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I suggest that when you have this HUGE subject you have to have priorities. Big issues like: Iraq, Patriot Act, immigration, tax cuts, Supreme court nominees, get maybe 1 or two sentences. Ephemeral issues (like voting machines in Ohio) do not make the cut. So what is important: 1. all major elections should be covered. Some Republicans want to minimize mention of losses. No, this has to be NPOV and the article can not minimize the embarrassing stories (like corruption or failed impeachment). 2. The 5 or 10 most important national leaders should be mentioned (that is, Bush, Cheney, DeLay, Frist, Hastert, McCain, Schwarznegger, Romney, Giuliani... maybe one or 2 more). People can click and learn more. 3. The biggest issues should be covered briefly, so that the user can click and get to full coverage. 4. Some mention of the GOP in the states is needed. (For example, GOP has scandals in Ohio and Illinois.) 5. The various factions have to be covered. On the whole the article is quite good--better than the one of the Democrats. It needs more history (look at the holes before 1994) and I plan to work on that some more. Rjensen 19:20, 16 December 2005 (UTC)
Many of the pols are testing the GOP candidates for 2008. They all show pretty much the same thing-- see for example the Pew Poll at http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=261 That is: John McCain, Rudy Giuliani and Condoleezza Rice all do well among Republicans AND do well among independents. However the conservative candidates do poorly among independents in the general election. Rjensen 19:04, 29 December 2005 (UTC)
December CNN poll shows same results: CNN Rice's foreign policy views are clear. Her domestic policies are vague, but she has said she is pro-choice. Rjensen 19:20, 29 December 2005 (UTC)
Rice is an officer of the executive branch, her job is to promote the President's policies, not her own. Be careful in equating what she says or does as the Secretary of State with her personal policy preferences. Bjsiders 19:39, 29 December 2005 (UTC)
I have added more issues both domestic and foreign that seem to characterize the GOP (and added a bit of history as well). I also noted issues where the party seems divided (such as immigration and stem cells). Does this make sense as a summary of the GOP? Rjensen 01:01, 4 January 2006 (UTC)
The Republican party is not Libertarian or neo-Libertarian at all. It stand for increased government intrusion into citizens affairs via spying on them without FISA court oversight, increased big government spending such as the new prescription drug debacle, increased foreign interventionism, for example in Iraq and possibly Syria and Iran if the neo-conservatives in control continue to have their way. The Republican party does not favor personal liberty to use recreational drugs or purchase medical drugs on the international market and the party favors greater censorship of the airwaves and the internet and increasing the new FBI porn squad. Republican presidents have overseen increased government spending and burgeoning deficits. During Ronald Reagan's term, the Democratic congress approved smaller budgets than Reagan proposed. Middle of the night earmarks have become a plague since Republicans gained control of the house and earmarks in general have tripled since then. Republicans, including Bush, want to introduce so-called intelligent design (which is covert christian creationism) into the schools. They want to introduce biblical symbols into courthouses, furthering government intrusion into freedom of religion and eroding the separation of church and state. The Delay / Boehner / Hastert / Abramoff K-Street Project has given corporate lobbyists and cronies special access to writing legislation and positions of power, which has reduced the power of individuals and increased the corporatist statism. There is no way that the Republican party can truthfully be identified with Libertarianism and it would be false to add that tag to the info box. Hu 12:37, 5 February 2006 (UTC)
Amen to that~ Lilfreakydude
They only affiliate with the GOP on economics, which is merely cronyism by corporate interests. The Libertarian party also is very controversial in its own right and criticisms of it being very rigid and contradictory to its own claim "as the party of principle" can be made.
Regardless, libertarians self-associate with the Republican party far more often than the Democratic party. You suggest more monolithic thought among Republicans than I think is fair. You omit Republicans opposing restrictions on gun ownership, opposing the use of eminient domain to take land from people, opposing confiscatory tax rates, wanting to privatize social security, opposing federalized health care, etc. There's plenty of issues on which they are in line with Libertarian views. And plenty on which they are not. Bjsiders 14:02, 6 February 2006 (UTC)
The Republican party is a coalition of various factions. As a libertarian Republican, that we aren't dead yet. Also, we're kind of regarded as extreme by the conservatives, so sometimes we'll masquerade as conservatives so that other conservatives won't tune us out and we'll slowly break it to them. I know I'm not the only one that does it but that tactic still might not be widespread. Though the Religious Right may have a temporary advantage, we're still a powerful force within the Republican party. Also for the past 25 years, libertarians and the Religious Right have been in a perpetual but subtle battle for control of the spirit of the party. -Mike Reason
Also, I hate to nitpick people but, just to clarify things: when referring to someone or something affiliated with the Libertarian party, you spell libertarian with a capital "L." When describing a philosophical libertarian you just spell it "libertarian." -Mike Reason
I don't think abortion is an exception to the Republican position at all. Republicans, first and foremost believe in States' Rights and overturning Roe v. Wade would return abortion to the states, not outlaw it. There may be some in the party that want the Federal Government or Constitutional ammendment to end abortion but that is not the mainstream Republican view which s simply to overturn Roe v. Wade and return control to the states. Tbeatty 01:01, 7 February 2006 (UTC)
Whether or not one thinks Roe vs Wade was a good court decision is not necessarily a part of whether or not one thinks abortion should be legal. You be pro-choice and think RvW is wrong, and you can be anti-abortion and think RvW is right, although I've yet to meet anybody with the latter opinion. I think the statement as I wrote it is fair and accurate. Abortion would seem to be a highly personal decision, but Republicans tend to NOT support fully individual freedom on the topic due to their belief in the rights of the unborn child. Bjsiders 01:39, 7 February 2006 (UTC)
Can we get a source for the claim that Rice supports abortion rights? I am not sure I have ever heard her opinion on the matter, and would like it sourced. Thanks. -- LV (Dark Mark) 15:03, 7 February 2006 (UTC)
There should be something in the article which mentions Republicans for choice. There are many pro-choice republicans. There seems to be a overgeneralization that all republicans are pro-life and that is not the case. In fact organizations such as Republicans For Choice, have joined with other Republican groups such as Log Cabin Republicans and the Republican Youth Majority to have the Republican platform amended so that it reflects the diverse opinions on abortion throughout the party. http://www.republicansforchoice.com/keyissues.htm -- Tribeca 728 05:40, 20 July 2006 (UTC)
I'm readding the claim that some have made the the Republican Party is "America's natural governing party". It's an observation I have read on blogs and heard on talk radio on numerous occasions. Look, I'm not trying to start some kind of fight with any of my fellow Wikipedians. I'm just saying that this an encylopedia and therefore should have all information on the party, therefore the claim deserves to be mentioned. It's not like its being stated as a fact, just a nickname some have dubbed the party. Besides, it makes sense. Of the past 145 years, a Republican has controlled the White House for nearly 90 years. The level of success the GOP has had is indeed analogous to the success of the Liberal Party of Canada, which is frequently dubbed "Canada's natural governing party". -- HowardDean 21:10, 10 February 2006 (UTC)
{{POV}} Absolutely ridicolous, no further comment needs to be made here.
Common' folks. "Natural" in governing is clearly a POV. Unless you can cite a reliable source that this is widespread knowledge, it can't stay. Olin 16:09, 18 February 2006 (UTC)
True, and 18 out of 27 is only 2/3. Hardly a wide enough margin to be considered "natural". I'm guessing that, given enough time, the parties (if their still around) will even out. Also, given anytime frame, one can find a lean. Take the 20 years between 1930 to 1950, there all but 2 years were governed by a Dem. Squiggyfm 17:43, 18 February 2006 (UTC)
Is there any reference for the claim the GOP voter base among college educated or professionals has slipped?? The last data I have seen shows Democrats carving out the ends (high school dropouts and PhDs in universities) while Republicans had solid command of College and master degree earners. Tbeatty 23:36, 10 February 2006 (UTC)
ok fair challenge. Father Bush got 50% of MA+ voters in 1988, and Son Bush got only 35% (based on exit polls in both cases). That's a BIG change. For old exits see New York Times Nov 10, 1988 p. 18].. and even older exits are in National Journal Nov 8, 1980 page 1878 Rjensen 03:20, 12 February 2006 (UTC)
The Democrat Leadership Conference (DLC) had a televised (C-SPAN) meeting a week after the election and they stated that only a majority of voters who were high school dropouts and PhD's voted for Kerry. The majority of high school grads, some college, BA Degrees and MA degrees voted for Bush. Bachs 15:03, 14 February 2006 (UTC)
At some point we all need to figure out that American history and political party history didn't start with Bush v Gore. Bjsiders 18:20, 17 March 2006 (UTC)
Somebody is slipping in a lot of nasty Larouche type thinking about "covert cells" and "cell churches". Please watch out for this nonsense and revert immediately. Rjensen 06:09, 15 February 2006 (UTC)
Neo-Liberal applies to Republicans much closer than to Democrats according to every poli-sci class I have ever had. The Shively textbook [7] also makes this clear. Keep in mind that political science uses the Euro definitions of liberal and not the American versions.
Neither party is neo-liberal; they're not like the programmatic parties of Europe. If you look at America's partisan history, you'll find that the parties' political agendas are based on what strategy they think will get them the most votes. Then again, the political parties in the United States have lost a lot of power, so maybe the old rules no longer apply. But more importantly, there isn't a strong non-liberal presence in the United States. I mean liberal in the classical sense. You've basically got, liberal conservatives, social liberals, and libertarians. Everyone outside of the liberal arena is basically considered a crackpot. Except for that time around the 1930's when CommunistPartyUSA had gained some influence for a short while. Also, the rise of the fundamentalist christians within the Republican party and the new left forms the base of the Democratic party, especially after all the anti-communists left the Democratic party in the late 70's. And let's face it, things like socialized healthcare go far beyond the left-most borders of social liberalism. I'd say a good percentile of the modern Democratic party are closet social democrats. -Mike Reason
A serious article needs a serious bibliography because we are cvovering 150+ years of national history with many famous names and events. It averages out to 2-3 booksper presidential term, which is pretty thin. Maybe the best solution is to just have a HISTORY of GOP article, which I have done. Comments? Rjensen 05:15, 22 February 2006 (UTC)
Lets keep the history of the Republican Party with the article about the Republican Party and not separate them. If we must separate them, lets at least have the history article established before it is removed from the page. BCV 07:18, 22 February 2006 (UTC)
Does anyone know why the three stars on the elephant are upside down? Linda 68.65.73.42 22:57, 24 February 2006 (UTC)
Should we have critical links (the Democratc Party page does not) from non-GOP sources? If so, from what sources (magazines, blogs, opposition parties)? Rkevins82 00:34, 1 March 2006 (UTC)
Can someone explain why the Republicans have one of these sections and the Democrats do not? I didn't realize that we were in the business of predicting the future and I'm not understanding why we are quoting Democratic pollsters and such. Does anybody honesly believe that they are not going to be affect by their bias? It would be the same thing for the Democrat page if I started to quote Republican pollsters and such and saying that the Democratic party is on it's way downhill. KLRMNKY 10:55, 8 March 2006 (UTC)
The claim that "As of 2006...main st. and wall street....supports the GOP." needs verified.
I dont see where it verifies that behavior in the status-quo. I grant in 2004 such was the case, but I have seen nothing that suggests this is still the case.
The RNC has various types of memberships with varying duties. Also, how it is structured, from grass-roots to the chairman would also be of interest. I'm asking, because I couldn't find this information and I believe others would like to know as well. -- Kimonandreou 14:48, 27 March 2006 (UTC)
I concur. RNC organizational structures, and manners of action, say as much about the party as history and soundbites. -- User: Oregon Republican League
Well taken. What I took the previous poster to suggest, was the beneficial nature of adding a section briefly discussing the range of opportunities for "members" to "support" the RNC. Not that these groups would not also accept "support" from nonmembers... but I took the comments to refer to groups like: the Republican Regents, Team 100, RNC Majority Fund, Presidential Victory Team, The President's Club, Republican Eagles... I think I'm missing one... to the Sustaining Member category. -- User: Oregon Republican League 18:00, 15 April 2006 (PST)
This content was removed from the democratic party article, because it was about the republican party, not the democratic party:
In the mid 1990s, the Republican Party hired right-wing partisan pollster Frank Luntz to run manipulative focus groups to develop ways of negatively politically frame members of Democratic Party. One result of those focus group tests was the use of the term "Democrat Party" rather than the traditional "Democratic Party." This is deliberately incorrect and was echoed in right-wing media outlets such as Rush Limbaugh and Fox News.
Kevin Baas talk 20:50, 27 March 2006 (UTC)
The reason given that it must oppose affirmative action because racial quotas are illegal is a fallacy. It would be like saying the GOP is against immigration reform because illegal immigration has been illegal for a long time. -- Tbeatty 17:07, 28 March 2006 (UTC)
Merecat 16:48, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
Also see Green Party (United States) which says "has been active as a third party since the 1980s.". Ralph Nader ran as a Green in 2000 and tipped the Florida election, his impct there was indeed "Major". Also, "in 2002, John Eder's election to the Maine State House of Representatives marked the first Green Party state legislator in the United States elected in a regular election." Merecat 16:56, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
Also see Libertarian Party (United States) which states "The Libertarian Party is a United States political party created in 1971. It is the largest third party in the United States, with over 200,000 registered voters and over 600 people in office, including mayors, county executives, county council members, school boards and other local offices."
I contend that by any reasonable defintion, the Libertarians and Greens are major and the use of major in the intro as currently used, is a false statement. Merecat 17:00, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
Merecat 17:00, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
What I am saying is that "larger" coveys the required information, without making a value judgement as to the validity or worth of the other parties. The reciprocal of "major" is "minor" and minor infers lack of consequence. I disagree that only those issues which are 1st champioend by Dems and Repubs are of consequence. Political parties are all about the advancement of ideas. To call Dems and Pubbys the only "major" parties is to infer that nothing of merit originates anywhere else. I am opposed to that inference and I feel that "larger" is more NPOV. See my additional comments at: Talk - Democratic Party. Merecat 17:30, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
All my further replies regarding this are at the Democratic Party's talk page. Merecat 17:47, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
Added the progressivism template for historical reasons as the GOP from 1861-1913 contain progressive elements including Lincoln and Roosevelt (Teddy) and was America's progressive party compared the the Democratic Party of that time that resembles today's Republican Party. -- Northmeister 05:18, 16 April 2006 (UTC)
Red did not become the party's color in the 2000 election. The networks alternated which color they gave to each party according to an odd system. In 2000, it just happened that red went to the Republicans, and blue to the Democrats. The media then started to refer to "blue America" to refer to Democratic areas, and "red America" to refer to Republican area. In 2004, the arcane system (the color for the incumbent party switches every four years) meant that the colors of 2000 repeated themselves, although it is possible that those colors would have continued to be used anyway, given the prevalence of the media "red America"/"blue America" narrative. At any rate, even if, in violation of the long-standing TV network tradition, blue and red remain the colors to represent, respectively, the Democratic and Republican Parties in 2008, that certainly does not mean that red or blue is the "color" of the two parties. It is a color used by TV networks on maps. There is nothing on the GOP webpage to indicate that red is the "party color", nor anything on the Democratic one to indicate that blue is the same for them. I think the whole "color" thing ought to be removed from the infobox. john k 22:56, 19 April 2006 (UTC)
Socialized, federalized, single-payer, whatever term fits your preference, I don't care what we call it. Do the Republicans actually oppose changes because they think the current system is best or have they simply not liked the alternatives presented so far? I note with some concern that Mitt Romney is a Republican and has recently supported state-subsized health care for all in Mass., with the encouragement of traditionally conservative/libertarian think tanks. Most Republicans seem to like the idea, based on an admittedly small sample that consists of the self-selected handful that I've heard talking about it on TV. Is it fair then to say they oppose any changes to the current system, vs they oppose the changes proposed thus far, with Romney being a notable exception? I'd also like us to cite the fact give about the numbers of uninsured. I don't doubt that it's true, it just needs to be properly sourced. I don't know the "citation needed" tag offhand and I'm in a hurry here, so I just removed it to get some attention brought to it. Sorry! Bjsiders 13:32, 15 May 2006 (UTC)
I changed the wording to Republicans have generally opposed almost all proposals to change the current ... I think it's a little more neutral and reflects what can be objectively known. It's unquestionable that they've opposed changes to the system. I feel the speculation on why is bouyed only by circumstantial evidence. It'd be like saying that the Democrats oppose private education because of the teacher's union. That can't really be known as a fact. I hope the new wording conveys the situation appropriately, please challenge/discuss if you disagree. Bjsiders 15:28, 15 May 2006 (UTC)
I explained the wholesale deletion in y original post in this section. Bjsiders 12:31, 18 May 2006 (UTC)
The person who wrote this article is obviuosly a strong Republican. They made Republicans sound almost exactly the same as Democrats, even writing Republican views that are Democratic. I'm not saying that I don't agree with Republican views nor Democratic; I'm Libertarian/Centrist, so it's not hard to try not to side with one party. Just wikify it a bit. 24.13.67.143 02:49, 18 May 2006 (UTC)
{{POV}} I also felt there was a strong bias towards the article being more Democratic than Republican in regards to platform and actual events. There is nothing said about Haditha, Al-Zarq, and the results of the gay marriage and immigration bills.
Editors of this page may be interested in checking out the peer review of Tom DeLay. Please leave your comments, criticism, and suggestions at Wikipedia:Peer review/Tom DeLay/archive1. Thanks, NatusRoma | Talk 23:45, 24 May 2006 (UTC)
Take a look at the page on the DNC. It has a section for the party's stands on issues. Very nice setup, IMO. I think the same type of setup for the RNC page might be useful, especially for people to understand the parties' views on particular topics. Any thoughts? Dubc0724 20:10, 31 May 2006 (UTC)
I suggest that somebody hit the RNC web site and grab a list of official Republican planks from it. As with any political party there's tremendous variance between and among individual candidates and elected officials, but I think we can enumerate the core princples of the party, at least as they are claimed by the party's own chair. Bjsiders 16:03, 1 June 2006 (UTC)
==Invasion vs Liberation=+
Both terms are factually accurate. Iraq was liberated from Hussein. Afghanistan was liberated from the Taliban. Both actions were also invasions. The term "occupation" is as little dicier. We "occupy" in the sense that we have a military presence there. Do we also "occupy" Germany, Australia, and Okinawa because our military is there? And becauase it engages in training exercises with foreign troops? I don't understand why both "liberation" and "invasion" cannot be used in the context of this discussion. I note that the Democratic Party article exclusively uses the term "invasion." I'm not saying we have to stick to that simply because that article does, but it is worth noting.
Bjsiders
16:25, 6 June 2006 (UTC)
I would say we do occupy those countries having lived in Okinawa personally. There is anti-American sentiment in Okinawa and we are increasingly decreasing our presence there. I disagree that those states are liberated (except from Saddam in Iraq's case), the Taliban still commands a presence as well as Al-Qaeda in both. I would say that they are in transitional period. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 68.71.169.177 ( talk • contribs) .
Go to uselectionatlas.org or many other Internet mapping sites that use blue as the color for the Electoral College. 70.191.174.29 20:42, 24 June 2006 (UTC)
I'm having some problems with the script for the infobox. 70.191.174.29 21:03, 24 June 2006 (UTC)
WP:AGF works only to the point where that presumption can be valid. Editing out maintenance notices and/or editing out compromises is in bad faith. If the compromise is not agreed to by consensus, then the maintenance notice must remain until there is consensus on the talk page. 165.91.162.79 19:06, 25 June 2006 (UTC)
Save articles that are semi-protected, anonymous users have as much weight in editing as registered users. And Wikipedia policy states clearly that removing maintenance notice without consensus is vandalism. As it stands right now, you are the only one with objections to the notice. MinorityInAcademia 19:23, 25 June 2006 (UTC)
The anon user hasn't backed up their reasoning for the accuracy tag, Red has become the informal color of the Republican party since the election of 2000, and is quite accurate and the note explains why, it should be removed since the issue has been handled quote correctly. PPGMD 20:23, 25 June 2006 (UTC)
Agreed, the defacto "color" is red. Bjsiders 17:01, 26 June 2006 (UTC)
Show me a source where the GOP has officially accepted the colour to be red? Drew1369 19:54, 20 September 2006 (UTC)
The color scheme is unofficial and informal, but is widely recognized by all media and commentators. Partisan supporters now often use the colors for promotional materials and campaign merchandise, and it would be a disservice not to include this information.
At the end of the "Future Trends" section, the following sentence appears:
The difference is within the margin of error... doesn't that essentially invalidate the conclusion (which I bolded)? - SigmaEpsilon → ΣΕ 20:40, 26 June 2006 (UTC)
Why is this is even in here? One poll from April 2006? Does it have any serious relevence to the article as a whole? Bjsiders 15:51, 27 June 2006 (UTC)
Can someone check upon the Neo-fascism#Neo-Fascism and the United States piece. I find the inclusions (starting at the Chomsky bit) all very suspect. Intangible 18:02, 29 June 2006 (UTC)
For anyone with some spare time, I just created two new categories: Category:Fictional Republicans and Category:Fictional Democrats. I just made them over the last four hours, and I was only able to find around 30-35 for each. They're for fictional members of the two main political parties, so if any of you can contribute some more, it would be appreciated. Thanks! Michael 06:49, 19 July 2006 (UTC)
I think it would be very relevant for an inclusion of what opponents have to say about the party (namely the Democrat party). It would have to be somewhat limited, otherwise the section could grow to excessive lengths. I am adding a similar section to the Democrat Party discussion. -- 68.176.139.189 04:24, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
I dont know why it wasn't here already -- Musaabdulrashid 01:33, 13 August 2006 (UTC) Come to think of it, this is downright confusing. It apears to me that this article is only availible in english and not catagorized at all. What is going on?-- Musaabdulrashid 01:36, 13 August 2006 (UTC)
this IP Adress recently vandalized the republican party page by erasing "conservatism and American conservatism" in the idelogies field of the summarizing box at the top of the article. The user replaced these ideologies with "neo-fascism" —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 65.27.82.69 ( talk • contribs) 7:36, 15 August 2006 (UTC)
This is my first time reading all the way through the article, and I was quite impressed by how professionally much of seems to be written - there's a lot of interesting information about how various policies and ideological shifts have affected the party voter base and so forth. It's almost like a genuine encyclopedic article.
However, the quality (or at least the style) seems to change dramatically when it hits the Bush presidency (the "2000" section). The Reagan entry, for example; gave a good balance between a summary of what was happening in the Reagan administration and what was happening to the party itself - emerging voter bases etc. However, the "2000" entry leans far too heavily towards a little mini-debate over Bush's policies, with some people so desperate to list Hurricane Katrina criticisms that it appears twice: "His administration’s response to the Hurricane Katrina disaster was very unpopular...". Then, only a line or two later: "In September, 2005 Hurricane Katrina destroyed large sections of New Orleans, Louisiana and the Gulf Coast. The Bush Administration's response to this crisis was widely viewed as inadequate." (As a side note, both these entries are POV and/or unsourced). Obviously it's important to talk about George Bush in relation to the fortunes of the party itself, but things are a little out of hand here.
So, does anyone have any suggestions as to what would be useful subjects pertaining to the Republican Party in the "2000 (onwards)" section? Edders 10:06, 31 August 2006 (UTC)
I completely agree. It seems whenever there is a mention of President Bush on Wikipedia, the partisans have to come in an add their one or two sentences to emphasize their point of view. I guess I should read the Democratic Party entry to see if Clinton is skewered.
This sentence:
"Liberal Republicans such as Senators Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Arlen Specter and Lincoln Chafee have social views more in line with the Republicans Democratic Party opponents. The term "RINO" -- Republican In Name Only -- has recently come into use to denote liberal Republicans disagreeing with the policies of the majority of the party."
was recently edited to:
"Moderate Republicans such as Senators Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Arlen Specter and Lincoln Chafee have sometimes not been regarded as "loyal" by conservatives who want to remake the party in their own image. The term "RINO" -- Republican In Name Only -- has recently come into use to denote moderate Republicans disagreeing with the policies of the more conservative right wing"
Whilst I see that the editor was trying to eliminate the slight POV bias present, the new version is itself a little messy for two reasons:
1: Referring the Specter etc. as "Moderates" is risky because "moderate" is not a neutral label - many political figures regard themselves or would like to be regarded as "moderate". Perhaps a better label would be 'centrist' - implying simply that they lean torwards more moderate policies rather than that they are actually 'moderates' themselves. Just a thought.
2: To argue that the moderates/centrists in the party are labelled RINOs because they disagree with the "more conservative right wing" is problematic. It implies several things, including that only the 'right wing' of the party attacks RINOs. Whether you agrre with it or it, the most common reason cited by other republicans for their criticism of people like Chafee and Specter is not that they advocate centrist or less conservative policies than others in the party. The reason cited is that RINOs are not Republican at all, and that they are not centrists either - rather, they are liberal democrats who run on a republican ticket. Again, it doesn't matter if you agree with this claim, but it is the usual justification given for RINO-bashing (heh). Edders 09:04, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
Mmm...okay but you miss the point slightly. I'm not personally saying any RINOs are liberals, or moderates, or anything. I'm just saying that the current edit misrepresents (unintenionally) the position of those republicans who criticize RINOs. As for the moderate/centrist thing, well, I suppose we could wrangle for ages over the most 'neutral' term so you may as well leave the 'moderate' bit as it is. Edders 12:38, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
I think it's extremely suspect to announce that "Republicans believe" such-and-such. First of all, it's the rare thing that Lincoln Chafee and Rick Santorum agree on. And considering that there are, what, about 50,000,000 registered Republicans in the U.S. (?), it was always be incorrect to say, in an unqualified way, that "Republicans believe" something.
Moreoever, a lot of what politicans on both sides claim to "believe" is, in essence, a lie. How many people really think, for instance, that Senate Democrats oppose the FMA because "the issue should be left up to the states"? My supposition is that they oppose the FMA because they think it's discriminatory and mean, and the "up to the states" argument is just a widely palatable excuse for their opposition. Similarly, I imagine there are many Republicans who cut social programs because they think the entire idea of a safety net is bleeding-heart, soft-headed policy; the thing about how "the private sector can make up the difference" is, for those individuals, merely convenient rhetoric and not a belief.
My solution is this: I think somebody (I'll volunteer) should go through the article, and, depending on context, do one of the following: a) replace the word "believe" with "assert," "claim," or "contend"; b) use qualifiers like "many" before "Republicans believe" statements; or c) both--that is, "Republicans believe" would, in certain instances, become "Many Republicans assert."
I won't do anything for a week or so. Let's have a discussion.
--Ike, 20 September 2006
It's been suggested that the reference to the War on Poverty in the Kyoto section doesn't truthfully portray GOP beliefs. I, for the record, introduced that phrase into the article, as a replacement for awkward phraseology about "minimizing the reduction of poverty." Discuss. -- 72.229.133.128 17:09, 21 September 2006 (UTC)
As a non-American visitor to this site I've noticed recently that several pages refer to the Republican Party simply as the GOP and was wondering about the sense of this substitution, how well known is this acronym outside the States? Although I imagine American visitors will be familiar with the term I strongly suspect that others like myself are not and when it isn't linked to this page can cause confusion. If the consensus is that it's obvious enough or I am untypical enough to disregard then I bow to that decision. 81.178.57.22 21:01, 5 October 2006 (UTC)
“ | The Republican Party (often referred to as the GOP, for "Grand Old Party") is one of the two major political organizations in the United States' two party system; its great rival is the Democratic Party. | ” |
Current: Although the GOP has voted for increases in government funding of scientific research, many members actively oppose the federal funding of embryonic stem cell research because it involves the harvesting and destruction of human embryos (which some consider morally equivalent to abortion), while arguing for diverting research money into adult stem cell research, which has had some limited proven successes.
Suggestion: Although the GOP has voted for increases in government funding of scientific research, many members actively oppose the federal funding of embryonic stem cell research because it involves the harvesting and destruction of human embryos (which some consider morally equivalent to abortion), while arguing for diverting research money into adult stem cell research, which has had a number of clinically proven successes.
This suggestion is based upon the Wikipedia article written on "Adult stem cell".
Thanks for your information service.
Damn, you in the United States have strange political standards Oo You say the republicans are "Center Right" OO Such a party would be at the far right in Europe.
What is the purpose of this discussion? The United States has absolutely no tendency toward Communism, which is as far left as you can get, nor does it have any tendency toward Dictatorship, which is as far right as you can get; therefore, the entire spectrum is shifted and stretched.
A Dictatorship can be found anywhere on the spectrum. You don't need a political program to be a power-hungry tyrant. I don't think the old 1-dimensional political spectrum is that reliable but if we have to go buy it, the far-right would be fascism. Also, The United States is a (classical) liberal country. It is unclear whether it is a center-left or center-right ideology, the wiki article on liberalism calls it center-left, but like the lady or gentleman who started this little sub-thread, the range of the American Political spectrum is considered far right in Europe. I guess one ideology's position on the left-right spectrum is placed relative to another. -Mike Reason
There is not mention of segregation in this article, which is the number 1 reason the majority of the south is republican today. before, the south was the land of the "dixiecrats" (southern democrats). LBJ's decision to stick by JFK's civil rights platform handed the south firmly to the republicans who came out against integrating White and Black america. I'm not here to smear the republicans (they do that well enough by themselves), but the above fact is way too important not to mention. I also didn't see a mention on the reason Blacks switch from overwhelmingly supporting the Republicans (party of Lincoln, right?) to the democrats. Any historian worth his or her salt knows exactly why, but its not mentioned here. whoever is responsible for this page should make sure to add this very pertinent info.
Exscuse me, are you Southern, i would not think so, but i am one form Virginia probably the state with some of the most heated intergraiton problems and segregation is not the number one reason. It was a general shift in policy for both parties.
Scott Free 15:28, 18 October 2006 (UTC)
I have unprotected the page. Protection for three weeks is unacceptable, even if it is semi-protection. Protect for short periods, as needed, to mitigate severe vandalism. See the semi-protection policy. Superm401 - Talk 05:56, 29 October 2006 (UTC)
The article fails to mention changing bases in geographical support for the GOP, at least after the 19th century, with a special focus on its current Southern powerbase. The article alludes at times to Nixon's Southern Strategy, etc., but does not speicfically focus on the issue. Would a separate section or set of sections on geographical history be best or should this be incorporated into the existing chronology? Francisx 16:24, 31 October 2006 (UTC)
![]() | This is an archive of past discussions. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page. |
Archive 1 | Archive 2 | Archive 3 | Archive 4 | Archive 5 | → | Archive 10 |
I suggest that when you have this HUGE subject you have to have priorities. Big issues like: Iraq, Patriot Act, immigration, tax cuts, Supreme court nominees, get maybe 1 or two sentences. Ephemeral issues (like voting machines in Ohio) do not make the cut. So what is important: 1. all major elections should be covered. Some Republicans want to minimize mention of losses. No, this has to be NPOV and the article can not minimize the embarrassing stories (like corruption or failed impeachment). 2. The 5 or 10 most important national leaders should be mentioned (that is, Bush, Cheney, DeLay, Frist, Hastert, McCain, Schwarznegger, Romney, Giuliani... maybe one or 2 more). People can click and learn more. 3. The biggest issues should be covered briefly, so that the user can click and get to full coverage. 4. Some mention of the GOP in the states is needed. (For example, GOP has scandals in Ohio and Illinois.) 5. The various factions have to be covered. On the whole the article is quite good--better than the one of the Democrats. It needs more history (look at the holes before 1994) and I plan to work on that some more. Rjensen 19:20, 16 December 2005 (UTC)
Many of the pols are testing the GOP candidates for 2008. They all show pretty much the same thing-- see for example the Pew Poll at http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=261 That is: John McCain, Rudy Giuliani and Condoleezza Rice all do well among Republicans AND do well among independents. However the conservative candidates do poorly among independents in the general election. Rjensen 19:04, 29 December 2005 (UTC)
December CNN poll shows same results: CNN Rice's foreign policy views are clear. Her domestic policies are vague, but she has said she is pro-choice. Rjensen 19:20, 29 December 2005 (UTC)
Rice is an officer of the executive branch, her job is to promote the President's policies, not her own. Be careful in equating what she says or does as the Secretary of State with her personal policy preferences. Bjsiders 19:39, 29 December 2005 (UTC)
I have added more issues both domestic and foreign that seem to characterize the GOP (and added a bit of history as well). I also noted issues where the party seems divided (such as immigration and stem cells). Does this make sense as a summary of the GOP? Rjensen 01:01, 4 January 2006 (UTC)
The Republican party is not Libertarian or neo-Libertarian at all. It stand for increased government intrusion into citizens affairs via spying on them without FISA court oversight, increased big government spending such as the new prescription drug debacle, increased foreign interventionism, for example in Iraq and possibly Syria and Iran if the neo-conservatives in control continue to have their way. The Republican party does not favor personal liberty to use recreational drugs or purchase medical drugs on the international market and the party favors greater censorship of the airwaves and the internet and increasing the new FBI porn squad. Republican presidents have overseen increased government spending and burgeoning deficits. During Ronald Reagan's term, the Democratic congress approved smaller budgets than Reagan proposed. Middle of the night earmarks have become a plague since Republicans gained control of the house and earmarks in general have tripled since then. Republicans, including Bush, want to introduce so-called intelligent design (which is covert christian creationism) into the schools. They want to introduce biblical symbols into courthouses, furthering government intrusion into freedom of religion and eroding the separation of church and state. The Delay / Boehner / Hastert / Abramoff K-Street Project has given corporate lobbyists and cronies special access to writing legislation and positions of power, which has reduced the power of individuals and increased the corporatist statism. There is no way that the Republican party can truthfully be identified with Libertarianism and it would be false to add that tag to the info box. Hu 12:37, 5 February 2006 (UTC)
Amen to that~ Lilfreakydude
They only affiliate with the GOP on economics, which is merely cronyism by corporate interests. The Libertarian party also is very controversial in its own right and criticisms of it being very rigid and contradictory to its own claim "as the party of principle" can be made.
Regardless, libertarians self-associate with the Republican party far more often than the Democratic party. You suggest more monolithic thought among Republicans than I think is fair. You omit Republicans opposing restrictions on gun ownership, opposing the use of eminient domain to take land from people, opposing confiscatory tax rates, wanting to privatize social security, opposing federalized health care, etc. There's plenty of issues on which they are in line with Libertarian views. And plenty on which they are not. Bjsiders 14:02, 6 February 2006 (UTC)
The Republican party is a coalition of various factions. As a libertarian Republican, that we aren't dead yet. Also, we're kind of regarded as extreme by the conservatives, so sometimes we'll masquerade as conservatives so that other conservatives won't tune us out and we'll slowly break it to them. I know I'm not the only one that does it but that tactic still might not be widespread. Though the Religious Right may have a temporary advantage, we're still a powerful force within the Republican party. Also for the past 25 years, libertarians and the Religious Right have been in a perpetual but subtle battle for control of the spirit of the party. -Mike Reason
Also, I hate to nitpick people but, just to clarify things: when referring to someone or something affiliated with the Libertarian party, you spell libertarian with a capital "L." When describing a philosophical libertarian you just spell it "libertarian." -Mike Reason
I don't think abortion is an exception to the Republican position at all. Republicans, first and foremost believe in States' Rights and overturning Roe v. Wade would return abortion to the states, not outlaw it. There may be some in the party that want the Federal Government or Constitutional ammendment to end abortion but that is not the mainstream Republican view which s simply to overturn Roe v. Wade and return control to the states. Tbeatty 01:01, 7 February 2006 (UTC)
Whether or not one thinks Roe vs Wade was a good court decision is not necessarily a part of whether or not one thinks abortion should be legal. You be pro-choice and think RvW is wrong, and you can be anti-abortion and think RvW is right, although I've yet to meet anybody with the latter opinion. I think the statement as I wrote it is fair and accurate. Abortion would seem to be a highly personal decision, but Republicans tend to NOT support fully individual freedom on the topic due to their belief in the rights of the unborn child. Bjsiders 01:39, 7 February 2006 (UTC)
Can we get a source for the claim that Rice supports abortion rights? I am not sure I have ever heard her opinion on the matter, and would like it sourced. Thanks. -- LV (Dark Mark) 15:03, 7 February 2006 (UTC)
There should be something in the article which mentions Republicans for choice. There are many pro-choice republicans. There seems to be a overgeneralization that all republicans are pro-life and that is not the case. In fact organizations such as Republicans For Choice, have joined with other Republican groups such as Log Cabin Republicans and the Republican Youth Majority to have the Republican platform amended so that it reflects the diverse opinions on abortion throughout the party. http://www.republicansforchoice.com/keyissues.htm -- Tribeca 728 05:40, 20 July 2006 (UTC)
I'm readding the claim that some have made the the Republican Party is "America's natural governing party". It's an observation I have read on blogs and heard on talk radio on numerous occasions. Look, I'm not trying to start some kind of fight with any of my fellow Wikipedians. I'm just saying that this an encylopedia and therefore should have all information on the party, therefore the claim deserves to be mentioned. It's not like its being stated as a fact, just a nickname some have dubbed the party. Besides, it makes sense. Of the past 145 years, a Republican has controlled the White House for nearly 90 years. The level of success the GOP has had is indeed analogous to the success of the Liberal Party of Canada, which is frequently dubbed "Canada's natural governing party". -- HowardDean 21:10, 10 February 2006 (UTC)
{{POV}} Absolutely ridicolous, no further comment needs to be made here.
Common' folks. "Natural" in governing is clearly a POV. Unless you can cite a reliable source that this is widespread knowledge, it can't stay. Olin 16:09, 18 February 2006 (UTC)
True, and 18 out of 27 is only 2/3. Hardly a wide enough margin to be considered "natural". I'm guessing that, given enough time, the parties (if their still around) will even out. Also, given anytime frame, one can find a lean. Take the 20 years between 1930 to 1950, there all but 2 years were governed by a Dem. Squiggyfm 17:43, 18 February 2006 (UTC)
Is there any reference for the claim the GOP voter base among college educated or professionals has slipped?? The last data I have seen shows Democrats carving out the ends (high school dropouts and PhDs in universities) while Republicans had solid command of College and master degree earners. Tbeatty 23:36, 10 February 2006 (UTC)
ok fair challenge. Father Bush got 50% of MA+ voters in 1988, and Son Bush got only 35% (based on exit polls in both cases). That's a BIG change. For old exits see New York Times Nov 10, 1988 p. 18].. and even older exits are in National Journal Nov 8, 1980 page 1878 Rjensen 03:20, 12 February 2006 (UTC)
The Democrat Leadership Conference (DLC) had a televised (C-SPAN) meeting a week after the election and they stated that only a majority of voters who were high school dropouts and PhD's voted for Kerry. The majority of high school grads, some college, BA Degrees and MA degrees voted for Bush. Bachs 15:03, 14 February 2006 (UTC)
At some point we all need to figure out that American history and political party history didn't start with Bush v Gore. Bjsiders 18:20, 17 March 2006 (UTC)
Somebody is slipping in a lot of nasty Larouche type thinking about "covert cells" and "cell churches". Please watch out for this nonsense and revert immediately. Rjensen 06:09, 15 February 2006 (UTC)
Neo-Liberal applies to Republicans much closer than to Democrats according to every poli-sci class I have ever had. The Shively textbook [7] also makes this clear. Keep in mind that political science uses the Euro definitions of liberal and not the American versions.
Neither party is neo-liberal; they're not like the programmatic parties of Europe. If you look at America's partisan history, you'll find that the parties' political agendas are based on what strategy they think will get them the most votes. Then again, the political parties in the United States have lost a lot of power, so maybe the old rules no longer apply. But more importantly, there isn't a strong non-liberal presence in the United States. I mean liberal in the classical sense. You've basically got, liberal conservatives, social liberals, and libertarians. Everyone outside of the liberal arena is basically considered a crackpot. Except for that time around the 1930's when CommunistPartyUSA had gained some influence for a short while. Also, the rise of the fundamentalist christians within the Republican party and the new left forms the base of the Democratic party, especially after all the anti-communists left the Democratic party in the late 70's. And let's face it, things like socialized healthcare go far beyond the left-most borders of social liberalism. I'd say a good percentile of the modern Democratic party are closet social democrats. -Mike Reason
A serious article needs a serious bibliography because we are cvovering 150+ years of national history with many famous names and events. It averages out to 2-3 booksper presidential term, which is pretty thin. Maybe the best solution is to just have a HISTORY of GOP article, which I have done. Comments? Rjensen 05:15, 22 February 2006 (UTC)
Lets keep the history of the Republican Party with the article about the Republican Party and not separate them. If we must separate them, lets at least have the history article established before it is removed from the page. BCV 07:18, 22 February 2006 (UTC)
Does anyone know why the three stars on the elephant are upside down? Linda 68.65.73.42 22:57, 24 February 2006 (UTC)
Should we have critical links (the Democratc Party page does not) from non-GOP sources? If so, from what sources (magazines, blogs, opposition parties)? Rkevins82 00:34, 1 March 2006 (UTC)
Can someone explain why the Republicans have one of these sections and the Democrats do not? I didn't realize that we were in the business of predicting the future and I'm not understanding why we are quoting Democratic pollsters and such. Does anybody honesly believe that they are not going to be affect by their bias? It would be the same thing for the Democrat page if I started to quote Republican pollsters and such and saying that the Democratic party is on it's way downhill. KLRMNKY 10:55, 8 March 2006 (UTC)
The claim that "As of 2006...main st. and wall street....supports the GOP." needs verified.
I dont see where it verifies that behavior in the status-quo. I grant in 2004 such was the case, but I have seen nothing that suggests this is still the case.
The RNC has various types of memberships with varying duties. Also, how it is structured, from grass-roots to the chairman would also be of interest. I'm asking, because I couldn't find this information and I believe others would like to know as well. -- Kimonandreou 14:48, 27 March 2006 (UTC)
I concur. RNC organizational structures, and manners of action, say as much about the party as history and soundbites. -- User: Oregon Republican League
Well taken. What I took the previous poster to suggest, was the beneficial nature of adding a section briefly discussing the range of opportunities for "members" to "support" the RNC. Not that these groups would not also accept "support" from nonmembers... but I took the comments to refer to groups like: the Republican Regents, Team 100, RNC Majority Fund, Presidential Victory Team, The President's Club, Republican Eagles... I think I'm missing one... to the Sustaining Member category. -- User: Oregon Republican League 18:00, 15 April 2006 (PST)
This content was removed from the democratic party article, because it was about the republican party, not the democratic party:
In the mid 1990s, the Republican Party hired right-wing partisan pollster Frank Luntz to run manipulative focus groups to develop ways of negatively politically frame members of Democratic Party. One result of those focus group tests was the use of the term "Democrat Party" rather than the traditional "Democratic Party." This is deliberately incorrect and was echoed in right-wing media outlets such as Rush Limbaugh and Fox News.
Kevin Baas talk 20:50, 27 March 2006 (UTC)
The reason given that it must oppose affirmative action because racial quotas are illegal is a fallacy. It would be like saying the GOP is against immigration reform because illegal immigration has been illegal for a long time. -- Tbeatty 17:07, 28 March 2006 (UTC)
Merecat 16:48, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
Also see Green Party (United States) which says "has been active as a third party since the 1980s.". Ralph Nader ran as a Green in 2000 and tipped the Florida election, his impct there was indeed "Major". Also, "in 2002, John Eder's election to the Maine State House of Representatives marked the first Green Party state legislator in the United States elected in a regular election." Merecat 16:56, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
Also see Libertarian Party (United States) which states "The Libertarian Party is a United States political party created in 1971. It is the largest third party in the United States, with over 200,000 registered voters and over 600 people in office, including mayors, county executives, county council members, school boards and other local offices."
I contend that by any reasonable defintion, the Libertarians and Greens are major and the use of major in the intro as currently used, is a false statement. Merecat 17:00, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
Merecat 17:00, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
What I am saying is that "larger" coveys the required information, without making a value judgement as to the validity or worth of the other parties. The reciprocal of "major" is "minor" and minor infers lack of consequence. I disagree that only those issues which are 1st champioend by Dems and Repubs are of consequence. Political parties are all about the advancement of ideas. To call Dems and Pubbys the only "major" parties is to infer that nothing of merit originates anywhere else. I am opposed to that inference and I feel that "larger" is more NPOV. See my additional comments at: Talk - Democratic Party. Merecat 17:30, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
All my further replies regarding this are at the Democratic Party's talk page. Merecat 17:47, 15 April 2006 (UTC)
Added the progressivism template for historical reasons as the GOP from 1861-1913 contain progressive elements including Lincoln and Roosevelt (Teddy) and was America's progressive party compared the the Democratic Party of that time that resembles today's Republican Party. -- Northmeister 05:18, 16 April 2006 (UTC)
Red did not become the party's color in the 2000 election. The networks alternated which color they gave to each party according to an odd system. In 2000, it just happened that red went to the Republicans, and blue to the Democrats. The media then started to refer to "blue America" to refer to Democratic areas, and "red America" to refer to Republican area. In 2004, the arcane system (the color for the incumbent party switches every four years) meant that the colors of 2000 repeated themselves, although it is possible that those colors would have continued to be used anyway, given the prevalence of the media "red America"/"blue America" narrative. At any rate, even if, in violation of the long-standing TV network tradition, blue and red remain the colors to represent, respectively, the Democratic and Republican Parties in 2008, that certainly does not mean that red or blue is the "color" of the two parties. It is a color used by TV networks on maps. There is nothing on the GOP webpage to indicate that red is the "party color", nor anything on the Democratic one to indicate that blue is the same for them. I think the whole "color" thing ought to be removed from the infobox. john k 22:56, 19 April 2006 (UTC)
Socialized, federalized, single-payer, whatever term fits your preference, I don't care what we call it. Do the Republicans actually oppose changes because they think the current system is best or have they simply not liked the alternatives presented so far? I note with some concern that Mitt Romney is a Republican and has recently supported state-subsized health care for all in Mass., with the encouragement of traditionally conservative/libertarian think tanks. Most Republicans seem to like the idea, based on an admittedly small sample that consists of the self-selected handful that I've heard talking about it on TV. Is it fair then to say they oppose any changes to the current system, vs they oppose the changes proposed thus far, with Romney being a notable exception? I'd also like us to cite the fact give about the numbers of uninsured. I don't doubt that it's true, it just needs to be properly sourced. I don't know the "citation needed" tag offhand and I'm in a hurry here, so I just removed it to get some attention brought to it. Sorry! Bjsiders 13:32, 15 May 2006 (UTC)
I changed the wording to Republicans have generally opposed almost all proposals to change the current ... I think it's a little more neutral and reflects what can be objectively known. It's unquestionable that they've opposed changes to the system. I feel the speculation on why is bouyed only by circumstantial evidence. It'd be like saying that the Democrats oppose private education because of the teacher's union. That can't really be known as a fact. I hope the new wording conveys the situation appropriately, please challenge/discuss if you disagree. Bjsiders 15:28, 15 May 2006 (UTC)
I explained the wholesale deletion in y original post in this section. Bjsiders 12:31, 18 May 2006 (UTC)
The person who wrote this article is obviuosly a strong Republican. They made Republicans sound almost exactly the same as Democrats, even writing Republican views that are Democratic. I'm not saying that I don't agree with Republican views nor Democratic; I'm Libertarian/Centrist, so it's not hard to try not to side with one party. Just wikify it a bit. 24.13.67.143 02:49, 18 May 2006 (UTC)
{{POV}} I also felt there was a strong bias towards the article being more Democratic than Republican in regards to platform and actual events. There is nothing said about Haditha, Al-Zarq, and the results of the gay marriage and immigration bills.
Editors of this page may be interested in checking out the peer review of Tom DeLay. Please leave your comments, criticism, and suggestions at Wikipedia:Peer review/Tom DeLay/archive1. Thanks, NatusRoma | Talk 23:45, 24 May 2006 (UTC)
Take a look at the page on the DNC. It has a section for the party's stands on issues. Very nice setup, IMO. I think the same type of setup for the RNC page might be useful, especially for people to understand the parties' views on particular topics. Any thoughts? Dubc0724 20:10, 31 May 2006 (UTC)
I suggest that somebody hit the RNC web site and grab a list of official Republican planks from it. As with any political party there's tremendous variance between and among individual candidates and elected officials, but I think we can enumerate the core princples of the party, at least as they are claimed by the party's own chair. Bjsiders 16:03, 1 June 2006 (UTC)
==Invasion vs Liberation=+
Both terms are factually accurate. Iraq was liberated from Hussein. Afghanistan was liberated from the Taliban. Both actions were also invasions. The term "occupation" is as little dicier. We "occupy" in the sense that we have a military presence there. Do we also "occupy" Germany, Australia, and Okinawa because our military is there? And becauase it engages in training exercises with foreign troops? I don't understand why both "liberation" and "invasion" cannot be used in the context of this discussion. I note that the Democratic Party article exclusively uses the term "invasion." I'm not saying we have to stick to that simply because that article does, but it is worth noting.
Bjsiders
16:25, 6 June 2006 (UTC)
I would say we do occupy those countries having lived in Okinawa personally. There is anti-American sentiment in Okinawa and we are increasingly decreasing our presence there. I disagree that those states are liberated (except from Saddam in Iraq's case), the Taliban still commands a presence as well as Al-Qaeda in both. I would say that they are in transitional period. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 68.71.169.177 ( talk • contribs) .
Go to uselectionatlas.org or many other Internet mapping sites that use blue as the color for the Electoral College. 70.191.174.29 20:42, 24 June 2006 (UTC)
I'm having some problems with the script for the infobox. 70.191.174.29 21:03, 24 June 2006 (UTC)
WP:AGF works only to the point where that presumption can be valid. Editing out maintenance notices and/or editing out compromises is in bad faith. If the compromise is not agreed to by consensus, then the maintenance notice must remain until there is consensus on the talk page. 165.91.162.79 19:06, 25 June 2006 (UTC)
Save articles that are semi-protected, anonymous users have as much weight in editing as registered users. And Wikipedia policy states clearly that removing maintenance notice without consensus is vandalism. As it stands right now, you are the only one with objections to the notice. MinorityInAcademia 19:23, 25 June 2006 (UTC)
The anon user hasn't backed up their reasoning for the accuracy tag, Red has become the informal color of the Republican party since the election of 2000, and is quite accurate and the note explains why, it should be removed since the issue has been handled quote correctly. PPGMD 20:23, 25 June 2006 (UTC)
Agreed, the defacto "color" is red. Bjsiders 17:01, 26 June 2006 (UTC)
Show me a source where the GOP has officially accepted the colour to be red? Drew1369 19:54, 20 September 2006 (UTC)
The color scheme is unofficial and informal, but is widely recognized by all media and commentators. Partisan supporters now often use the colors for promotional materials and campaign merchandise, and it would be a disservice not to include this information.
At the end of the "Future Trends" section, the following sentence appears:
The difference is within the margin of error... doesn't that essentially invalidate the conclusion (which I bolded)? - SigmaEpsilon → ΣΕ 20:40, 26 June 2006 (UTC)
Why is this is even in here? One poll from April 2006? Does it have any serious relevence to the article as a whole? Bjsiders 15:51, 27 June 2006 (UTC)
Can someone check upon the Neo-fascism#Neo-Fascism and the United States piece. I find the inclusions (starting at the Chomsky bit) all very suspect. Intangible 18:02, 29 June 2006 (UTC)
For anyone with some spare time, I just created two new categories: Category:Fictional Republicans and Category:Fictional Democrats. I just made them over the last four hours, and I was only able to find around 30-35 for each. They're for fictional members of the two main political parties, so if any of you can contribute some more, it would be appreciated. Thanks! Michael 06:49, 19 July 2006 (UTC)
I think it would be very relevant for an inclusion of what opponents have to say about the party (namely the Democrat party). It would have to be somewhat limited, otherwise the section could grow to excessive lengths. I am adding a similar section to the Democrat Party discussion. -- 68.176.139.189 04:24, 4 August 2006 (UTC)
I dont know why it wasn't here already -- Musaabdulrashid 01:33, 13 August 2006 (UTC) Come to think of it, this is downright confusing. It apears to me that this article is only availible in english and not catagorized at all. What is going on?-- Musaabdulrashid 01:36, 13 August 2006 (UTC)
this IP Adress recently vandalized the republican party page by erasing "conservatism and American conservatism" in the idelogies field of the summarizing box at the top of the article. The user replaced these ideologies with "neo-fascism" —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 65.27.82.69 ( talk • contribs) 7:36, 15 August 2006 (UTC)
This is my first time reading all the way through the article, and I was quite impressed by how professionally much of seems to be written - there's a lot of interesting information about how various policies and ideological shifts have affected the party voter base and so forth. It's almost like a genuine encyclopedic article.
However, the quality (or at least the style) seems to change dramatically when it hits the Bush presidency (the "2000" section). The Reagan entry, for example; gave a good balance between a summary of what was happening in the Reagan administration and what was happening to the party itself - emerging voter bases etc. However, the "2000" entry leans far too heavily towards a little mini-debate over Bush's policies, with some people so desperate to list Hurricane Katrina criticisms that it appears twice: "His administration’s response to the Hurricane Katrina disaster was very unpopular...". Then, only a line or two later: "In September, 2005 Hurricane Katrina destroyed large sections of New Orleans, Louisiana and the Gulf Coast. The Bush Administration's response to this crisis was widely viewed as inadequate." (As a side note, both these entries are POV and/or unsourced). Obviously it's important to talk about George Bush in relation to the fortunes of the party itself, but things are a little out of hand here.
So, does anyone have any suggestions as to what would be useful subjects pertaining to the Republican Party in the "2000 (onwards)" section? Edders 10:06, 31 August 2006 (UTC)
I completely agree. It seems whenever there is a mention of President Bush on Wikipedia, the partisans have to come in an add their one or two sentences to emphasize their point of view. I guess I should read the Democratic Party entry to see if Clinton is skewered.
This sentence:
"Liberal Republicans such as Senators Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Arlen Specter and Lincoln Chafee have social views more in line with the Republicans Democratic Party opponents. The term "RINO" -- Republican In Name Only -- has recently come into use to denote liberal Republicans disagreeing with the policies of the majority of the party."
was recently edited to:
"Moderate Republicans such as Senators Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Arlen Specter and Lincoln Chafee have sometimes not been regarded as "loyal" by conservatives who want to remake the party in their own image. The term "RINO" -- Republican In Name Only -- has recently come into use to denote moderate Republicans disagreeing with the policies of the more conservative right wing"
Whilst I see that the editor was trying to eliminate the slight POV bias present, the new version is itself a little messy for two reasons:
1: Referring the Specter etc. as "Moderates" is risky because "moderate" is not a neutral label - many political figures regard themselves or would like to be regarded as "moderate". Perhaps a better label would be 'centrist' - implying simply that they lean torwards more moderate policies rather than that they are actually 'moderates' themselves. Just a thought.
2: To argue that the moderates/centrists in the party are labelled RINOs because they disagree with the "more conservative right wing" is problematic. It implies several things, including that only the 'right wing' of the party attacks RINOs. Whether you agrre with it or it, the most common reason cited by other republicans for their criticism of people like Chafee and Specter is not that they advocate centrist or less conservative policies than others in the party. The reason cited is that RINOs are not Republican at all, and that they are not centrists either - rather, they are liberal democrats who run on a republican ticket. Again, it doesn't matter if you agree with this claim, but it is the usual justification given for RINO-bashing (heh). Edders 09:04, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
Mmm...okay but you miss the point slightly. I'm not personally saying any RINOs are liberals, or moderates, or anything. I'm just saying that the current edit misrepresents (unintenionally) the position of those republicans who criticize RINOs. As for the moderate/centrist thing, well, I suppose we could wrangle for ages over the most 'neutral' term so you may as well leave the 'moderate' bit as it is. Edders 12:38, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
I think it's extremely suspect to announce that "Republicans believe" such-and-such. First of all, it's the rare thing that Lincoln Chafee and Rick Santorum agree on. And considering that there are, what, about 50,000,000 registered Republicans in the U.S. (?), it was always be incorrect to say, in an unqualified way, that "Republicans believe" something.
Moreoever, a lot of what politicans on both sides claim to "believe" is, in essence, a lie. How many people really think, for instance, that Senate Democrats oppose the FMA because "the issue should be left up to the states"? My supposition is that they oppose the FMA because they think it's discriminatory and mean, and the "up to the states" argument is just a widely palatable excuse for their opposition. Similarly, I imagine there are many Republicans who cut social programs because they think the entire idea of a safety net is bleeding-heart, soft-headed policy; the thing about how "the private sector can make up the difference" is, for those individuals, merely convenient rhetoric and not a belief.
My solution is this: I think somebody (I'll volunteer) should go through the article, and, depending on context, do one of the following: a) replace the word "believe" with "assert," "claim," or "contend"; b) use qualifiers like "many" before "Republicans believe" statements; or c) both--that is, "Republicans believe" would, in certain instances, become "Many Republicans assert."
I won't do anything for a week or so. Let's have a discussion.
--Ike, 20 September 2006
It's been suggested that the reference to the War on Poverty in the Kyoto section doesn't truthfully portray GOP beliefs. I, for the record, introduced that phrase into the article, as a replacement for awkward phraseology about "minimizing the reduction of poverty." Discuss. -- 72.229.133.128 17:09, 21 September 2006 (UTC)
As a non-American visitor to this site I've noticed recently that several pages refer to the Republican Party simply as the GOP and was wondering about the sense of this substitution, how well known is this acronym outside the States? Although I imagine American visitors will be familiar with the term I strongly suspect that others like myself are not and when it isn't linked to this page can cause confusion. If the consensus is that it's obvious enough or I am untypical enough to disregard then I bow to that decision. 81.178.57.22 21:01, 5 October 2006 (UTC)
“ | The Republican Party (often referred to as the GOP, for "Grand Old Party") is one of the two major political organizations in the United States' two party system; its great rival is the Democratic Party. | ” |
Current: Although the GOP has voted for increases in government funding of scientific research, many members actively oppose the federal funding of embryonic stem cell research because it involves the harvesting and destruction of human embryos (which some consider morally equivalent to abortion), while arguing for diverting research money into adult stem cell research, which has had some limited proven successes.
Suggestion: Although the GOP has voted for increases in government funding of scientific research, many members actively oppose the federal funding of embryonic stem cell research because it involves the harvesting and destruction of human embryos (which some consider morally equivalent to abortion), while arguing for diverting research money into adult stem cell research, which has had a number of clinically proven successes.
This suggestion is based upon the Wikipedia article written on "Adult stem cell".
Thanks for your information service.
Damn, you in the United States have strange political standards Oo You say the republicans are "Center Right" OO Such a party would be at the far right in Europe.
What is the purpose of this discussion? The United States has absolutely no tendency toward Communism, which is as far left as you can get, nor does it have any tendency toward Dictatorship, which is as far right as you can get; therefore, the entire spectrum is shifted and stretched.
A Dictatorship can be found anywhere on the spectrum. You don't need a political program to be a power-hungry tyrant. I don't think the old 1-dimensional political spectrum is that reliable but if we have to go buy it, the far-right would be fascism. Also, The United States is a (classical) liberal country. It is unclear whether it is a center-left or center-right ideology, the wiki article on liberalism calls it center-left, but like the lady or gentleman who started this little sub-thread, the range of the American Political spectrum is considered far right in Europe. I guess one ideology's position on the left-right spectrum is placed relative to another. -Mike Reason
There is not mention of segregation in this article, which is the number 1 reason the majority of the south is republican today. before, the south was the land of the "dixiecrats" (southern democrats). LBJ's decision to stick by JFK's civil rights platform handed the south firmly to the republicans who came out against integrating White and Black america. I'm not here to smear the republicans (they do that well enough by themselves), but the above fact is way too important not to mention. I also didn't see a mention on the reason Blacks switch from overwhelmingly supporting the Republicans (party of Lincoln, right?) to the democrats. Any historian worth his or her salt knows exactly why, but its not mentioned here. whoever is responsible for this page should make sure to add this very pertinent info.
Exscuse me, are you Southern, i would not think so, but i am one form Virginia probably the state with some of the most heated intergraiton problems and segregation is not the number one reason. It was a general shift in policy for both parties.
Scott Free 15:28, 18 October 2006 (UTC)
I have unprotected the page. Protection for three weeks is unacceptable, even if it is semi-protection. Protect for short periods, as needed, to mitigate severe vandalism. See the semi-protection policy. Superm401 - Talk 05:56, 29 October 2006 (UTC)
The article fails to mention changing bases in geographical support for the GOP, at least after the 19th century, with a special focus on its current Southern powerbase. The article alludes at times to Nixon's Southern Strategy, etc., but does not speicfically focus on the issue. Would a separate section or set of sections on geographical history be best or should this be incorporated into the existing chronology? Francisx 16:24, 31 October 2006 (UTC)