I’m afraid that the US Republican Party is losing its standing as a loyal opposition party to the Democrats. Their response to both the recently-passed stimulus package and also to President Obama’s budget plan has been loud cries of “no!” and “it’s Socialist!”. But being at an institution of higher learning, we know that simply saying “no!” in response to an argument would not make the grade.
After the 2008 Republican National convention, I wrote up a quick entry touching on this same topic. I said this:
What are your stances on policy issues, Republicans? I know I can go to your various campaign websites and see for myself, but I want a principled argument from your side why I should vote for you. To say that Obama is inexperienced – even if he might be – is not the basis for an academic argument.
So, let’s get back to the basics: if you, Republicans, are against President Obama’s budget and other policies, simply saying “no!” is not an appropriate response. Let’s hear what your ideas are. Political parties that are in loyal opposition to other parties would work best, I believe, if they offered constructive arguments and constructive dialogue to other groups. Anything else, I believe, just doesn’t make the grade.
Cheers-
Edward Jensen