Originally Posted By ecdc <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/12/tony-perkins-gay-marriage_n_3069298.html" target="_blank">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...298.html</a> With apologies to mawnck enterprises for the thread title. >>Family Research Council President Tony Perkins ratcheted up the pressure on Republicans on Thursday, emailing supporters to encourage them to starve the GOP of donations until its leaders confirmed they would maintain a rigid opposition to gay marriage.<< This is important because a cornerstone of the GOP is social conservatives, but the GOP is waking up to the fact that they lose elections (except in gerrymandered House districts) when they appeal to their hardcore social conservative base. They will continue to lose the Senate and the Presidency until they make peace with changing social dynamics.
Originally Posted By mawnck >>With apologies to mawnck enterprises for the thread title.<< You are licensed to use it. Especially for awesome stuff like this! Pass the popcorn.
Originally Posted By TomSawyer "maintain a rigid opposition to gay marriage" It sounds like they are erecting a firm barrier to future support. It must be frustrating for them to not have the penetration into the GOP that they once did.
Originally Posted By SingleParkPassholder Moreover, they are likely deathly afraid of going down a wet, slippery slope, which could eat away at their very moral fiber, causing writhing pain and angst among their members. What they really need is to come to a place of mutual satisfaction that guarantees a happy ending for everyone, a truly religious experience.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "It sounds like they are erecting a firm barrier to future support. It must be frustrating for them to not have the penetration into the GOP that they once did." Erecting. Firm. Penetration. Hmmmm...
Originally Posted By Dabob2 The GOP has an absolute dilemma on its hands. Everyone knows that Hispanics are a fast-growing demographic, but you know what's an even faster growing demographic? Gay-friendly straight people. Gay people themselves aren't any greater a percentage than we ever were (though the percentage that is out and willing to stand up for ourselves is). But the numbers of straight people who realize they know gay people, and have no problem with gay people, and either don't see any good reason why their gay friends and family shouldn't be treated as equal citizens or actively work to make that happen... those numbers are growing every day. The GOP cannot afford to be seen as the anti-gay party any more, just as they can't afford to be seen as the anti-Hispanic party. They're trying to take steps with the latter, but the former is freaking the far right out. Partly because it wasn't that long ago that they not only didn't mind being seen as they anti-gay party... it was an electoral winner for them. So their worldview and their politics lined up. Now it's an electoral loser for them in more and more places, and that trend will only get stronger. If they're seen as the anti-gay party it will cost them votes, particularly with younger voters. And that will only increase as time goes on. Yet the Tony Perkins and Rick Santorums of the world insist the GOP MUST be the anti-gay party, or they will withhold funding or even bolt the party. And those far right wingers are a major source of funding. So what does the GOP do? As mawnck said, pass the popcorn.
Originally Posted By skinnerbox <,Erecting. Firm. Penetration. Hmmmm...>> One of the funniest Colbert bits ever! <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/11/colbert-anthony-weiner-comeback-penis-jokes_n_3060629.html" target="_blank">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...629.html</a>
Originally Posted By TomSawyer The Southern Strategy is backfiring on the GOP - they are realizing that there's a good reason that the Democrats didn't fight very hard to keep the low information Dixiecrats in the party.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 <So what does the GOP do? > Here's what they did. They chose the base at the expense of moderates. Again. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/12/rnc-gay-marriage_n_3071333.html" target="_blank">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...333.html</a> Note that the RNC passed the resolution against marriage equality unanimously. "[T]he Republican National Committee affirms its support for marriage as the union of one man and one woman, and as the optimum environment in which to raise healthy children for the future of America; and be it further resolved, the Republican National Committee implores the U. S. Supreme Court to uphold the sanctity of marriage in its rulings on California’s Proposition 8 and the Federal Defense of Marriage Act," the resolution, first obtained by Chris Moody of Yahoo News, read." And catch who WROTE the resolution they passed. "Miller reports that the resolution was submitted by RNC committeeman Dave Agema, a Michigan Republican who has drawn criticism for calling gays and lesbians "filthy" and comparing them to people who were "dying of alcoholism." I had never heard of this clown, so I looked him up. It's worse than I imagined. <a href="http://www.mlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/04/ken_braun_dave_agemas_facebook.html" target="_blank">http://www.mlive.com/politics/...ook.html</a> (Short version: This guy created a firestorm by posting to his Facebook page a "study" filled with bogus statistics written by, among others, a non-practicing chiropractor (!) who has organized Klan rallies and written pamphlets such as "Was There Really a Holocaust?" He was once interviewed by David Duke on his radio show on the topic "Jews and homosexuals taking over the world." Read the article for more depressing details. And this is the main source for the guy who wrote the resolution that the RNC just adopted unanimously. Will the last moderate in the GOP please turn out the lights?
Originally Posted By SuperDry <<< Will the last moderate in the GOP please turn out the lights? >>> I think they may have already left the building.
