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Who's the RINO now?

By Charles F. Bass
January 8, 2008

In November 2008 I plan on voting for the Republican nominee for president. In all honesty, it never occurred to me to even consider not voting for my party's nominee next year.

This news wouldn't normally be considered earth-shattering. After all I am a life-long Republican. Then again, considering the statements of some self-professed "Republicans," maybe my pledge is noteworthy. On the "Bill Press Show" — a nationally syndicated talk radio show hosted by liberal Bill Press — Bay Buchanan hinted that she would be willing to support Hillary Clinton if former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani were the standardbearer for the Republican Party next November.

Bay Buchanan's comments, coupled with the threats from a handful of evangelical leaders, highlight exactly what's wrong with the Republican Party today. For years the far right has derisively chided centrist Republicans like me as Republicans in Name Only (RINOs). In light of the comments from Mrs. Buchanan and company it raises the question: Who's the RINO now?

With so much at stake for America in this election, I am stunned that "Republicans" like Bay Buchanan, James Dobson and Tony Perkins would threaten to refuse to support the Republican nominee in 2008 because they fear the nominee may not meet their social agenda litmus test. The next president will make critical policy decisions that will chart the course for our country for decades to come: From the economy, to health care, to the global war on terror, the stakes in 2008 couldn't be greater.

Their threats to not support our party's nominee next November is just another example of the myopic, self-interested approach taken by the true extremists of our party.

I have news for the far right: Centrist Republicans are not "Democrats or Democrat-lite" — we are traditional Republicans. Not only are we traditional Republicans, we are also loyal Republicans. We fundamentally believe in the core values that unite us as a party — limited government, a strong national defense, lower taxes, expanded individual liberty and individual responsibility. We don't view the Republican Party as a vehicle for pushing our own personal, social agenda. Instead, we joined the Republican Party because we believed it was the best hope for a brighter more prosperous future.

This drive for ideologically pure parties isn't just a function of the right. The hard-core left wing of the Democratic Party worked to run off centrist Sen. Joe Lieberman, Connecticut Independent Democrat, and is actively challenging other centrist Democrats.

The far left and the far right are working to create a dangerous and untenable political situation — one where neither party represents the values or interests of mainstream America.

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