization, along with many others.  There is a diversity of opinion within the various groups.  I can tell you first hand that none of them wish to expel moderates from the party.  In fact, in some cases, these groups are dominated by moderates (sometimes not).  The point isn’t whether we’re more dominated by conservatives or moderates — the point is that a diversity of opinion is welcome in the Republican Party.

In the end, the ideological divide is less about rigid ideology and more about world outlook.  In the Republican Party, we believe individuals can best decide for themselves how to live their lives, and government should step back as much as possible.  The Democrat Party wants government to act as your nanny, making decisions for you, because Papa Government knows best.

Cross posted at Freedom Illinois