Why Are There Still Working Class Republicans? 8/14/2007 12:39:55 AM
I read a letter to the editor in my local newspaper last week that asked why have working class Republicans stayed loyal to the Republican Party in view of the actions & policies it practices directed toward the wealthy elite and big business, while only giving lip service to the goals of the working class. This letter writer raised some great points. Millions of working class Americans, especially those quite religious and quite conservative, have blindly supported the Republican Party this past decade. However, the Republican Party has delivered on practically none of the promises it made to the religious, conservative working class to secure their votes. Did the Bush/Cheney administration, even when the Republicans controlled Congress for all those years, enact laws to accomplish what the working class were promised? No. The goals of the evangelistic right have not been accomplished by this administration. Abortion has not been outlawed; nor have gay marriages. Health care to provide for the working class lacking insurance has not been enacted. There has not been true security established, as the ports, airports, and borders are all still vulnerable to terrorists. There has been no
law passed or adequare measures taken to control illegal immigration and stem the flood of illegal aliens competing for jobs. (Big business wants cheap labor!) More jobs have been lost...sent overseas. (More profit for big business!) Instead, the Republicans in power have cut taxes for the super-rich and poured billions of dollars into the pockets of big business. It started a war in Iraq that benefits big business, yet costs the lives of the sons and daughters of the working class. Nothing has been done to prevent oil companies from hurting working families through rising gas prices, and this will become even a greater drain on the finances of the working class in the near future. What is the Republican energy plan? The Republican Party has shown itself time and time again to represent the interests of the elite wealthy class and big business.
So, why do its working class members stay loyal. Because the Republican Party plays them like Uncle Buck plays his banjo. They bring out their smokescreen issues of abortion, gay marriages, security from terrorists that rile up the working class Republicans and distract them from what the real policies of the Republican Party are. They warn about those "tax and spend" liberal Democrats, all the while running up the biggest deficit ever and mortgaging the future of the working class' children and grandchildren. (What hypocrisy!) When will all those religious, conservative working class Republicans realize that they are being played for fools by the likes of Rove, Cheney, Bush, et al.? Probably never...
