In an interesting article for the St. Petersburg Times on the recent ConservativePolitical Action Conference in Washington, Wes Allison highlighted the split in the Republican Party between economic conservatives and social conservatives. "For the fiscal conservatives, led by Grover Norquist of Americansfor Tax Reform and others, the priorities include more tax cuts,private Social Security accounts, more business-friendly regulation,less government. For social conservatives, led by [Pennsylvania Senator Rick] Santorum, Bill Murray of theReligious Freedom Coalition and the leaders of other religious advocacygroups, priorities include a ban on gay marriage, restrictions onembryonic stem cell research and abortion, and more government supportof religion at home and abroad. Keeping them together to ensure continued wins for Republicans willrequire strong leadership, conservatives said," Allison wrote.
This is a weakness the Democrats should ruthlessly exploit. Dean appears to have started down the road with his DNC acceptance speech: his theme was, "You can’t trust the Republicans with your money." The historical record supports his argument: since 1901 the Dow Jones industrial average has returned 42% more underDemocratic Presidents than Republicans. Money talks and bullshit walks: common cause between Democrats and Republicans who want to make money will usher the collection of hate groups and religious fanatics that have taken over the Republican Party to the exit.
