Saturday, June 2, 2012

The need for a 'big tent' GOP

On Thursday, I attended a meeting of Republicans Abroad UK in London. It was a productive gathering that should enable Republicans in the UK to provide better assistance to the task of electing Romney in November. However, towards the end of the meeting, I had a little (loud) disagreement with one lady who was in attendance. I remarked that I'm not a fan of Sarah Palin. This particular individual did not appreciate my comment and stated something along the lines of 'You've never met her!'... I responded by saying that I didn't need to. (Why I dislike Palin). In the end, the lady's husband calmed the situation down by making a comment about how the Republican Party needs to be a 'big tent' organization and that we must respect varied opinions. If he was genuine in this belief then he is absolutely right. However, my concern about Palin is that she lacks any apparent intellectual curiosity and  thinks that this is something to be proud of. It isn't. For reasons of politics and patriotism, Republicans need to put forward candidates like Paul Ryan who have a deep grasp of important issues, rather than supporting candidates who have no clue about the most basic elements of policy. When it comes to foreign policy, I take this issue extremely seriously. Put simply, when we send Americans to fight and if necessary die, we must ensure that we have serious policymakers in positions of leadership. But... if people are willing to hear me out, I will hear them out.
Great scene from West Wing. The President is a Democrat but his point stands.

No comments:

Post a Comment