Values

What Republicans Stand For

SHORT VERSION:

Republicans…
support a simpler fairer, flatter, tax code.
promote private enterprise, free markets, less government, lower taxes, and a balanced budget.
support freedom of religion vs. freedom from religion.
believe life begins at conception and oppose embryonic stem cell research and other projects such as cloning.
support traditional marriage as ‘one man, one woman‘, and ‘don’t ask, don’t tell‘ in the military.
support their freedom-loving, democratic allies, especially Israel and the United Kingdom.
are for ‘legal’ immigration and a ‘border enforcement first’ approach vs. amnesty.
oppose Obamacare and medicaid expansion and supports consumer choice.
oppose affirmative action with a color-blind approach based on merit.
support drug enforcement and oppose the legalization of harmful and addicting drugs.
support parental sovereignty in relation to school choice, vouchers, and opposition of Common Core.
see Agenda 21 and the global warming climate scam as a tax redistribution scheme which removes national and state sovereignty, but instead favors market based alternate fuel solutions.
support the right of states to enact Right-to-Work laws and encourage them to do so to promote greater economic liberty.

LONG VERSION:

Economic Policies
Republicans strongly believe that free markets and individual achievement are the primary factors behind economic prosperity. To this end, they advocate in favour of laissez-faire economics, supply-side economics, fiscal conservatism, and the elimination of government run welfare programs in favor of personal responsibility… There should be a “safety net” to assist the less fortunate; however, the private sector is more effective in helping the poor than government is. Republicans support a simpler tax code and abolishing the IRS. Less government and lower taxes!

Immigration
Republicans are for legal immigration and the rule of law and a border enforcement-first approach.

Health Care
The party opposes a government-run single-payer health care system, believing such a system constitutes socialized medicine, and is in favor of a personal or employer-based system of insurance, supplemented by Medicare for the elderly and Medicaid. Consumer choice is key.

Social Policies
Because most Republicans believe life begins at conception, we oppose elective abortion, partial birth abortion, and embryonic stem cell research on religious or moral grounds… “the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed.” Republicans also oppose to using public revenues to promote abortions, to perform them, or to fund organizations that do either such things. Adult stem cell research has seen good results.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues
Republicans support the Federal Marriage Amendment to the United States Constitution to define marriage as exclusively between one man and one woman. Republicans oppose permitting LGBT people to serve openly in the military and supported the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. In August 2012, the party approved a platform that would ban same-sex marriage.

Second Amendment Rights
Republicans support gun ownership rights and oppose laws regulating guns. Citizens have the right to defend self and family against harm at least, and defend against a tyrannical government at most.

The War on Drugs
Republicans oppose the legalization of harmful and addicting drugs.

Education
Republicans support school choice through charter schools and school vouchers for private schools; many have denounced the performance of the public school system and the teachers’ unions. The party has insisted on a system of greater accountability for public schools. Many Republicans, however, opposed the creation of the United States Department of Education when it was initially created in 1979. More recently, Republicans oppose Common Core and have always supported parental sovereignty.

Labor Unions
Republicans are generally opposed by labor union management and members, and have supported various legislation on the state and federal levels, including right to work legislation and the Taft-Hartley Act, which gives workers the right not to participate in unions, as opposed to a closed shop, which prohibits workers from choosing not to join unions in workplaces. Some Republicans are opposed to increases in the minimum wage, believing that such increases hurt many businesses by forcing them to cut jobs and services, export jobs overseas, and raise the prices of goods to compensate for the decrease in profit.

Environmental Policies
The Republican Party had long supported the protection of the environment. Republicans see Agenda 21 as a tax redistribution scheme and a threat to national and state sovereignty.
The Kyoto Protocols unfairly target Western industrialized nations such as the United States while favoring developing Global South polluters such as China and India. Republicans support market-based solutions to environmental problems and support increased Federal investment into the development of clean alternative fuels, such as increased nuclear power, as a way of helping the U.S. achieve energy independence, versus supporting less use of carbon dioxide-producing methods of generating energy.

Civil Rights
Republicans are generally against affirmative action for women and some minorities, often describing it as a quota system, believing …it is counter-productive socially by only further promoting discrimination. Many Republicans support race-neutral admissions policies in universities with a color-blind approach based on merit.

International Policies
Republicans Party has always advocated a strong national defense and promoting freedom loving allies.

Israel
The Republican leadership supports a strong Israel as one of our best allies.

Trade
The party promotes free trade agreements, most notably North American Free Trade Agreement, Dominican Republic–Central America Free Trade Agreement and an effort to go further south to Brazil, Peru and Colombia, although some have a protectionist view of trade.

Our Founding Documents
Our Founding documents are a result of our rich Judeo-Christian heritage. Republicans oppose banning the ten commandments or prayer in the public arena and supports freedom of religion vs. freedom from religion.

I Am a Republican:
Lower Taxes ~ Less Government ~ Free Market Capitalism ~ Strong National Defense ~ Pro-life ~ Legal Immigration, No Amnesty ~ Strong Drug Enforcement ~ Marriage: One Man, One Woman ~ Pro 2nd Amendment ~ Grassroots Up ~ Border Enforcement ~ School Choice ~ Election of Judges by the People

Republicans…
-promote private enterprise, free markets, less government, lower taxes, and a balanced budget.
-believe life begins at conception and oppose embryonic stem cell research and other projects such as cloning.
-support traditional marriage as ‘one man, one woman‘, and ‘don’t ask, don’t tell‘ in the military.
-support their freedom-loving democratic allies, especially Israel and the United Kingdom.
-are for ‘legal’ immigration and a ‘border enforcement first’ approach vs. amnesty.
-oppose Obamacare and medicaid expansion and supports consumer choice.
-supports freedom of religion vs. freedom from religion.
-supports a simpler fairer, flatter, tax code.
-oppose affirmative action with a color-blind approach based on merit.
-support drug enforcement and oppose the legalization of harmful and addicting drugs.
-support parental sovereignty in relation to school choice, vouchers, and opposition of Common Core.
-see Agenda 21 and the global warming climate scam as a tax redistribution scheme which removes national and state sovereignty, but instead favors market based alternate fuel solutions.
-support the right of states to enact Right-to-Work laws and encourage them to do so to promote greater economic liberty.

Republicans believe in opportunity for all. We believe that education is our future, allowing us to compete. This means safety for our families from criminals, web hackers, foreign nations, in our schools and everywhere you step foot in this great nation. That means supporting entrepreneurs who start the small businesses, which are the backbone of our economy. All of this opportunity leads to a long-lasting prosperity, which benefits everyone. The Republican Party believes in helping all people succeed.
We are conservatives. We believe in limited government, low taxes, a strong national defense, the right to bear arms, self-reliance, the right to life extending to those in the womb, traditional marriage, and the authority of America’s founding documents based on unalienable rights. We know that government is best that governs least and governs closest to the people. We know that the private sector is the engine of economic growth and that America is an exceptional nation, the best that has ever existed. We know that the men and women who wear the uniform of the U.S. military are the greatest fighting force and has been the greatest force for good that the world has ever known.

GOP History
The Republican Party, also commonly called the GOP (for “Grand Old Party”), is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States. Founded by anti-slavery activists in 1854, it dominated politics nationally for most of the period from 1860 to 1932. There have been 18 Republican presidents, the first being Abraham Lincoln, serving from 1861-1865, and the most recent being Donald Trump , serving from 2017-2021.

Currently the party’s platform is generally based upon American conservatism.[1][2][3] American conservatism of the Republican Party is not wholly based upon rejection of the political ideology of liberalism, as many principles of American conservatism are based upon classical liberalism.[4] Rather, the Republican Party’s conservatism is largely based upon its support of classical principles against the modern liberalism of the Democrat Party that is considered American liberalism in contemporary American political discourse.[4]
In the 113th Congress, elected in 2012, the Republican Party holds a majority of seats in the House of Representatives and a minority of seats in the Senate. The party currently holds the majority of governorships as well as the majority of state legislatures.

~ 20th century ~

Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States (1901–1909)
The Republicans were cemented as the party of business, though mitigated by the succession of Theodore Roosevelt who embraced trust busting. He later ran on a third party ticket of the Progressive Party and challenged his previous successor William Howard Taft. The party controlled the presidency throughout the 1920s, running on a platform of opposition to the League of Nations, high tariffs, and promotion of business interests.
Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover were resoundingly elected in 1920, 1924, and 1928 respectively. The Teapot Dome scandal threatened to hurt the party but Harding died and Coolidge blamed everything on him, as the opposition splintered in 1924. The pro-business policies of the decade seemed to produce an unprecedented prosperity until the Wall Street Crash of 1929 heralded the Great Depression.

Dwight Eisenhower, 34th President of the United States (1953-1961)
The New Deal coalition of Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt controlled American politics for most of the next three decades, excepting the two-term presidency of Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower. African Americans moved into the Democratic Party during Roosevelt’s time. After Roosevelt took office in 1933, New Deal legislation sailed through Congress at lightning speed. In the 1934 midterm elections, 10 Republican senators went down to defeat, leaving them with only 25 against 71 Democrats. The House of Representatives was split in a similar ratio.

Republicans in Congress heavily criticized the “Second New Deal” and likened it to class warfare and socialism. The volume of legislation, and the inability of the Republicans to block it, soon elevated the level of opposition to Roosevelt. Conservative Democrats, mostly from the South, joined with Republicans led by Senator Robert Taft to create the conservative coalition, which dominated domestic issues in Congress until 1964. The Republicans recaptured Congress in 1946 after gaining 13 seats in the Senate and 55 seats in the House.

Ronald Regan, 40th President of the United States (1981-1989)
The second half of the 20th century saw election or succession of Republican presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush. Today, Reagan remains one of the nation’s most popular presidents, according to opinion polling. The Republican Party, led by House Republican Minority Whip Newt Gingrich campaigning on the Contract with America, was elected to majorities to both houses of Congress in the Republican Revolution of 1994.

~ 21st century ~

The Senate majority lasted until 2001, when the Senate became split evenly but was regained in the 2002 elections. Both Republican majorities in the House and Senate were held until the Democrats regained control in the mid-term elections of 2006.The Republican Party has since been defined by social conservatism, a preemptive war foreign policy intended to defeat terrorism and promote global democracy, a more powerful executive branch, supply-side economics, support for gun ownership, and deregulation.

George W. Bush, 43rd President of the United States (2001-2009)
In the Presidential election of 2008, the party’s nominees were Senator John McCain, of Arizona, for President and Alaska Governor Sarah Palin for Vice President. They were defeated by Senator Barack Obama of Illinois and Senator Joe Biden of Delaware. In 2009, Republicans Chris Christie and Bob McDonnell were elected to the governorships of New Jersey and Virginia.

2010 was a year of political success for the Republicans, starting with the upset win of Scott Brown in the Massachusetts special Senate election for the seat held for many decades by the Democratic Kennedy brothers. In the November elections, Republicans recaptured control of the House, increased their number of seats in the Senate, and gained a majority of governorships.[9] Additionally, Republicans took control of at least 19 Democratic-controlled state legislatures.[10]

In the Presidential election of 2012, the Republican nominees were former Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts for President, and Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin for Vice President. The Democrats nominated incumbent President Barack Obama of Illinois, and incumbent Vice President Joe Biden of Delaware. The campaign focused largely on Obama’s stewardship of the economy, with the country facing high unemployment numbers and a rising national debt four years after his first election. Romney and Ryan were defeated by Obama and Biden. In addition, in the November congressional elections, while Republicans lost 7 seats in the House, they retained control. However, Republicans were not able to gain control of the Senate, continuing their minority status with a net loss of 2 seats.

Donald Trump, 45th President of the United States (2017-2021+)
Donald J. Trump launched the most extraordinary political movement in history, dethroning political dynasties, defeating the Washington Establishment, and becoming the first true outsider elected as President of the United States. His inspiring, groundbreaking campaign proved pollsters, pundits, prognosticators, and the corporate media spectacularly wrong. He mobilized voters with massive rallies, reached America’s hearts and minds with his vision for national rejuvenation, and overcame virtually every entrenched power structure—political and financial—and achieved a decisive victory, winning states no Republican presidential candidate had won in decades.

The forgotten men and women of America were forgotten no more because we finally had a President who put America First.

Through his pro-American policies on trade, taxes, energy, regulation, immigration, and healthcare, President Trump ushered in a period of unprecedented economic growth, job creation, soaring wages, and booming incomes. Median household income reached its highest level ever recorded. Middle-class family income increased more than five times from the previous administration. Unemployment reached its lowest rate in half a century. African-American, Hispanic-American, and Asian-American unemployment reached their lowest levels ever recorded. And more Americans were employed than ever before.

President Trump boldly unleashed American energy, and our Nation soon became the world’s number one producer of oil and natural gas in the world. America’s newfound Energy Independence not only meant historically-low energy prices, but also bolstered our economic and national security. At the center of this pro-American energy vision was a robust commitment to environmental conservation, renewable energy production, prioritizing the clean-up of major pollution sites, and investing billions in clean water infrastructure. Under President Trump, America led the world in reducing carbon emissions. As a steward of our natural resources, President Trump signed the Great Outdoors Act, the most significant investment in our national parks since Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency and joined the One Trillion Trees Initiative to protect and restore one trillion trees by 2030.

As President, he was an unwavering champion for our Nation’s heroes in uniform. He always stood proudly with our Nation’s extraordinary and courageous police officers, sheriffs, and law enforcement professionals. He fought relentlessly for our Nation’s military service members and invested trillions of dollars in the American Armed Forces to ensure our warriors had the tools, support, and resources they need. He fundamentally reformed the Department of Veterans Affairs, ending the past era of scandal and ensuring our Nation’s treasured Veterans were given the treatment and care they have earned and deserve.

Understanding that border security is national security, President Trump achieved the most secure border in United States history and signed a series of historic agreements with our partners in the Western Hemisphere to stop smuggling, trafficking, and illegal migration. He fundamentally reformed the H-1B program to protect American workers and families. He restored the principle that newcomers to our country must be financially self-sufficient. He empowered Immigration and Customs Enforcement to dismantle criminal gangs and deport dangerous offenders who threaten our communities. He ended systemic asylum fraud, reduced refugee admissions to sustainable levels, blocked the entry of terrorists and national security threats, and banned unsafe travel from regions where proper screening and vetting cannot occur. No President has done more to build an immigration system that promotes safety, dignity, security, and prosperity for the American People.

By restoring America’s prestige and advancing a policy of principled realism, he forged historic peace agreements in the Middle East, withdrew troops from endless conflicts, confronted oppressive communist and socialist regimes, advanced stability around the world, and strengthened the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and other international alliances and partnerships by getting other nations to contribute their fair share.

When the coronavirus plague arrived from China, afflicting every nation around the globe, President Trump acted early and decisively to ban travel from China and Europe, which saved countless lives. He launched the greatest national industrial mobilization since World War II, refilling our depleted stockpiles of medical supplies, bringing our critical supply chains back home, pioneering life-saving medical treatments in record time, leveraging the Defense Production Act, mass producing and mass distributing masks, gowns, gloves, and other protective equipment, and getting new breakthrough therapies into the hands of hospitals, doctors, and patients. President Trump, from scratch, built the most robust testing system in the world and, at his direction, temporary hospitals and new medical beds were built from scratch to keep hospitals from overcrowding. Aggressive action was taken to get critical supplies to nursing homes in order to protect the most vulnerable among us. Through Operation Warp Speed, the Manhattan Project for vaccines, two different and powerfully-effective vaccine candidates were approved in record time, with more vaccines following quickly on their heels—a true medical miracle. In order to get these doses to the population as quickly as possible, all of the leading vaccine candidates were manufactured in advance—an industrial breakthrough that further saved countless lives.

Whether it was combating the virus, fighting foreign terrorists, creating jobs, securing America’s borders, unleashing American energy, revitalizing American patriotism, or restoring the American spirit, President Trump never wavered in defense of our values, our families, our traditions, and our freedom.

President Trump knows that as long as we remain faithful to our citizens, our country, and our God, then America’s best days are yet to come.

Our Party
It all started with people who opposed slavery and stood for the equality of man. They were common, everyday people who were disgusted at the notion that men had a right to oppress their fellow man. In the early 1850’s, these anti-slavery activists found commonality with rugged individuals looking to settle in western lands, free of government charges.

“Free soil, free labor, free speech, free men,” went the slogan. And it was in joint opposition to human enslavement and government tyranny that an enterprising people gave birth to the Republican Party. The name “Republican” was chosen because it alluded to equality and reminded individuals of Thomas Jefferson’s Democratic-Republican Party.
In 1861, the Civil War erupted, lasting four grueling years. During the war, against the advice of his cabinet, President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation that freed the slaves. The Republicans of the day worked to pass the Thirteenth Amendment, which outlawed slavery; the Fourteenth Amendment, which guaranteed equal protection under the laws; and the Fifteenth, which helped secure voting rights for African-Americans.

• Outlawed Slavery
• Guaranteed Equal Protection Under Laws
• Secured Voting Rights for African-Americans

All of these accomplishments extended and cemented the fundamental freedoms our nation continues to enjoy today.

Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican President (1861–1865)
Fighting for Women
The Republican Party also played a leading role in securing women the right to vote. In 1896, the Republican Party was the first major political party to support women’s suffrage. When the 19th Amendment finally was added to the Constitution, 26 of 36 state legislatures that had voted to ratify it were under Republican control. The first woman elected to Congress was a Republican, Jeanette Rankin from Montana in 1917. So it was by hardworking Republican hands that color and gender barriers were first demolished in America.

Free from Oppression
Republicans believe individuals, not government, can make the best decisions; all people are entitled to equal rights; and decisions are best made close to home. These basic principles are as true today as they were when the Party was founded. For all of the extraordinary leaders the Party has produced throughout its rich history, Republicans understand that everyday people in all 50 states and territories remain the heart and soul of our Party.

Presidents during most of the late nineteenth century and the early part of the twentieth century were Republicans. The White House was in Republican hands under Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. Under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, the United States won the Cold War, releasing millions from Communist oppression, in true anti-big government Republican spirit.

Elephants, Not Donkeys
The symbol of the Republican Party is the elephant. During the mid term elections in 1874, Democrats tried to scare voters into thinking President Ulysses S. Grant would seek to run for an unprecedented third term. Thomas Nast, a cartoonist for Harper’s Weekly, depicted a Democratic donkey trying to scare a Republican elephant – and both symbols stuck. For a long time, Republicans have been known as the “G.O.P.” with party faithful believing it meant the “Grand Old Party.” But apparently the original meaning (in 1875) was “gallant old party.” When automobiles were invented it also came to mean, “get out and push.” That’s still a pretty good slogan for Republicans who depend every campaign year on the hard work of hundreds of thousands of everyday volunteers to get out and vote and push people to support the causes of the Republican Party.

Freedom Fighters
Abolition, free speech and women’s suffrage are all causes the Republican Party adopted early on. So, too, were reducing the size of government, streamlining bureaucracy, and returning power to individual states. With a core belief in the primacy of individuals, the Republican Party, since its inception, has been at the forefront of the fight for individuals’ rights in opposition to a large, intrusive government.

– GOP.com

Name and Symbols
1874 Nast cartoon featuring the first notable appearance of the Republican Elephant[11]
GOP Elephant
GOP Logo with Elephant

The party’s founding members chose the name “Republican Party” in the mid-1850s as homage to the values of republicanism promoted by Thomas Jefferson’s Republican party.[12] The idea for the name came from an editorial by the party’s leading publicist Horace Greeley, who called for, “some simple name like ‘Republican’ [that] would more fitly designate those who had united to restore the Union to its true mission of champion and promulgator of Liberty rather than propagandist of slavery.”[13] The name reflects the 1776 Republican values of civic virtue and opposition to aristocracy and corruption.[14]

The term “Grand Old Party” is a traditional nickname for the Republican Party, and the abbreviation “GOP” is a commonly used designation. The term originated in 1875 in the Congressional Record, referring to the party associated with the successful military defense of the Union as “this gallant old party”; the following year in an article in the Cincinnati Commercial, the term was modified to “grand old party”. The first use of the abbreviation is dated 1884.[15]

The traditional mascot of the party is the elephant. A political cartoon by Thomas Nast, published in Harper’s Weekly on November 7, 1874, is considered the first important use of the symbol.[16] In the early 20th century, the usual symbol of the Republican Party in Midwestern states such as Indiana and Ohio was the bald eagle, as opposed to the Democratic rooster.

Structure and Composition
The Republican National Committee (RNC) is responsible for promoting Republican campaign activities. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. Its current chairman is Reince Priebus. The chairman of the RNC is chosen by the President when the Republicans have the White House or otherwise by the Party’s state committees.

The RNC, under the direction of the party’s presidential candidate, supervises the Republican National Convention, raises funds, and coordinates campaign strategy. On the local level, there are similar state committees in every state and most large cities, counties and legislative districts, but they have far less money and influence than the national body.
The Republican House and Senate caucuses have separate fundraising and strategy committees. The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) assists in House races, whilst the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) does so in Senate races. They each raise over $100 million per election cycle, and play important roles in recruiting strong state candidates, while the Republican Governors Association (RGA) assists in state gubernatorial races; it is currently chaired by Governor Bob McDonnell of Virginia.

Ideology and Political Positions
The Republican Party includes fiscal conservatives, social conservatives, neoconservatives, moderates, and libertarians. Prior to the formation of the conservative coalition, which helped realign the Democratic and Republican party ideologies in the mid-1960s, the party historically advocated classical liberalism, paleoconservatism, and progressivism.

A leading economic theory advocated by modern Republicans is supply-side economics. Some fiscal policies influenced by this theory were popularly known as Reaganomics, a term popularized during the Presidential administrations of Ronald Reagan. This theory holds that reduced income tax rates increase GDP growth and thereby generate the same or more revenue for the government from the smaller tax on the extra growth.[17] This belief is reflected, in part, by the party’s long-term advocacy of tax cuts. Many Republicans consider the income tax system to be inherently inefficient and oppose graduated tax rates, which they believe are unfairly targeted at those who create jobs and wealth. They believe private spending is usually more efficient than government spending. Republicans oppose the estate tax.

Most Republicans agree there should be a”safety net” to assist the less fortunate; however, they tend to believe the private sector is more effective in helping the poor than government is; as a result, Republicans support giving government grants to faith-based and other private charitable organizations to supplant welfare spending. Members of the GOP also believe that limits on eligibility and benefits must be in place to ensure the safety net is not abused. Republicans introduced and strongly supported the welfare reform of 1996, which was signed into law by Democratic President Clinton, and which limited eligibility for welfare, successfully leading to many former welfare recipients finding jobs.[18][19]
The party opposes a government-run single-payer health care system, believing such a system constitutes socialized medicine, and is in favor of a personal or employer-based system of insurance, supplemented by Medicare for the elderly and Medicaid, which covers approximately 40% of the poor.[20] The GOP has a mixed record of supporting the historically popular Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid programs. Congressional Republicans and the Bush administration supported a reduction in Medicaid’s growth rate;[21] however, congressional Republicans expanded Medicare, supporting a new drug plan for seniors starting in 2006.

In 2011, House Republicans overwhelmingly voted for a proposal named The Path to Prosperity and for major changes to Medicare, Medicaid, and the 2010 Health Care Legislation. Many Republicans support increased health insurance portability, laws promoting coverage of pre-existing medical conditions, a cap on malpractice lawsuits, the implementation of a streamlined electronic medical recordssystem, an emphasis on preventative care rather than emergency room care, and tax benefits aimed at making health insurance more affordable for the uninsured and targeted to promote universal access. They generally oppose government funding for elective abortions.[22]

Republicans are generally opposed by labor union management and members, and have supported various legislation on the state and federal levels, including right to work legislation and the Taft-Hartley Act, which gives workers the right not to participate in unions, as opposed to a closed shop, which prohibits workers from choosing not to join unions in workplaces. Some Republicans are opposed to increases in the minimum wage, believing that such increases hurt many businesses by forcing them to cut jobs and services, export jobs overseas, and raise the prices of goods to compensate for the decrease in profit.

Separation of Powers & Balance of Powers
Many contemporary Republicans voice support of strict constructionism, the judicial philosophy that the Constitution should be interpreted narrowly and as close to the original intent as is practicable rather than a more flexible “living Constitution” model.[23] Most Republicans point to Roe v. Wade as a case of judicial activism, where the court overturned most laws restricting abortion on the basis of a right to privacy inferred from the Bill of Rights and the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Some Republicans have actively sought to block judges whom they see as being activist judges and have sought the appointment of judges who claim to practice judicial restraint. Other Republicans, though, argue that it is the right of judges to extend the interpretation of the Constitution and judge actions by the legislative or executive branches as legal or unconstitutional on previously unarticulated grounds. The issue of judicial deference to the legislature is a matter of some debate—like the Democrats, most Republicans criticize court decisions that overturn their own (conservative) legislation as overstepping bounds and support decisions that overturn opposing legislation. Some commentators have advocated that the Republicans take a more aggressive approach and support legislative supremacy more firmly.[24]

The Republican Party has supported various bills within the last decade to strip some or all federal courts of the ability to hear certain types of cases, in an attempt to limit judicial review. These jurisdiction stripping laws have included removing federal review of the recognition of same-sex marriage with the Marriage Protection Act,[25] the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance with the Pledge Protection Act, and the rights of detainees in Guantanamo Bay in the Detainee Treatment Act. The Supreme Court overruled the last of these limitations in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld.

Compared to Democrats, many Republicans believe in a more robust version of federalism with greater limitations placed upon federal authorities and a larger role reserved for those of the individual States. Following this view on federalism, Republicans often take a less expansive reading of congressional power under the Commerce Clause, such as in the opinion of William Rehnquist in United States v. Lopez. Many Republicans on the more libertarian wing wish for a more dramatic narrowing of Commerce Clause power by revisiting, among other cases, Wickard v. Filburn, a case that held that growing wheat on a farm for consumption on the same farm fell under congressional power to “regulate commerce … among the several States”.

President George W. Bush was a proponent of the unitary executive theory and cited it within his Signing statements about legislation passed by Congress.[26] The administration’s interpretation of the unitary executive theory was called seriously into question by Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, where the Supreme Court ruled 5-3 that the President does not have sweeping powers to override or ignore laws through his power as commander in chief,[27] stating “the Executive is bound to comply with the Rule of Law that prevails”.[28] Following the ruling, the Bush administration has sought Congressional authorization for programs started only on executive mandate, as was the case with theMilitary Commissions Act, or abandoned programs it had previously asserted executive authority to enact, in the case of the National Security Agency domestic wiretapping program.

Environmental Policies
The Republican Party had long supported the protection of the environment. For example, Republican President Theodore Roosevelt was a prominent conservationist whose policies eventually led to the creation of the modern National Park Service.[29] Republican PresidentRichard Nixon was responsible for establishing the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970.[30] More recently, California Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, with the support of 16 other states, sued the Federal Government and the United States Environmental Protection Agency for the right to set vehicle emission standards higher than the Federal Standard,[31] a right to which California is entitled under the Clean Air Act.

This association however has shifted as the Democratic Party came to also support environmentalism. For example, Democratic PresidentBill Clinton did not send the Kyoto Protocol to the U.S. Senate for ratification, as he thought it unfair to the United States.[32] PresidentGeorge W. Bush also publicly opposed ratification of the Kyoto Protocols on the grounds that they unfairly targeted Western industrialized nations such as the United States while favoring developing Global South polluters such as China and India.
In 2000, the Republican Party adopted as part of its platform support for the development of market-based solutions to environmental problems. According to the platform, “economic prosperity and environmental protection must advance together, environmental regulations should be based on science, the government’s role should be to provide market-based incentives to develop the technologies to meet environmental standards, we should ensure that environmental policy meets the needs of localities, and environmental policy should focus on achieving results processes.”[33]

The Bush administration,[34] along with several of the candidates that sought the Republican Presidential nomination in 2008,[35][36][37]supported increased Federal investment into the development of clean alternative fuels, increased nuclear power, as well as fuels such asethanol, as a way of helping the U.S. achieve energy independence, as opposed to supporting less use of carbon dioxide-producing methods of generating energy. McCain supports the cap-and-trade policy, a policy that is quite popular among Democrats but much less so among other Republicans. Some Republicans support increased oil drilling in currently protected areas such as the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, a position that has drawn sharp criticism from some activists.

Social Policies
Abortion and embryonic stem cell research A majority of the GOP’s national and state candidates are pro-life and oppose elective abortionon religious or moral grounds. However many hold exceptions in the case of incest, rape or the mother’s life being at risk. When Congress voted on the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act in 2003, Congressional Republicans voted overwhelmingly to support the ban.

Although the GOP has voted for increases in government funding of scientific research, some members actively oppose the federal funding of embryonic stem cell research beyond the original lines because it involves the destruction of human embryos, while arguing for applying research money into adult stem cell or amniotic stem cell research. The stem cell issue has garnered two once-rare vetoes on research funding bills from President Bush, who said the research “crossed a moral boundary”.

In August 2012, the party approved a platform advocating banning abortions, without exceptions for the cases of rape or incest. The text specifically stated that “the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed.” It also opposed using public revenues to promote abortions, to perform them, or to fund organizations that do either such things.[38]

Civil Rights
Republicans are generally against affirmative action for women and some minorities, often describing it as a quota system, believing that it is not meritocratic and that it is counter-productive socially by only further promoting discrimination. Many Republicans support race-neutral admissions policies in universities, but support taking into account the socioeconomic status of the student.[39][40]

Second Amendment Rights
Republicans generally support gun ownership rights and oppose laws regulating guns, although some Republicans in urban areas sometimes favor limited restrictions on the grounds that they are necessary to protect safety in large cities.

The War on Drugs
Republicans generally support the War on Drugs, and oppose the Legalization of drugs, believing that smoking and drugs are immoral and wrong, and the country should do its best to protect people from illegal drugs, and support the use Just Say No.

Education
Most Republicans support school choice through charter schools and school vouchers for private schools; many have denounced the performance of the public school system and the teachers’ unions. The party has insisted on a system of greater accountability for public schools, most prominently in recent years with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Many Republicans, however, opposed the creation of the United States Department of Education when it was initially created in 1979.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues
The 2004 Republican platform expressed support for the Federal Marriage Amendment to the United States Constitution to define marriage as exclusively between one man and one woman. Generally speaking, most Republicans have opposed government recognition of same-sex unions such as with same-sex marriage. This opposition formed a key method of energizing conservative voters, the Republican base, in the 2004 election. Historically, most Republicans have opposed permitting LGBT people to serve openly in the military and supported the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. However, majorities of 52% and 58% among Republicans in both 2004 and 2009 opposed the policy and supported open enlistment, according to Gallup polling.[41]

In August 2012, the party approved a platform that would ban same-sex marriage.[38] The Republican Congressional leadership in power since the 2010 midterm elections, lead by House Speaker John Boehner, staunchly have taken stances against same sex marriage.[42]

Groups advocating for LGBT issues inside the party include the Log Cabin Republicans, GOProud, Young Conservatives For The Freedom To Marry, and College Republicans of the University of Pennsylvania[43] and Columbia University.[44] A poll in March 2013 found that 34% of Republicans supported same-sex marriage, with 52% of Republicans and GOP-leaning independents between the age of 18-49 years old supporting same-sex marriage.[45]

Notable Republicans who support same-sex marriage include former Vice President Dick Cheney, former first lady Laura Bush, former Secretary of State Colin Powell, former GOP national chairman Ken Mehlman, Jon Huntsman, Jr., Rob Portman, Meg Whitman, Tom Ridge, William Weld, Jane Swift, Paul Cellucci, Christine Todd Whitman, and Theodore Olson. The last figure has co-led the legal campaign against Californian anti-gay marriage measure Proposition 8.[42] More than 100 former Republican lawmakers, leaders and governors signed an amicus brief calling for California’s ban on same-sex marriage to be overturned.[46]

Although the Republican Party has always advocated a strong national defense, historically they disapproved of interventionist foreign policy actions. Republicans opposed Woodrow Wilson’s intervention in World War I and his subsequent attempt to create the League of Nations. They were also staunchly opposed to intervention in World War II until the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

Dwight Eisenhower
In 1952 Dwight D. Eisenhower was drafted by the Republican Party to counter the candidacy of non-interventionist Senator Robert Taft. Eisenhower’s campaign was a crusade against the Truman administration’s policies regarding “Korea, Communism and Corruption.”[47]

Ronald Reagan
Grenada
On October 25, 1983, at the request of the regional governments, Reagan ordered Operation Urgent Fury, a military invasion of the small, Caribbean island of Grenada, where over a thousand American students and their families were in residence. A Marxist coup d’état had overthrown the established government and shot its leader Maurice Bishop. This was the first actual rollback that destroyed a Communist regime and marked the continued escalation of tensions with the Soviet Union known as the Second Cold War. Democrats had been highly critical of Reagan’s anti-Communism in Latin America, but this time Reagan had strong support from the voters and leading Democrats said the invasion was justified.[48] It built the President’s image of decisive strong action a year before the 1984 election, when Mondale said he too would have ordered the invasion. Indeed Mondale attacked Senator Gary Hart, his chief opponent for the Democratic nomination, as isolationist and weak on fighting dictatorships.[49]

Cold War
President Reagan escalated the Cold War by accelerating a reversal from the policy of détente, which began in 1979 under PresidentJimmy Carter following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.[50] Reagan then ordered a massive buildup of the United States Armed Forces.[51]

Covert operations
Under a policy that came to be known as the Reagan Doctrine, Reagan and his administration also provided overt and covert aid to anti-communist resistance movements in an effort to “rollback” Soviet-backed communist governments in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The policy was politically controversial, with liberal Democrats especially angry with Reagan’s operations in Latin America.[49] Covert operations elsewhere, especially in Afghanistan against the Soviets, however, usually won bipartisan support.[52]

Gulf War 1990–91
On August 1, 1990, Iraq, led by Saddam Hussein, invaded Kuwait. President Bush formed an international coalition and secured UN approval to expel Iraq. On January 12, 1991, Congress voted approval for a military attack, Operation Desert Storm, by a narrow margin, with Republicans in favor and Democrats opposed. The vote in the House was 250–183, and in the Senate 52–47. In the Senate 42 Republicans and 10 Democrats voted yes to war, while 45 Democrats and two Republicans voted no. In the House 164 Republicans and 86 Democrats voted yes, and 179 Democrats, three Republicans and one Independent voted no.[53] The war was short and successful, but Hussein was allowed to remain in power. Arab countries repaid all the American military costs.[54]

~ 90s opposition politics ~

George H. W. Bush
In the 1990s, Republicans in Congress split over U.S. military intervention in the Yugoslav wars under Democratic President Bill Clinton. Examples of interventionist-minded Republicans are then Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole and Senator John McCain and examples of opposing figures are later Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and House Majority Leader Dick Armey, the latter of which who called Kosovodeployment “poorly considered and unlikely to achieve our desired ends.”[55] In 2000, successful Republican Presidential candidateGeorge W. Bush ran on a platform that generally opposed U.S. involvement in foreign conflicts, saying that the U.S. didn’t have the responsibly of “nation building”. As such, he advocated U.S. military withdrawal from the Balkan NATO peacekeeping mission.[56]

George W. Bush
Invasion of Afghanistan
After the September 11 attacks in 2001 in New York, Bush launched the War on Terrorism, in which the United States led an international coalition invaded Afghanistan, the base of terrorist Osama bin Laden. This invasion led to the toppling of the Taliban regime. After a surprise raid on bin Laden’s compound on May 2, 2011, ordered by Barack Obama, bin Laden was killed and his body disposed of in the sea. There was bipartisan support for this action, with notable Republican and Democratic figures speaking out in support of the raid.

Invasion of Iraq
In 2003, George W. Bush launched the invasion of Iraq, in conjunction with coalition partners, most notably, the United Kingdom. The invasion was described by Bush as being part of the War on Terrorism. Saddam Hussein was captured and executed, but his supporters staged an insurgency that dragged on for years. It was a major election issue in 2004 (when Bush was reelected) and in 2006 and 2008 (when President Obama was first elected to the Presidency, and Democrats increased their numbers in both Houses of Congress.).[57]

Policies
As a result, some in the Republican Party support unilateralism on issues of national security, believing in the ability and right of the United States to act without external support in matters of its national defense. In general, Republican thinking on defense andinternational relations is heavily influenced by the theories of neorealism and realism, characterizing conflicts between nations as struggles between faceless forces of international structure, as opposed to being the result of the ideas and actions of individual leaders. The realist school’s influence shows in Reagan’s Evil Empire stance on the Soviet Union and George W. Bush’s Axis of evil.

Republicans secured gains in the 2002 and 2004 elections, with the War on Terror being one of the top issues favoring them. Since theSeptember 11, 2001 attacks, some in the party support neoconservative policies with regard to the War on Terror, including the 2001 war in Afghanistan and the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

The doctrine of preemptive war, wars to disarm and destroy potential military foes based on speculation of future attacks rather than in defense against actual attack, has been advocated by prominent members of the Bush administration, but the war within Iraq has undercut the influence of this doctrine within the Republican Party. Rudy Giuliani, mayor of New York at the time of the September 11 terrorist attacks, and a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008, has stated his support for that policy, saying America must keep itself “on the offensive” against terrorists.

The George W. Bush administration took the position that the Geneva Conventions do not apply to unlawful combatants, saying they apply to soldiers serving in the armies of nation states and not terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda. The Supreme Court overruled this position in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, which held that the Geneva Conventions were legally binding and must be followed in regards to all enemy combatants. Prominent Republicans such as John McCain, Mike Huckabee, and Ron Paul strongly oppose the use of enhanced interrogation techniques, which they view as torture.

Other International Policies
Israel
The Republican leadership supports a strong Israel, but supports efforts to secure peace in the Middle East between Israel and its Arab neighbors.[58]

Russia
The Republican Party claims the U.S. should promote friendship not only between the United States and Russia, but also between Russia and its neighbors. With Russia, the U.S. needs patience, consistency, and a principled reliance on democratic forces. Russia must stop encouraging the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.[59] The party stress the common interests of the two countries which includes ending terrorism, combating nuclear proliferation, promoting bilateral trade.[60]

TradeThe party, through former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton, has advocated reforms in the United Nations to halt corruption such as that which afflicted the Oil-for-Food Program. Most Republicans oppose the Kyoto Protocol. The party promotes free trade agreements, most notably North American Free Trade Agreement, Dominican Republic–Central America Free Trade Agreement and an effort to go further south to Brazil, Peru and Colombia, although some have a protectionist view of trade.

Immigration
Republicans are divided on how to confront illegal immigration between a platform that allows for migrant workers and easing citizenship guidelines, and border enforcement-first approach. In general, pro-growth advocates within the Republican Party support more immigration, and traditional or populist conservatives oppose it. In 2006, the White House supported and Republican-led Senate passedcomprehensive immigration reform that would eventually allow millions of illegal immigrants to become citizens, but the House, also led by Republicans, took an enforcement-first approach, and the bill failed to pass the conference committee.[61]

Political Status of Puerto Rico
The Republican Party has expressed its support for the U.S. citizens of Puerto Rico to exercise their right to determine a future permanent non-territorial political status with government by consent, full enfranchisement and to be admitted to the union as a fully sovereign U.S. state. Puerto Rico has been under U.S. sovereignty for over a century and Puerto Ricans have been U.S. citizens since 1917; but the island’s ultimate status still has not been determined and its 3.9 million residents still do not have voting representation in their national government. The following is a section from the 2012 party platform (slightly changed on the last sentence from the 2008, 2004 and 2000 platforms).[63][64][65][66]

Lately, after the defeat in the 2012 presidential elections, and considering the low percent of Latinos that voted Republican, several Republicans are advocating a friendlier approach to immigrants. Former US Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez is promoting the creation of a SuperPAC for immigration reform.[62]

Business Community
We support the right of the United States citizens of Puerto Rico to be admitted to the Union as a fully sovereign state if they freely so determine. We recognize that Congress has the final authority to define the constitutionally valid options for Puerto Rico to achieve a permanent non-territorial status with government by consent and full enfranchisement. As long as Puerto Rico is not a State, however, the will of its people regarding their political status should be ascertained by means of a general right of referendum or specific referenda sponsored by the U.S. government.

The GOP is usually seen as the traditionally pro-business party and it garners major support from a wide variety of industries from the financial sector to small businesses. Republicans are about 50 percent more likely to be self-employed, and are more likely to work in management.[68]

Demographics
In recent elections, Republicans have found their greatest support among whites from married couples with children living at home.[69]Unmarried and divorced women were far more likely to vote for Kerry in 2004.[70] Since 1980, a “gender gap” has seen slightly stronger support for the GOP among men than among women. In the 2006 House races, 43% of women voted for GOP, while 47% of men did so.[71] In the 2010 midterms, the “gender gap” was reduced with women supporting GOP and Democratic candidates equally 49% to 49%.[72][73] The Democrats do better among younger Americans and Republicans among older Americans. In 2006, the GOP won 38% of the voters aged 18–29.[71]

President George W. Bush won 41% of the poorest 20% of voters in 2004, 55% of the richest twenty percent, and 53% of those in between. In the 2006 House races, the voters with incomes over $50,000 were 49% Republican, while those under were 38%.[71]
Republicans hold a large majority in the armed services, with 57% of active military personnel and 66% of officers identified as Republican in 2003.[74]

Exit polls conducted in 2000, 2004, and 2006 indicate that about one quarter of gay and lesbian Americans voted for the GOP. In recent years, many in the party have opposed same-sex marriage, adoption by same-sex couples, inclusion of sexual orientation in federal hate crimes laws, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, while supporting the use of the don’t ask, don’t tell policy within the military. Some members of the party, particularly in the Northeast and Pacific coast, support civil unions and adoption rights for same-sex couples.[75]The opposition to gay rights largely comes from the socially conservative wing of the party.[76]Education
Republicans still hold a 4% advantage amongst college educated men, however.[78] Whites without a college degree now tilt decidedly toward the Republican Party – the GOP now holds a 54% to 37% advantage among non-college whites, who were split about evenly four years ago.[78]

Ethnicity
In the 2010 elections, two African American Republicans were elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.[80] The Republican Party abolished slavery under Abraham Lincoln, defeated the Slave Power, and gave blacks the vote during Reconstruction in the late 1860s. Until the New Deal of the 1930s, blacks supported the GOP by large margins.[81] Most black voters switched to the Democratic Party in the 1930s when the New Deal offered them employment opportunities, and major figures, such as Eleanor Roosevelt, began to support civil rights. They became one of the core components of the New Deal Coalition. In the South, blacks were able to vote in large numbers after 1965, when a bipartisan coalition passed the Voting Rights Act, and ever since have formed a significant portion (20-50%) of the Democratic vote in that region.[82]

Religious Belief
Religion has always played a major role for both parties but, in the course of a century, the parties’ religious compositions have changed. Religion was a major dividing line between the parties before 1960, with Catholics, Jews, and Southern Protestants heavily Democratic, and Northeastern Protestants heavily Republican. Most of the old differences faded away after the realignment of the 1970s and 80s that undercut the New Deal coalition. Voters who attend church weekly gave 61% of their votes to Bush in 2004; those who attend occasionally gave him only 47%, while those who never attend gave him 36%. Fifty-nine percent of Protestants voted for Bush, along with 52% of Catholics (even though John Kerry was Catholic). Since 1980, large majorities of evangelicals have voted Republican; 70–80% voted for Bush in 2000 and 2004, and 70% for GOP House candidates in 2006. Jews continue to vote 70–80% Democratic. Democrats have close links with the African American churches, especially the National Baptists, while their historic dominance among Catholic voters has eroded to 54-46 in the 2010 midterms.[86] The main line traditional Protestants (Methodists, Lutherans, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Disciples) have dropped to about 55% Republican (in contrast to 75% before 1968). The mainline denominations are rapidly shrinking in size. Mormons in Utah and neighboring states voted 75% or more for Bush in 2000.[90]

This map shows the vote in the 2004 presidential election by county. All major Republican geographic constituencies are visible: red dominates the map, showing Republican strength in the rural areas, while the denser areas (i.e., cities) are blue. Notable exceptions include the Pacific coast, New England, the Black Belt, areas with high Native American populations, and the heavily Hispanic parts of the Southwest.

Location
Since 1980, geographically the Republican “base” (“red states”) is strongest in the South, the Midwest, and Mountain West. While it is currently weakest on the West Coast and Northeast, this has not always been the case; historically the northeast was a bastion of the Republican Party with Vermont and Maine being the only two states to vote against Franklin Roosevelt all four times. The Midwest has been roughly balanced since 1854, with Illinois becoming more Democratic and liberal because of the city of Chicago (see below) andMinnesota and Wisconsin more Republican since 1990. Ohio and Indiana both trend Republican. Since the 1930s, the Democrats have dominated most central cities, while the Republicans now dominate rural areas and the majority of suburbs.[91]

The South has become solidly Republican in national elections since 1980, and has been trending Republican at the state level since then at a slower pace.[92] In 2004, Bush led Kerry by 70%-30% among Southern whites, who made up 71% of the Southern electorate. Kerry had a 70-30 lead among the 29% of the voters who were black or Hispanic. One-third of these Southern voters said they were white evangelicals; they voted for Bush by 80-20; but were only 72% Republican in 2006.[71][83]
The Republican Party’s strongest focus of political influence lies in the Great Plains states, particularly Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska,South Dakota, and North Dakota, and in the Mountain states of Idaho, Wyoming, and Utah (Utah gave George W. Bush more than 70% of the popular vote in 2004). These states are sparsely populated with few major urban centers, and have majority white populations, making it extremely difficult for Democrats to create a sustainable voter base there. While still remaining notably Republican, Montana is the only state in the region with a more moderate lean.[93] Unlike the South, these areas have been strongly Republican since before the party realignments of the 1960s. The Great Plains states were one of the few areas of the country where Republicans had any significant support during the Great Depression.

Conservatives, Moderates, Liberals, and Progressives
Republican “conservatives” are strongest in the South, Mountain West and Midwest, where they draw support from social conservatives. The moderates tend to dominate the party in New England, and used to be well represented in all states. From the 1940s to the 1970s under such leaders as Dwight D. Eisenhower, Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, they usually dominated the presidential wing of the party. Since the 1970s, they have been less powerful, though they are always represented in the cabinets of Republican presidents. In Vermont,Jim Jeffords, a Republican Senator became an independent in 2001 due to growing disagreement with President Bush and the party leadership. In addition, moderate Republicans have recently held the governorships in several New England States, while Lincoln Chafee, a former moderate Republican senator is currently the independent governor of Rhode Island. Senators Olympia Snowe andSusan Collins, both of Maine, and Senator Scott Brown of Massachusetts are notable moderate Republicans from New England. From 1991 to 2007, moderate Republicans served as governors of Massachusetts. Prominent Republican moderates since the party’s foundation in 1854 have included Benjamin Harrison,[94] William McKinley, George Bush Jr.,[95] George Bush Sr.,[96] Bob Dole,[97] Mitt Romney,[98][99] Rudolph Giuliani,[100] and Richard Riordan.[101]

Some well-known conservative radio hosts, including national figures such as Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Neal Boortz,Laura Ingraham, Michael Reagan, Howie Carr, and Michael Savage, as well as many local commentators, support Republican causes, while vocally opposing those of the Democrats.[102]
Traditionally, the Republican Party has included a liberal wing made up of individuals who, like members of the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, believe in the power of government to improve people’s lives. During the Progressive Era, many of the leading liberal reformers were Republicans, such as Theodore Roosevelt,[103] Charles Evan Hughes, George W. Norris, Hiram Johnson, and Fiorello La Guardia. In contemporary politics, however, liberalism is no longer as strong a force as it once was within the Republican Party. Prominent liberal Republicans of the Twentieth Century included Nelson Rockefeller, John Lindsay, Jacob Javits,[104] Thomas Dewey, Wendell Willkie, Alf Landon, Robert McNamara,[105] and Robert La Follette.
Some long time Republicans have spoken out for more steeply progressive taxation than mainstream GOP leaders have supported. These include Bruce Bartlett, Paul O’Neill, David Stockman, and Sheila Bair.[106] Similarly, Republican Wall Street Journal opinion columnist Peggy Noonan has called for a renewed focus on jobs instead of debt and deficit

What Republicans Stand For

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