Notice that there's a large right-wing faction in the Democratic Party, but the GOP...

[Ardent15]

...is uniformly conservative, with the factions being right, far right, and Palin/Beck right.

Yet a majority of Americans support progressive policies, from universal health care to safety nets in general.

I'm convinced that the Powers that Be are conservative because progressive policies are a threat to them. The question is: Are they conservative because they are afraid of losing their power, or are they afraid of losing their power because they're conservative?

It's a chicken-and-the-egg thing.

Regardless, our two major political parties, Congress, President, and Supreme Court do not represent the People, even though they are SUPPOSED to. But "public interest" and "the common good" are terms scoffed at by the Powers That Be.

[waiting for hope]

1. I think it's both -

they are conservative ... and because of that, want to hold on to everything possible so they can return the country to a pre-1950's era.

[Sebastian Doyle]

2. Thanks again, DLC!

Dedicated to undermining the Democratic party from within since 1985 :puke:

[Lorien]

8. In conjunction with the removal of the Fairness doctrine

it doesn't matter how many corporations own the media; without the Fairness doctrine they'll all push their far Right pro-corporate agenda. But we don't put up a fuss about that, or campaign finance reform, or anything else which might actually bring about positive change.

[MadHound]

3. There used to be a critter known as a moderate Republican,

They were just that, moderate, business friendly, non-fundy, even intelligent Republicans. They had no problem crossing over and voting for legislation they thought was good for the country. This was also the group that had the real money in the house

But then the 'Pugs started thinking they could use the fundy conservative vote to get them into office, and it worked throughout the eighties. It worked with Bushboy too, but by that time the fundies were starting to take over at the Republican insane asylum, and what was a trickle of moderate 'Pugs running from the party during the Reagan/Bush years became a steady stream. Then came Palin.

I watched Palin's acceptance speech, and while the hoot 'n holler section down front loved her, as the camera panned around to the money seats in the convention hall, where the moderate 'Pugs reside, you could see the looks of shock on many a face. OMG who is this creature. That is when Obama one, because the moderate 'Pugs took their votes and their money and went Democratic. That's the whole problem, because over the years those moderate 'Pugs have morphed into DLC Dems, and Blue Dog Dems and Centerist Dems, and made the Democratic party over in the image of the the moderate, corporate friendly image of the 'Pugs forty years ago.

[Ardent15]

5. I think you hit the nail on the head

I think our real enemies are gonna be the "rational" conservatives-the Blue Dogs, the New Democrats, and the few moderate Republicans left.

The Tea Party crowd is destined to fail.

[aquart]

4. Nixon purged the party waaaaay back when.

[Ardent15]

6. Nixon? Nixon was a moderate compared to Reagan and the Bush Crime Family...

In fact, he signed some legislation into law that was actually good, domestically speaking.

[Lorien]

9. Nixon was a Liberal compared to most of the Dems in office today.nt

[aquart]

11. If Nixon hadn't purged the liberal and moderate Republicans....

You wouldn't have had Reagan and Bush. NIXON is the reason American health care is the laughing stock of the western world. And let's not forget his best friend, China.

This amnesiac attempt to rehabilitate that piece of scum is nauseating.

[tcaudilllg]

13. Only because he had no choice. He played the long game, not the short game.

[Sebastian Doyle]

14. Nixon owed his entire political career to the Bush Crime Family

That's Grandpa Prescott playing with Dick's hat.

[amborin]

18. some of his health care

proposals were more progressive than Obama's, which isn't saying much, admittedly

[tcaudilllg]

7. You do not understand

These people are actually mostly contemptuous of conservative values, however they fear reform and try to prevent it unless they are sure it won't cause new problems down the line. (many social conservatives ARE NOT fearful of reform -- GWB was an example). They also have a relationship with the "liberal Republicans" in that they will often defer to them in a kind of instinctual deference to "the regime".

It's a dichotomy you see: liberal Republicans on the Right, and conservative Democrats on the Left. And they are, all things considered, a part of the same institutionalist mindset. The institutionalists, as it were, are split between Left and Right.

[Lorien]

10. Name one "Liberal Republican" and name the legislation which makes them so.

[tcaudilllg]

12. Scott Brown for just voting for the $15 billion employer-credit bill.

If you notice how he operates, that gimmick of going around town in a pickup truck is meant to demonstrate his identification with working people. Brown is as career a politician as you will find: he said what he had to to get elected, and he will continue to do what he must to curry the public's favor. He will not be a reliable Republican vote by any means, at least for as long as Dems outnumber Republicans in Mass.

[DaveinJapan]

17. Did he vote for the bill?

I thought he just voted for cloture.

[tcaudilllg]

20. True, but his role in its passage doesn't seem to have bothered him.

He plays, "the game" as they call it.

[KingFlorez]

15. The GOP purged it's moderates and it's a mess

I'll admit it's frustrating not getting some things done, but in the long run I think have a big tent is what makes us the better party and more representative of the country. Our conservatives are definitely not radical like the Republicans.

[tcaudilllg]

22. The Dems purged the GOP by winning the last two elections.

Thanks to gerrymandering, social conservatives are invulnerable, so only the moderates are aimed for by the party bosses.

Ironically, our victory was too complete: we now have Dems who are more Right on the matter of abortion than the Repubs they replaced. A complete victory is apparently impossible because of the South's racist legacy and the flight of liberals from those states almost as soon as they graduate from high school, so liberal Dems can't get elected there anymore. This means that a filibuster-proof majority is, in turn, pretty much impossible to sustain.

The key is to aim for the progress of the nation, not of the party... Conservative moderates will not assist in the passage our agenda, but they will uphold it after it gets on the books. (with the exception of integrity-obsessed types like McCain, who are a tough find anyway). Conservative moderates are, in fact, eager to reform the system in a big way, and that is one reason I think Obama is falling out of favor with them, because he's been hesitating.

[Kweli4Real]

16. I think you are correct AND incorrect at the same time ...

The powers that are are conservative because the lack of progressivism makes them powerful. I think you realize that most people claiming to be conservatives are just as powerless as any/everyone else.

[Kaleva]

19. National polls conflict with regional demographics and our system of govt.

Senators from rural, low population states tend Republican but they have as much power as Senators from far more populace and progressive states.

[tcaudilllg]

23. Indeed, it's a perversion of what the founders intended.

[lazarus]

24. it's exactly what they intended

they set Congress up in a great compromise so the slave states would have equal power with the free states. That's why a small percentage of the country's population controls the Senate.

[Kablooie]

21. They DO represent the people. At least 4% of them.