How Conservative is the Republican Party?

How Conservative is the Republican Party?

Conservative	Not conservative	Conclusion
FOREIGN POLICY. The Republican Party still remains a very conservative party with regards to foreign policy and this was fuelled by the revival of neo conservative activism during the Bush administration and these sentiments are still very much active within the party today. Conservatives have a realist approach to foreign policy in which they only intervene when American interests are threatened. This is still seen today among the Republican Party’s criticism of the Obama administration slow approach to the threat of the Islamic State in the Middle East. The GOP are in agreement on how to deal with ISIS – while some such as Rick Santorum are suggesting deploying 10,000 ground troops others believe that air strikes should be intensified, so although there may be different strategies – overall the party remains conservative in that they agree that intervention in the middle east is still needed. Similarly, Conservatives continue to support the renewal of the PATRIOT Act, which they agree is necessary to keep American lives safe.	In the aftermath of the Edward Snowden leaks on the mass data collection programmes being conducted by the NSA some Republican figures have spoken out against it – most notably Rand Paul who launched somewhat of a filibuster lasting 10 hours to delay its renewal and has promised that he will delay the bill as much as possible. Paul has also been a strong opponent of drone strikes – which Republicans strongly support – whereby he filibustered the appointment of John O. Brennan as CIA director to raise awareness on the issue of drone strikes. With the emergence of ISIS the GOP have become increasingly blamed for it’s creation by invading Iraq back in 2003 which destabilized the country and paved the way for ISIS – as a result, the Iraq war still casts its long shadow over the Republican Party and they’ve become increasingly war wary as seen from the fact that in 2013 they voted against military action against Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria.	Rand Paul seems to be the only one with such strong opposition to the PATRIOT Act, and overall the Republican party remains very in favour of it as well as the leadership in the Senate – Mitch McConnell has been pushing for the GOP to vote for the renewal of the Patriot Act since the GOP dominated House has already passed it.
TEA PARTY. Under Ronald Reagan in the 1980s the Republican were established as a fiscally conservative party and such sentiments remain strong within the party to this day. The underlying belief of fiscal conservatives is to greatly reduce government spending and cut back in taxation as well as achieve a balanced budget – the emergence of the Tea Party in recent years has further reinforced these sentiments and therefore the GOP remain a fiscally conservative party. The Republicans ‘conservative’ stance is perhaps most evident from their opposition to Obamacare, which ultimately requires high taxation and GOP opposition intensified to a point where in 2013 there was a shutdown by the Tea Party. Further evidence that the GOP remain a conservative party is seen by the 2015 budget which was approved by the GOP dominated Congress, proposing $5.3 trillion in spending cuts and a balanced budget (first time since 2001), which will make it easier to scrap Obamacare. They opposed Obama’s Stimulus Package in 2009.	However, the GOP have been criticised for not being conservative enough. For instance, during the Bush era public expenditure went up incredibly as a result of No Child Left Behind. The GOP also agreed to tax hikes in 2013. The 2015 budget has been criticised for two of the most fiscally conservative members – Ted Cruz + Rand Paul – as not going far enough as the budget also proposed $38 billion being pumped into the defence budget, thus undoing previous fiscal achievements in 2013 when significant cuts were made to the defence budget. Arguably moderate sentiments within the Republican party remain strong.	The days of compassionate conservatism from the Bush era are over and the party’s fiscally conservative principles have been reinforced by the emergence of the Tea Party movement. Tax hikes were agreed upon in 2013 to end the shutdown. The 2015 budge is as fiscal as fiscal gets – its massive spending cuts and aims to repeal Obamacare epitomise the very fact that the GOP remain a very conservative party. +John Boehner banned earmarks in the House which is seen as wasteful spending by fiscal Conservativism.
SOCIAL ISSUES. Under Reagan the Republican party also became an established socially conservative party and such sentiments are still seen today by their opposition to things like gay marriage and abortion rights. The Republicans, whose core supporters and members are typically Evangelical Christians want to promote traditional family values and the ‘nuclear family’. There have been recent attempts in the House to pass a bill to instruct doctors performing late term abortions to ensure the best survival of the foetus which is all a part of larger attempts by the Republicans to ban abortions starting at the 11th week of pregnancy. Moreover, Republicans continue to strongly oppose gay marriage.	As Bill O’Reilly from Fox News made it clear in May – ‘it’s a tough time for social conservatives in America’ who are now officially in the ‘smear zone’ because views on issues like gay marriage are gradually changing in the US and becoming increasingly accepted. As a result, social conservatives are now in the ‘smear zone’ according to O’Reilly who are unable to get things done – this is seen from several losses over issues like gay marriage such as repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, US v Windsor and Hollingsworth v. Perry. As a result, there have been calls within the GOP to quit being so anti-gay marriage because they run at risk of alienating young voters (who usually support gay marriage) – Jeb Bush for instance says he supports gay marriage. GOP struggling with a changing political and social shift on gay marriage.	However, they may indeed be struggling with the changing social and political climate- but they continue to remain fully social conservative as further illustrated by the ongoing Obergefell v. Hodges case in which Marco Rubio commented saying it was ridiculous to assume gay marriage is protected by the constitution.
IMMIGRATION REFORM. The Republican Party’s conservative principles are evident from their tough stance on immigration reform in which they continue to believe that comprehensive immigration reform is not a sensible approach to dealing with the issue and believe deportations should intensify, they also see comprehensive immigration reform as being a way of rewarding (by granting amnesty) criminals who have broken the law by coming to the US illegally. This tough stance on immigration reform continues to be evident within the conservative Republican party whereby they filibustered the DREAM Act in 2010 and were outraged by Obama’s executive order last year. Similarly, conservatism within the GOP on this issue is seen at a state level whereby some states have adopted very strict anti-immigration laws such as Alabama HB 56 and Arizona SB 1070 and a Texas legislature dominated by Republicans have put on hold Obama’s executive order.	However, in recent years there has been increasing efforts by the Republican party to work in conjunction with the Democrats on achieving immigration reform, for instance, the Gang of 8 Bill was a bipartisan measure led by Republican Marco Rubio and Democrat Chuck Schumer which sought to introduce a path to citizenship, it was one of the several other attempts at comprehensive immigration reform in recent years. Also, John Boehner, the Republican House Speaker put forward a 3 week extension bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security, thus allowing for Obama’s executive order to go through, and was supported by a dozen GOP House Representatives.	However, Boehner’s bill ultimately failed and a shorter version (1 week) was passed instead due to the GOP House voting against it. Similarly, the Gang of 8 bill also failed due to a lack of GOP support. The GOP remain seriously in opposition to a path to citizenship.
2016 RACE. The 2016 presidential race is dominated by conservatives – such as Ted Cruz, Mike Huckabee, Rand Paul and Marco Rubio with not a moderate in sight.	Previous two elections the GOP presidential candidates were Mitt Romney and John McCain – two moderates, and right now Jeb Bush is considering running for presidency which could consolidate moderate sentiments within the party	Romney and McCain lost – moderate conservatism is a declining force.

Is moderate conservatism in decline?

'Moderate Conservatism is a declining force in the Republican Party.' Discuss. 

Moderate conservatives within the Republican Party tend to lean towards the centre-right on many issues such as social policy by supporting gay marriage, women's right to an abortion and at times advocating comprehensive immigration reform, a more centrist stance is also evident on economic policy. Moderates are a dying breed within the GOP, which has become increasingly polarised in recent years due to the emergence of the Tea Party Movement which has moved the party further to the right. The fact two moderates, John McCain and Mitt Romney, failed to win in 2008 and 2012 respectively and faced heavy criticism from their party and that the 2016 race seems dominated by hardline conservatives, illustrates the fact moderates are indeed a declining force.

The 2008 and 2012 presidential elections illustrated the fact that moderate conservatism is a declining force within the Republican Party. John McCain was accused by the GOP for being too moderate according to his voting record and his 2008 plans, while campaigning, for a complete complete overhaul of the immigration system was criticised by the OGP for being a 'sneaky' attempt at granting amnesty to illegal immigrants. Similarly, Mitt Romney was also slammed by his own party as being a 'weak moderate candidate' handpicked by the 'mushy-middle' GOP. The very fact these two candidates faced a considerable amount of backlash from their own political party illustrates the fact that the GOP themselves are killing off moderates within their own path. However, the opposing view is that moderates are not in decline given the fact that the past two Republican candidates were moderates in the presidential election, showing that moderate views are not in decline. Other candidates who were backed by the Tea Party in 2012 such as Herman Cain, Michele Bachman or Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul from the Libertarian wing failed to make any significant gains shows that moderates remain the overall dominant wing of the party. However, this trend has reversed and it seems the GOP are unable to win a presidential election on moderate policies, and thus the 2016 presidential race seems to have squeezed moderates out of the competition and the hopeful candidates are hardline fiscal conservatives, some from the Tea Party such as Ted Cruz and Rand Paul, emphasising the fact moderate conservatism is in decline.

Looking at the current GOP members who have announced their intentions to run for the 2016 presidential race, there is not a single moderate candidate amongst them who stands a chance at becoming a nominee. The 'top' candidates running are mainly hardline fiscal or social (or both) conservatives such as Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, Mike Huckabee or Marco Rubio, who was very recently abandoned by the moderates in the GOP. The fact that the GOP presidential race is dominated by conservatives highlights the premise that moderates are in fact in decline. On the other hand, although Jeb Bush has not yet announced his candidacy, according to the New York Times he most likely will. A recent article by the New York Times has suggested that Bush would stand in a position to consolidate the moderate wing of the GOP. Moderates play a bigger role in the GOP primaries process than they do in Washington and it will take an incredibly strong candidate to defeat a moderate like Bush who has a huge advantage among moderates. The reason moderates appear in decline and under represented in Congress is because most come from Blue states and thus, lose in general elections but in the primary process it's a completely different story. 2012 and 2008 exit polls showed moderates represent about 40% of the vote in most blue state primaries - its important to note moderate therefore are very often state governors rather than members of Congress. Conservative opposition to Bush don't have it easy as the right of the party is crowded by candidates with broad and factional appeal like Cruz and Paul, and thus it's likely Bush will consolidate moderates in the party showing that moderates are not in decline. However, indeed Bush's candidacy may lead to a revival of moderate activism, but today the GOP is heavily dominated by fiscal conservatives from the Tea Party and moderates have virtually gone extinct.

The rise and dominance of the Tea Party Movement has consolidated fiscal sentiments within the GOP, thereby squeezing out the moderates. Moderates have further declined due to the Tea Party through Republican primaries in which moderates have been targeted. Moderates have been referred to as Republicans In Name Only (RINOs), plunging the GOP into a civil war in which moderates have specifically been targeted leading to several moderates casualties like Charlie Crist who lost to Marco Rubio, Senator Lisa Murkowski lost to a favourable Tea Party candidate Joe Miller and Bob Bennett from Utah was denied his fourth term by the Tea Party. As the Tea Party have gradually wiped out RINOs in the party the moderates have declined and fiscal sentiments have been enforced within the GOP which is perhaps most evident from the 2015 budget approved by the GOP dominated Congress. The budget itself is as fiscal as fiscal gets, introducing a balanced budget with $5.3 trillion in cuts making it easier to repeal Obamacare, demonstrating how fiscal conservatives dominate the party. Although the Tea Party have indeed won over many moderates, moderates have also put up a fight in the most recent primaries with critics and journalists arguing that the Tea Party lost the 2014 Republican primaries. North Carolina's House Speaker, Tom Tillis, a notable moderate, successfully beat several more conservative candidates than himself and he was also endorsed by Je Bush, Mitt Romney and the U.S Chamber of Commerce and American Crossroads who spent $2.6 million on Tillis. Other casualties were experienced by the Tea Party in Ohio and Indiana which illustrates that moderates remain active in the party. However, such victories are minor compared to the major losses endured by the moderates in previous elections which also highlights that at a time of increasing polarisation, moderates are no longer popular among the electorate.

Social conservatism is another powerful element within the GOP (often working in conjunction with fiscal conservatism) and with Congress now a GOP stronghold, social conservatives have become increasingly rampant on a range of social issues. This was seen recently in the House of Representatives by Republican attempts at pushing forward legislation instructing doctors performing late term abortions to take the best possible steps to ensure the survival of the foetus, which is all a part of wider GOP attempts to criminalise all abortions starting at the 20th week of pregnancy. The moderates, however, are no where to be seen as their influence against such measures are ineffective, emphasising how moderates are weak in the 114th Congress. However, as Bill O'Reilly from Fox News said recently, 'its a tough time for social conservatives in America' who are in the 'smear-zone', pointing to key figures like Scott Walker and Marco Rubio who have faced major backlash from the public for their tough stance on social issues. This is because social conservatives, as John McCain famously said, 'are agents of intolerance' in a time when societal attitudes towards issues like gay marriage are evolving. With key Republican figures like Jeb Bush endorsing same-sex marriage and the Supreme Court ruling in favour of it through U.S v Windsor, Hollingsworth v. Perry and the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, it is the social conservatives who have declined where as moderate views on social policy has become more largely accepted. However, the vast majority of the Republican Party remain in stark opposition to issues like gay marriage and continue to have a strict stance on social issues in spite of societal attitudes changing.

Finally, moderate conservatives believe in having fewer restrictions on legal immigration, tend to support comprehensive immigration reform and a path to citizenship. However, as demonstrated by Republican position to Democrat attempts at comprehensive immigration reform, moderate sentiments on immigration reform are declining. This was evident fem opposition to Obama's executive order in November 2014 which sought to aid five million illegal immigrants and previous Democrat efforts to reintroduce the DREAM Act. Clearly the GOP have adopted a hard and strict stance on immigration, which is also evident at state level. For instance, Republican Arizona passed SB 1070 into law which is today known for being the strictest anti-immigration bill giving law enforcement more powers to check people's immigration status with 'reasonable suspicion' and a range of other measures. However, perhaps at national level the moderates have indeed gone extinct but at state level they're still very active, which was evident earlier this year in the Texas legislature when attempts were made to restrict immigration heavily (such as by limiting sanctuary cities). However, the bills were met with gridlock in the Texas House and Senate following heavy opposition from moderates. Moreover, moderates were also seen to be active in Washington recently after John House Speaker John Boehner (who's been criticised for being too moderate) along with dozens other Republicans and Democrats attempted to pass a 3 week extension bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security, allowing for Obama's executive order to proceed. Although the bill failed and a shorter one-week extension was passed instead, this bill gained a lot of media attention and it highlighted how moderates remain active within the GOP. Although they may remain active on certain issues, the moderates have virtually gone extinct and are no longer as influential as they used to be.

As demonstrated above, the Republican Party have crushed their moderate wing in recent years through primaries and increasing polarisation which has shifted the party further to the right. Moderates within the GOP are no longer active at national level in Washington but are more popular at state level and it will someone like Jeb Bush to reconsolidate the moderate wing of the party.