The Establishment, Allegations of Purity, and Reality

 
[Harry Reid (D) should just zip it, because we're NOT going away! EVER]
By: Daniel Horowitz
We all agree that Sen. Harry Reid must be dethroned.  Even from a liberal perspective, he has completely destroyed the structure of the Senate by shutting down the open amendment process, thereby eradicating the most important difference between the upper house and the lower house of the legislative branch.
This year, we have the opportunity to vanquish Reid by defeating his liberal lieutenants in conservative states like Louisiana, Arkansas, North Carolina, South Dakota, and Alaska. However, if you think that our policy woes with Washington will change one iota if the current crop of Republicans lead the majority, you haven’t been paying attention.  And if you buy into the bromide about not letting “purity tests” get in the way defeating Democrats, you are willingly blinding yourself to the reality that has played out over the past few years.

The entire conglomerate of consultants, donors, and lobbyists who control the bulk of Republicans in Washington, and the leadership in particular, do not share our values.  This is not a difference in strategy, tone, or a casualty to being the minority party in Washington.  We have witnessed this with one issue after another.  These people regard the party faithful with as much contempt as the Democrats.  And that will not change when Republicans win back the Senate – if the House and Senate are controlled by its current cadre of leaders.
This goes far beyond any legislative scorecard or analysis of voting records.  As we witnessed this week with the debt ceiling vote, most of the elected Republicans spend their time plotting political cover and manipulate their votes to ensure that our side loses, albeit without their public stamp of approval.  We don’t need votes to tell us who is on our side.  You can tell who is with us and who is against us simply by listening to them, watching their actions, and observing their associations.

Indeed, despite the allegations that we seek purity within the party, it is clear that what we want is a bold party of contrast – whether in the majority or minority.  We want a party that will offer a bold stance on immigration and the debt ceiling, for example, and fight for it with equal and opposing force.  We want loyal conservatives that share and fight for our conservative values the same way elected liberals fight for the Democrat party platform. Instead we are given a pale pastel version of Republicans who placate conservatives during election years, and then enact the liberal Democrat talking points through clandestine political efforts.
We know who is with us and who is with the political class.  Everybody takes bad votes once and a while.  Even Ted Cruz recently voted for a bad flood insurance bill.  None of us are demanding purity from him because we know that on almost every issue he is not just a vote but a courageous and effective voice for the millions of us who are disenfranchised by the ruling class oligarchy.  He fights every day in Washington for us.

Jeff Sessions is another good example. He has cast a laundry list of bad votes, and probably doesn’t believe in limited government and free markets to the same extent we do on some issues.  But he is an inimitable statesman when it comes to his core issues of immigration, budget, and welfare.  On immigration, he has offered more selfless, indefatigable leadership – both on a political and policy level – than almost any member on any issue.  He has stood as the Elijah on Mount Carmel against the entire universe of sleazy politicians and consultants in Washington who seek to subvert our civil society.  Despite his bad votes on some other issues, none of us are looking to replace him because indeed we are not purists.  We just want people who fundamentally represent our values, and Sessions has shown that his heart is with the Country Class over the Ruling Class.
The leaders in the House and Senate, along with their boot lickers, are fundamentally against us.  Many of us have known and observed this privately for years, but the debt ceiling vote – both in the House and Senate – brought their devious subterfuge out in the open.

In the House, leadership got together and agreed to pass it with Democrat votes, thereby letting almost their entire conference off the hook to vote against their true beliefs so they can play their Republican constituents like fools.
In the Senate, McConnell attempted to do the same, but was thwarted by Senators Cruz and Lee.  Then he tried to get others to vote for something he badly wanted to pass, but lacked the conviction to own.  Roll Call explains in plain English how Democrats and Republicans worked together to fool the American people by instructing the clerk not to call their names publicly and then by switching their votes.
Remember, this is just a rare glimpse into how these guys operate on most other issues.  This will not change by simply voting Republicans into the majority, especially on the critical issues of immigration and debt.

Even with the best of leaders in Washington, there will always be differences of opinion on strategy, tone, and minor issues.  But what is happening now is far beyond a strategic disagreement.  Democrats might have internal squabbles once and a while, but they are united in goose step for the inexorable promotion of their liberal values.  There is no effective dissent from even one member.  And to the extent a couple of red-state Democrats vote against the liberal agenda, it is just a two-faced game for their conservative constituents.  Whereas Republicans are just the opposite.  They privately agree with the Democrats and only vote the right way to dissuade a potential primary challenger.
As we head into the primaries over the spring and summer, we must ask ourselves the following questions: do we want to build a GOP majority on quicksand or on a solid foundation?  Do we want to go into the voting booth on November and vote for Republicans with our heads held high or with our fingers on our nose?
The right candidates are out there.  The opportunity is calling.  The choice is ours.