For sometime now I have been registered as a Republican. I registered myself this way because Florida is a gerrymandered Republican safe zone, and has been for 22 years, so voting in the Republican primary is the only real way I can have a say in my state government. Lately that Republican registration has felt something like swimming in a cesspool. If I was going to run as a Republican candidate then this would be my campaign speech.
My fellow Republicans.
We must return our party to its roots. For quite some time now our party has drifted away from those roots. In the past few years our party has been taken over by an extremist wing who do not represent the fundamentals of the Republican Party, or the best interests of the American People.
Historically, the roots of the Republican Party do not include the unquestioned rule of one man. The officials we elect to legislative office are intended to provide a check and balance on the power of the executive, not to mindlessly rubber-stamp his every desire. That is one of the roots to which we must return.
But there is much more to the historical Republican Party roots.
-Reasonable taxation. We must not bankrupt the people who drive our economy, either through taxing the rich to death or by shifting the burden of taxation to the middle class and the poor, but at the same time we must generate enough revenue to support essential government services.
-Fiscal responsibility. We should not spend more than we bring in, unless that spending is absolutely needed and well planned to benefit the American People. At the same time, when spending money would bring more benefit than pinching pennies then money should be spent to the best advantage of The People.
-Local rule. The best government is that which is closest to The People, so the ability of cities, counties, and states to rule themselves as they best see fit should be paramount, except where higher government preemption is absolutely necessary.
-Personal autonomy. Freedom from government interference in The People's management of their own affairs is protected in the Constitution, and should not be interfered with unless absolutely necessary. This extends to People's freedom in reproductive matters, as well as what drugs People choose to take.
-Balanced immigration policy: "Kick them all out" is not practical, nor is "let them all in". We must take a balanced approach which will best benefit the United States, and which will at the same time uphold both the values of the United States and the Republican Party. We are a nation of immigrants and children of immigrants, and we should keep that firmly in mind.
-Reasonable gun control: Banning outright certain classes of firearms is not reasonable, nor is completely unrestricted gun rights. We must strike a balance which both protects the constitutional right to keep and bear arms and at the same time keeps arms out of the hands of those who should not have them. Gun control policy should be data driven, not based on the emotions of either side of the issue.
-Healthcare for everyone: Having a large number of sick, desperate poor people is not good for America. We must provide for the healthcare coverage of the poor people in America without inconveniencing those fortunate enough to afford healthcare insurance.
-Conservation of our environment and our wild lands: We must never forget that the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act were signed into law by a Republican president, after passing through congress with bipartisan support. The majority of our National Parks were signed into law by Republican presidents, starting with Abraham Lincoln, and continued to great effect by Theodore Roosevelt, among many others. Conservation is a conservative principle!
-Above all, my fellow Republicans, we must take back our party from our most extreme wing, who would have us tip over into Fascism in the name of "law and order", and give us over to the autocratic rule of a charismatic, narcisistic firebrand. That kind of extremism is anti-Republican, anti-democratic, anti-conservative, and anti-American.
There are many things we must do in order to take our party back, and to bring our country back. We must start by rejecting the politicians who call on us to abandon the foundations of our party and our country.
God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.
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