As the granddaughter of Barry Goldwater,

[nedbal]

< <
Though he’s often depicted as the father of conservatism, Barry Goldwater would be considered a moderate today. He was firmly pro-choice, a supporter of gay rights and, in his later years, said that he thought it was okay for gays to serve in the military.

Fundamentally, it’s clear that Barry would not have been comfortable with the increasing influence of the Christian right over the GOP. My grandfather would have been appalled by the whole political grandstanding of the Terri Schiavo mess.

CONTINUED
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14863898/site/newsweek/

[Reverend_Smitty]

1. We are in a sad state of affairs when...

Barry Goldwater would be considered a Pinko by today's standards...hell even Nixon would be on the more liberal end of the spectrum today

[Joe Bacon]

2. John Mitchell's wish came true

I still remember him saying in 1970 that the Republicans were gonna push this country so far to the right you wouldn't recognize it. What a shame his wish came true...

[argyl]

3. When Goldwater came to Nixon and told him he couldn't oppose

his impeachment Nixon knew the jig was up and he threw in the towel. The Watergate break in and accompanying coverup brought down the Nixon presidency 32 years ago.

By today's standards it wouldn't rate any news coverage at all,unless the current regime decided to crow about it and rub it in our faces. And the lapdog media would giggle nervously and move on to the next kidnapped white girl story.

[TreasonousBastard]

4. Ah, the good ol' days, when...

Senate Republicans like Goldwater, Dirksen, Javits... the ones who had a bit of integrity about them no matter where in the spectrum they sat, actually held power and could be respected.

Those are the guys who held the Dixiecrats back until the Dixiecrats all became Republicans and took over, thanks to LBJ and his voting rights act.

Can't say I blame LBJ for doing the right thing back then, but we're paying for it now.

[Erika]

5. The GOP is now the theocrat/fascist party

and yes Goldwater would be repulsed.

[lebkuchen]

6. John Dean's book "Conservatives without Conscience" discusses Goldwater

Actually, the premise for the book itself (Why do authoritarian conservatives behave the way they do?) was brainstormed by Goldwater and Dean, but Goldwater died before the book was written. Goldwater was dismayed by the hijacking of the GOP by the fundamentalists.

The book is an excellent read so far, and I recommend it.