Accuse an enemy with your own sins, that they be distracted.

I’ve come to the conclusion that the Republican Party of old is either dead, or kidnapped and replaced with a pod party.

Time and again, I see Republicans either discard their core principles, or relegate them to third or second priority at best.

I think ‘Republican’, and I think military hawk, fiscal conservative, social conservative (small ‘c’).  Not now.  Now they’re just about cutting taxes and increasing spending. They’re serving the rich and powerful over fiscal conservatism.

Are Republicans hawkish on national defense? Not when they’re unwilling to investigate strong Russian ties by their President, and possible collusion to harm the country during the last elections.  Let’s get more specific.  When Russia deployed nuclear missiles that threaten a nuclear agreement, Republicans simply considered abandoning the agreement.

Republicans, as conservatives, talk a good game about shrinking government and reducing the power of leviathan.  But they only act in service of social conservatives. They support the federal override of the states on immigrant sanctuary, marijuana laws, LDGBQ protections, and more.

They support a bigger role for government oversight in our lives.

Republicans swear they love liberty and freedom.  It’s at the top of their platform: liberty, and individual choice. They spit out the words in every stump speech.

Cool. Explain closing Planned Parenthood because they tell people what their choices are. Explain denying people the ability to even mention abortion as an option.  How is that ‘liberty’?

So what are Republican really for, these days?  What do they do first, and what gets pushed back?  That’s how we’ll know them.