Earlier today, Dede Scozzafava, the GOP candidate running in New York's District 23 special election next week, abruptly withdrew her candidacy for the hotly contested House Seat. Her decision to drop out was entirely unsurprising in light of the mass revolt of Party support over the past few weeks.
The moderate Republican was initially thought of as the only viable conservative candidate with a chance of winning. The NRCC's candidate of choice set off a storm of displeasure among certain party members setting the stage for a greater intra-party battle.
The GOP has been struggling with identity issues ever since the November elections. Almost a year later and the Party still remains a fractured mess. Ultimately, the crux of the conflict comes down to a question of purity. On one side of the issue are the uber-conservative members who blame all previous problems on the Party's straying from their core principles. On the other side of the debate are those who believe that the path to future prosperity lies in enlarging the party's appeal.
It's disheartening to see moderates, such as Scozzafava being pushed out as "not right enough" for a vocal radical base who represent views far removed from the majority of Americans.
The NY election has become the latest battleground in the war over the GOP's future direction.
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2 comments:
I do not think the GOP is pushing away moderates, I think they are trying to reenact the success Reagan had as a conservative. It is possible that people's view have shifted from the Reaganesque social conservatism but it is worth a try. What amazes me is that Republicans always refer back to past leaders for inspiration, while democrats want to move forward from past leaders.
One of Reagan's greatest strengths was his genial personality. He never displayed this type of intra-party divisiveness and it would be nice if the GOP remembers this.
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