A Time for Political Realism

During the GOP debate the other night, America's Mayor Rudy Giuliani quoted the Great Communicator Ronald Reagan, as saying "if someone agrees with me 70% of the time, that doesn't make him my enemy." That made me reconsider my criticism of RINOs (Republican In Name Only). True Blue Conservatives use the term to attack GOP moderates. Mike Huckabee and John McCain have been attacked as RINOs. The Governator Arnold Schwarzenegger also has been called a RINO. Before him was the original, and self-proclaimed RINO -- Mayor Richard Riordan. Those of us who attack RINO’s, however, must confront the question: Would we really prefer that such people drop the Republican monicker? How does it help the conservative cause if politicians leave the GOP and go independent or worse -- join the opposition? When Jim "Benedict Arnold" Jeffords left the GOP and joined the Democrats, he gave them control of the US Senate. When Lincoln "Judas" Chafee lost his Senate seat in 2006 because of his RINOism, it also gave the Democrats control; if Chafee had won, the GOP would still have a Republican majority in the Senate. Imagine getting a Justice Alito or Justice Roberts through the Democratic controlled Senate today! The reality is that no successful political party has ever been built on ideological purity. You construct a majority coalition by bringing people into your party -- not by driving them away. It is destructive to the conservative cause to go after RINOs. Democrats generally understand this principle and with the exception of Senator Joe Lieberman, they never attacked DINOs (Democrats In Name Only) but actually tolerated the Boll Weavels/Southern Democrats/Reagan Democrats. In fact, during the last election cycle, they put forward several conservative Democrats in key Congressional districts, which helped them win a majority in he House and Senate. If Republicans continue to knee-cap RINOs, the GOP will not regain the majority in the Congress and the GOP will never win California in a presidential race. It's great to be a purist, but you will be as effective as a Preying Mantis' Motion to Quash.