General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: A question for older DUers and those who study history: Were repubicans always this nuts? [View all]Johonny
(20,683 posts)before that the Republican party was the reform party and the Democratic party sort of the power broker party. Theodore Roosevelt-Taft sort of interrupt that trend but Teddy wasn't suppose to ever be president. Same with Ike who was more in line with late 19 th century Republicans than any Republican president around him. I think from McKinley to Harding, Coolidge, Hoover then Nixon, Reagan, Bush and Bush you can see a pretty easy transgression from the reform party of Lincoln era to the elitist party of this era.
I think a lot of traditional Republicans somehow think the party is represented by Lincoln, Roosevelt and Ike although those figures represent the minority in that party for years now. Today the last of reforming Republicans in congress have all lost. It is hard to understand nationally how people can still pretend Republicans stand with workers, women, civil service employees... but they do?