you can make a non-tea party case for fiscal conservatism.

but you really can't make a huge case these days for social conservatism and that's where they really lose. You can't tell gays to go back into the closet, you can't tell minorities to be quiet, you can't tell women to accept lower pay and forfeit reproductive rights and health. You can't tell poor people to fuck off and die in an alley.

I don't know this guy, so I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt and suggest that he might even agree with all these things. This illustrates the problem with using vague binary terms like liberal and conservative to describe political views. Depending on the person "conservative" can mean completely different things.

This is the problem with the two party system. You can't sum up nuanced , complex political views into two parties. It's stupid.

Republicans have a huge perception problem they need to solve. Many people view them as old, white, racist, plutocrats. I know for a fact that they are not all this way. But the problem is, there are plenty of people who identify as Republican who DO fall completely into that view.

Fortunately, old people do have a habit of dying. so that solves part of the problem. But some people have to be dragged into the future kicking and screaming the entire way. If the Republican party wishes to survive, they need to decide pretty quick how they're going to deal with that.

I think there are too many people who identify as Republican for romantic reasons only. They're obsessed with the idea that Abraham Lincoln was a Republican even though the Republican party of then is completely different from the way it is now and it is due largely to racism. (google Southern Strategy)

As i've said before. All parties and lobbying need to be abolished. You can't stop people from assembling into voting blocs, but at the very least we can refuse to officially acknowledge them and do away with the RNC and DNC and remove money from our elections and force the person, not the party to run for office.

Note, even this relatively moderate Repub can't actually bring himself to say he needs to help the poor. Instead he says they have to change the message.

How sad is that. Others in his party say, "You're poor, screw you."

But he has a heart, he says, "You're poor, and I'm not going to do anything to help you, but you have my sympathy."

Aww, isn't he a nice guy?

Republicans suck, democrats swallow-The difference is meaningless.

Not all Republicans are heartless monsters, true, VoodooV. But the party most definitely is...the problem is not merely one of perception. Their official platforms are racist, misogynist, anti-intellect screeds. That is not merely perception.

I believe and hope that the Republican party is finished as a political force. The sooner they shrivel up and die, to be replaced by a party with an official stance of at-least-minimal-rationality, the better for everyone. But I equally expect them to continue to do as much damage as possible for as long as possible. It's past time to treat the party like the rabid dog that it is.

True, you can make a non-tea party case for fiscal conservatism. And true, there is a sharp ideological division between the moderate and Tea Party sects within the GOP.

This rift helped the GOP lose in the last election and the Government Shutdown only made things worse by trying to make a political point at the expense of many of their own constituents. They tried to ride the wave of popular dissatisfaction with "Obamacare" and even after its dismal Website launch, polls still had Republican popularity at all-time lows.

"How does our conservative ideology and philosophy actually help lift them out of the place that they're in today and move them up the economic ladder? We don't do a good job of presenting that message and we have to change how we're doing it."

It's going to be hard for a moderate to make that case when his party is polluted with members that don't think it's the government's job to do that in the first place.

@chingalera ahh the "both parties are equally bad" fallacy.

tell me? What's the Democrat equivalent of the denial of same sex marriage?
What's the Democrat equivalent of telling women they must keep their rape babies? What's the Democrat equivalent of trying establish a state religion even though we are a country of many (or no) religions. What's the Democrat equivalent of Republican's persistent denial of this pesky thing called science. What's the Democrat equivalent of the Republican body count due to starting unnecessary wars?

Don't get me wrong. Democrats fuck up all the time. They believed the 2004 election would be a slam dunk. They can often be naive and miscalculate political realities. I'm not convinced they won't fuck up the 2016 election somehow despite the Republicans' current problems. I really don't think Hillary should run. To quote Doctor Who: "Don't you think she looks tired?"

Both parties should be abolished to get away from this political nonsense, but to suggest these are somehow equal to Republican misdeeds is absolute lunacy unless you dare to back your claims up.

Hell, arguing the opposite of my claims is still more rational than this "OMG they're equal" nonsense. If you capable of making a value judgement, one party matches your values better than the other. It's impossible for them to be equal in that regard.

Agreed.

Well here's something to think about, since the uselessness of answering these questions which seem so important to yourself, these issues which would simply tend to correct themselves should dumb assess who light-upon them who can't seem to figure it out actually DO something with all their frustration.

There are other more pressing fundamental issues to consider when you think about how real "CHANGE" could come overnight if both fanatics dems and repubs could get their heads out of their own assess.

Most of these issues you are so passionate about and continually abuse the meaningless, "one-team-against-the-other" argument for, are simply diversions to keep you inebriated with (by design) while the rapists and abusers of culture, politics and special interests, military and police, and corporate oligarchies fuck you from behind without lube.

For instance: THIS video offering after 30 hours in the queue has garnered 6 votes. It speaks to one of the many fundamental ass-fucks being perpetrated on the American People and one insidious presidential cunt republican and one equally as sinister mountebank currently in office has created the framework for this egregious violation of rights and culture, but nobody seems to give a fuck.

INSTEAD, people that continually paste these kind of trite news-bobble sound bites of worthless information pitting one party against another seem to be absolutely clueless as to the mechanics of the insidious mechanism keeping them in a state of unconscious somnambulatry hypnotic drunkenness while the entire time, not utilizing the power they have to alter the course of the destiny of the planet-Instead that wasted energy is used to jack off at the mouth.

Simple fix for the so-called drug problem as it relates to criminal cartels (like the FBI, LIKE the CIA, like the "cabal who control government."???

Legalized marijuana, heroin, cocaine, while at the same time criminalizing the machine set-in-place to quote/unquote, "fight the war on drugs"..Fight the war on terrorism", etc. There is no goddamn war except the one for your mind,and from reading this horseshit on this particular post, it seems that more than a few people here have had their minds hi-jacked already.

It's up to you to wake-the-fuck-up. Republicans are no better or worse than democrats, because both are complicit in the hijacking of your lives, your livelihoods, and the work and sweat and blood of your lives as you toil incessantly to continue to promulgate their diseased programs of slavery of both your bodies and minds.

Any and all retort to similar diatribes of my own are predictably met with derision and defensiveness, and a SHITLOAD of passive-aggression in the form of convoluted and meaningless banter.

I fucking detest this charade of pitting conservatives against liberals, one "party" against another.

The only party that exists is the one behind closed doors as they laugh at people like yourselves.

*readacted-

After reading voodler's comments which seem reasonable enough, partisan politics are a charade and on this we may agree. What I fear is the border with Mexico and her people's pouring-in to dilute and cheapen the culture most of all, and our government's continued prohibition of narcotics and fear-mongering of terrorism and those who would that country collapse so they can run with the profits laughing(these are from both isle-sides, criminals all). A level of socialization must be reached before you can sell an exodus to the U.S. from the south, and I am disgusted that the Republic of Mexico has been hijacked by the assholes that have run that beautiful country into the ground, especially the cock-sucking Spaniards, those dirty bastards with their silly hats.

Ah, the poor political hipster...too cool to buy into taking an actual stance, but unable to convince anyone he actually knows what he's talking about.

Just shouting "it's a distraction" doesn't answer any of the questions that were posed. Nor have you provided a single piece of evidence for your claims. Seems like a conspiracy of this magnitude would be more than a little difficult to keep...where's the Snowden for this Illuminati you propose?