Bertha Parker - August 30, 2012

I believe in American freedom, the Constitution and capitalism and the Republican party seems to have more respect for all three. The new Democrate party shows no respect for any of the above.

Today a judge ruled requiring a photo ID to vote placed a burden on the poor. Is that because they are so weak from hunger that can’t care one? I really don’t understand.

Richard - August 30, 2012

In rhetoric, yes there are still some clear political lines. When it comes to votes on issues, however, both parties are too often embracing a Euro-style global view that does not always align with support for our Constitution or sovereignity.

David Stearns - August 30, 2012

Both parties’ leaderships test public tolerance. Congressional approval ratings tend to confirm that.

This administration’s destructive policies encourage extreme public reactions from the fringes of all parties. How can one not react with vigor against this leadership? And in fairness, how can the more radical Left not be encouraged by this administration and set in noisy motion?

Philip Pizzurro - August 30, 2012

I believe in freedom of the individual and a republic form of government. The republican party comes closest to representig these principles. But we the people must stay alert and involved to ensure politicians do not become corrupt.

Mary Crozier - August 30, 2012

Perhaps you need to see the documentary 2016. I believe people are either aligned with our Constitution and capitalism, or share the sentiment of our president as outlined in this documentary. I wish the Heritage Foundation would spread the word about this insightful documentary. It certainly answered a lot of questions for me and solidifies the anti-colonial view of our current president.

Fred Opper - August 30, 2012

Until recently, the end of the Bush years, the Republicans were a big tax and spend party that had no problem with growing government and seemed to want more intitlements. The Tea Party, grass roots movement, had to have had the greatest influence on the Republicans to turn towards conservative ideas. Tax payers were fed up with being ignored and not listened to by their elected officials resulting in the 2010 elections. There is a very long way to go to truely adapt Tea Party positions; smaller goverment, adherance to the Constitution, reduced spending and debt, reduced taxes and freedom of religion. Until the Republicans adapt those positions, there is a strong threat a third party will push them aside. Tax paying patriots will not be patient for long.

Kent Hallander - August 30, 2012

I think the people, at the bottom, are more conservative but the RINOS, at the top, are fighting to maintain their power.It was evident after the 2010 elections when they took all the top positions in the House before the Tea Party arrived! The same happened at this convention when the House Speaker blew the NO votes away in that voice vote.

Roy G. Callahan - August 30, 2012

There’s really no difference in the party. The path to socialism is paved with good intentions. Republicans and Democrats got us to this point in history and with change in rules that doesn’t allow dissent in the selection of presidential material . . . . just speaks for itself. Time to do to the Republicans what the Republicans did to Whigs – replae them for the same reasons.

Adri Kalisvaart - August 30, 2012

In November I will be between a rock and a hard place. My choice is between Marx or Jesus. A pox on both of them. I will hold my nose and vote for the religionists and two years later I will be forced to vote straight Democrat again in the hope of stopping the weirdoes from bestowing inalienable rights on a fertilized egg.

Fred Opper - August 30, 2012

What is the Candidate’s ability to lead through an inevitable Islamic conflict?
The next administration, Republican or Democrat, will have to deal with a world conflict with a nuclear Islam. We must have a candidate who is prepared to lead and take action in the coming conflict. It will most certainly happen with Iran’s leadership of militant Islam. No candidate or mainstream media is talking about being prepared and able to lead the country through a possible nuclear conflict that will be aimed at Israel and the western world, which most definitely includes America. One doesn’t have to be a conspiracy nut case. Anyone who follows what is being said by the leaders of Muslim countries and rebel groups or the Arab Spring movement can see that history is repeating itself. The Nazi movement is taking shape in a Muslim form and telling us what is planned just as was done before WWII. The Tea Party must take a stand on this issue and insist candidates take a position and demonstrate their ability to lead us through the coming conflict. Obama is definitely not prepared to lead us under such circumstances and appears to be sympathetic to the Muslim cause. He has cut our defence preparedness through sequestration. It is a real and serious issue that must be addressed. While the jobs, the economy and the debt are certainly important issues that are being addressed, We conservatives should also address the real threat to come in the next 3 – 10 years. It is a life and death issue. The Democrats are the modern day Chamberlains and proclaim “peace in our time” with Muslim governments and Terrorists. Peace will not happen in our lifetime if Iran, Syria, Egypt or others succeed in developing nuclear, chemical or biological weapons delivered by missiles or in suitcases placed by terrorist sleeper cells around the country and world.

The presidential debates will be taking place soon. We must find a way to get the Islamic nuclear threat debated. The following question would be very important to have discussed:

It is a strong possibility that the next President will have to deal with a nuclear Islam, lead by Iran, that threatens to destroy Israel and western culture especially in America. As President, how do you propose to deal with this threat?”

William Chase - August 30, 2012

o. Both parties are moving left. Once again we are forced to vote for the lesser of two evils.

Jack Leishear - August 30, 2012

Absolutely!! I wonder how many more Dem.s will start paying attention, and suddenly realize, Hey! I’m actually a Republican. I can hope for ” paying attention”, at least.

Ellen - August 30, 2012

There is no question that the two parties are aligning themselves around political ideas. The Republicans are the party of a smaller Federal government and more individual states’ rights. The Democrats are the party of a bigger Federal government and the decrease of states’ rights. The Democrats want to make the choices for you while the Republicans want you to have the freedom to make your own choices.

Doug Nicholson - August 31, 2012

On a scale of Center “0″ out to +10 on the conservative side and -10 on the liberal side, both parties used to be about 3-4 either way and compromise was easy because either side didn’t have to go very far to ” meet in the middle”. Then the libs began to move further to the left, or minus side. The conservatives had no choice but to move farther to the right to compensate for the leftward shift made by the libs. As time goes on, each side moves farther away from the “centerist” position and compromise become next to impossible.

Rex Whitmer - August 31, 2012

McCain has never really been conservative. I am a native Arizonan and the only time I ever voted for him was in the last presidential election and that only because I could see the severe socialistic tendencies of Obama! There are a lot of wanna bee conservatives in the party,but they don’t have the strength to follow through. While I register and mostly vote Republican I am unable to understand so many Repubs who will not o dare not call a socialist a socialist. Ron Paul is a Libertarian who votes with Repubs, but he’s never afraid to call a spade a spade!

Linda S - August 31, 2012

There is no doubt that the Democrat party has moved further left. As for the Republican party, it is still pretty centrist.Even though it WAS the Tea Party that reacted quickly to the radicalness of Obama, we still have NOT been acknowledged, let alone APPRECIATED, for all the grassroot efforts to try and get solid conservative candidates elected (and we did in 2010). Of course, that IS why the “establishment” wants NOTHING to do with what they see as the “radical right-wing” of the party. Plus, after the “trick” the RNC pulled two days ago “taking power from the state party” and giving it to the “powers that be” was a clear message “we have no use for you….until we need our base to show up at election time.
My promise is: I will vote AGAINST Obama but I will NO longer consider myself a Republican–I will turn my back to them as they have done to me. The time seems right for a Third party!

Chuck Tatum - August 31, 2012

I hope so, but the leadership (Bush, Boehner, Cantor, McConnell) have been passing CRs which continue the Obama/Reid/Pelosi budget and “negotiate” debt-ceiling increases with nominal “cuts.” Folks like DeMint and Duncan need more access to leadership. I want them yelling at their fellow legislators like the guy in the Illinois State legislature!

Shirley Sclafani - August 31, 2012

Obama has shown us just how far off course this country has gotten. I think it has been God’s way to get us back on track by showing such a dramatic difference between the two parties. There is no doubt in any conservative’s mind which party is trying to get us back to a constitutional basis. I would think there are a lot of people in this glorious country who have has a moment like the Governor of New Mexico in discovering they are conservative republicans.

Mary Jane Casablanca - August 31, 2012

Yes, I know it to be true based on recent past election results, and the people that I talk with in different areas of our community. More people are concerned about the path toward socialism that the current administration has put us on, and they realize we are losing our freedoms. They want to return to our traditional values and principles of liberty.

Herb Mertel - August 31, 2012

Has not anyone noticed that a Border Patrol Officer was murdered, and the recovered murder weapon was a “throw down” which would be traceable to a legal sale in the US, supplied to the killers by the BATF under some ‘Liberal Democrat” Program designed to repeal the 2nd Ammendment? How many liberal democrats in the government and media are working at this moment to continue the suppression of all information concerning what has become daily violations of our Constitution? We are not only post-constutional, we are post-civil as a society. You vastly underate these modern Liberal Democrat worshipers of Stalin, Mao and Castro. One more liberal democrat in the White House, and neither Heritage nor the internet will long continue to exist.

Sandy Straight - August 31, 2012

As the Democratic Party embraces Obama, I would encourage everyone to see the movie docutumentary 2016. This makes Obama’s goals for America abundatly clear and his goal is a 3rd world, Socialist Society for America. Capitalism, the Constitution, and American freedom are not part of his agenda, except to destroy.
The Republican party is making a great attempt to bring America back to the policies and values that made us great and made us a beacon of light which gives hope to many nations in this dangerous world.
I do believe Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan will turn America around and get us back on the right path.

David Campbell - August 31, 2012

The republican party has not moved to the right it has stayed more or less the same, at least rhetorically. The Democratic party has been taken over by the progressive movement and has moved sharply left and, in my opinion, gone “leftist”. (The odd thing is that we still call them liberals while the progressive movement is exactly the opposite of liberalism.) Since “liberals” (now progressives) control most of the media they prefer to promote the idea that the Republicans have moved to the right, often with adjectives like extreme, far right, etc. while the widening gap between the political camps has far more to do with the left lurching leftist. The mistake the Republicans continue to make is that their rhetoric is center right, which irritates liberals, but their actions tend to be “centrist” and even slightly left, which irritates conservatives. I believe the Republican party would be shocked at their success if they would start practicing what they preach.

Margaret - September 1, 2012

Yes, both parties are definitely farther apart on their view of how American government should be run.

Democrats have long taken toward a path of socialism and sadly many Republicans have been led there without realizing the underlying damage of many laws and especially the danger of the Federal Reserve.

America has sadly become a fractured government on its way to being controlled by the United Nations if something is not done soon.

Judith Weiss - September 1, 2012

I saw great promise in the several young politicians who spoke at the RNC. They are the hope of the Republican Party and this country if they hold true to their values and the first principles of this country and its founders. As for the current Democrat Party—perhaps they would be happier in Europe.

Helen Hackett - September 3, 2012

There is a clear ideological difference between “real” conservatives in the (R) party and the moderate big-wigs that are still in high places in the (R) party, hense the Rules change debacle at the convention. There certainly is a differencial between the (D) and (R) party on spending and social issues, that’s why I’m a registered (R) but we have to keep alert for the moves from the moderates who would go back to spending, and engineering social issues. I don’t think the moderates in the (R) party honor the Constitution anymore than the (D).

K. Hunter - September 3, 2012

I may be wrong but it seems to me that the idea of the two party system is to present clear alternatives to the electorate. If that translates as “polarization according to ideology” then that is the ideal state. If both parties are essentially identical in ideology then of what value is a second party? The idea that both, or one would suppose all, parties ought to embrace essentially the same governing philosophy presupposes that there is only one such philosophy that is appropriate for all nations and cultures.

James Martin - September 6, 2012

I certainly hope the Republican stands for something! For decades they have been the party of obsequiousness.