The Franklin County Republican Central Committee censured State Rep. Maureen Walsh (R-16) on Tuesday, for her vote in favor of HB 1727, the recently signed domestic partnership bill. A party press release accuses Walsh of “stripping traditional marriage of its meaning,” and gives official “NOTICE” that she no longer represents “the values of the Franklin County Republican Party.”
But what really happened at Tuesday’s FCRCC meeting? Jimmy at McCranium reports:
Once source tells me it was more like mob rule than a meeting when a group consisting largely of evangelicals led by Nicole Prasch and Brenda High (complete with a area representative from Focus on the Family) pressured for a censure vote (Ok… censure… exactly what does that even accomplish?).
This isn’t good for Franklin County moderate Republicans who like many others, are increasingly coming around to the understanding that civil unions are not the great threat (or the best platform issue) they had been led to believe.
Looks like that Republican big tent just got a little smaller.
How does giving us the rights and responsibilities of marriage, somehow ruin the institution?
I heard a topic discussion of how 20% of young people are leaving their religion because it’s too conservative, too out of step with their values
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i.....4&c=1
Rep. Walsh is a thinking human being.
Which automatically excludes her from the New Talibangelist GOP.
If I were a Democratic Representative, and I joined the KKK, would I still be representing the Democratic party’s values?
“Well that’s not the same thing,” you bellow. “How can you compare joining the KKK with gay marriage???” I’m not. I’m simply using them as an example that with any political party, certain members can take positions or hold views that run contrary to the party’s values, and then that party has a right to take whatever action it sees fit. “Yeah, but I still don’t see how you can compare the KKK to gay marriage, cuz one is like a racist hate group, and the other is about equality and stuff.” Wow. You really can’t get over me mentioning the KKK. I’m trying to patiently explain to that I was merely using them as an example to make a point.
I just love to watch cannibalistic Republicans devour each other!! Best entertainment in town!
@4 I think someone getting kicked out of the KKK for not hating African-Americans would be a better analogy to the inflexible and intolerant anti-gay evangelical crowd.
A whopping 19,696 people in Franklin County voted in the last presidential election.
I really hope the 12,037 people in Franklin County that voted for McCain, don’t think that they should be able to decide how everyone else lives.
Nice double standard,
When a politician decides all his positions by how they poll, AND that decision doesn’t match what the conservatives want, they are called weak, wishy washy and described as having no principles.
When a politician take a stand on an issue from a position of principle, AND that decision doesn’t match what the conservatives want, then the politician is censured for not representing them.
Seems the republicans require lock step thinking and I don’t think that will get them 51% of the general population. Sure, it will appeal to pockets of extremism, but not overall.
The democrats are dealing with that with Specter. He’s voting his principles, not his party. The voters will have a choice to keep him or change him in the primary.
Yet another example of the Republican Party putting forth best efforts to shrink itself even further. As a Democrat, I can only be pleased as the GOP “purifies” itself by kicking out all those who don’t subscribe to their particular God, Guns, Gays, and Immigration platform.
But as a former Republican and someone who believes in multi-party democracy, I have to be worried for the long-term health and evolution of our body politic.
Maine Governor Baldacci made the following statement after signing Maine’s civil marraige act into law.
“This new law does not force any religion to recognize a marriage that falls outside of its beliefs. It does not require the church to perform any ceremony with which it disagrees. Instead, it reaffirms the separation of Church and State,” Governor Baldacci said.
“It guarantees that Maine citizens will be treated equally under Maine’s civil marriage laws, and that is the responsibility of government.”
Would the Franklin County Republicans kick Maine out of the union for that?
@11;
They probably would. Equal rights and protections under the law aren’t their thing.
10:
I wouldn’t worry too much. Eventually, the GOP will downsize itself to the point of irrelevance in its quest for ideological purity. The likely outcome is the formation of a new center-right party that truly embraces small-c conservative values without the poisonous hatred that’s destroyed the Party of Lincoln.
Perhaps this will be a way for the Libertarian Party to move into the mainstream, as moderate R’s unwilling to join the D’s want to find some sort of home.
@13
I find it troubling that there’s been no push-back from moderates.
Man Republicans (and Democrats) against gay marriage are SUCH hypocrites. Not ONE has ever followed their supposed “belief”…ever.
1. Marriage is religious/magical/sacred.
Really? Then you MUST ban Hindu marriages (worship false gods). You must ban Satanist marriages (self explanatory). But has ANY full of crap Republican EVER EVER EVER EVER even introduced a bill to do that? Nope. You can violate the Old Testament and worship a false god(s), deny Jesus, or even follow Satan, just don’t be a gay Christian.
2. Marriage is a tradition about families.
Gay people ARE families, have mothers, fathers, children, nieces, nephews, etc. I know I do. Again no full of crap Republican has EVER EVER EVER EVER introduced a bill to make marriage illegal unless you have biological children. If marriages that don’t have biological children (gay) undermine “real marriages”, the reason for marriage, fine…then make it illegal for seniors to be married SOLELY for companionship. Make it illegal for young people to get married if either is sterile. Sure they can (and do) adopt, but as we’ve covered, adopted children aren’t REAL children and don’t count as a family. UNLESS you can produce you’re own offspring, you’re undermining the purpose for marriage.
The day I see Republicans EVER EVER EVER ban Hindu, Satanist, or childless marriages I’ll disagree…but at least give them complaints for following their supposed beliefs. But for now, they’re just all lying gas bags who are trying to HURT people (me and my friends) to score some cheap political points with the dumbest angriest part of the electorate. It’s pathetic.
#15 – “complaints” -> “compliments”
I HATE MS Words ‘auto’ spell checking. LOL
I love this. These numbskulls just don’t get it.
I’m going to start attending Republican political meeting stirring up the pot that the “party should stick to traditional values” and ostracize the members who don’t.
Nothing like using a wedge issue the fracture the Republican Party from the inside out.
Baaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa haaa
Losers.
14:
There are no ‘moderate’ Republicans any more. They’re all D’s or independents now.
Republicans should really stop devoting resources to bs issues like this and harness their energy to fighting Goldy’s “high earners tax”. Whoever has the money has the power. Whoever has the power has the women. Right?
Troll in your case you ARE a member of the KKK so no need to join.
B’way Joe @10, re your “Perhaps this will be a way for the Libertarian Party to move into the mainstream, as moderate R’s unwilling to join the D’s want to find some sort of home.”
Little/no chance the Libertarians will move into the main stream. Their program of maximum “personal freedoms” and micro-sized government is, in its own way, just as extreme as the now-downsized GOP is.
No, if “moderate Republican” is to mean anything again, they are going to have to organize themselves (which would be a first…) and create an entirely new center-right party. No real break from the GOP will be necessary; the last of them will be effectively kicked out of the party over the next couple years.
In defense of Franklin County, they are downwind of Hanford.
21:
Who else embraces small-c conservatism these days? Certainly not the Republicans. The only party around with the closest thing to small-c conservatism is with the Libbies.
I think we can all agree that neither major party toes that line by any stretch of the imagination, and the Libbies aren’t stupid. Hell, they were the ones that started the Tea Parties, and they were smart enough to disavow them when the R’s turned them into something one red hair short of a KKK rally.
What I’m saying is that they could really make hay with disaffected moderate and non-Xtian conservatives if they wished to move in that direction.
@23: Broadway Joe
The libertarians are going nowhere fast. Their flawed 18th century philosophy of less government regulation is best for us all was shown to be false and stupid by the banking crisis and subprime loan mess.
How many people are going to rally to the cause of less regulation right now? Libertarianism sounds good in priciple until you start to apply it to the real world. then it falls flat on its face and only the crazies believe it when you take it to the logical conclusions – minimal government is stupid.
We need government to control corporate greed, stop pollution, plan for the future and make society work. The government we have is not in any way perfect but the lack of government (with no roads, no transportation infrastructure, no protection from unsafe airplanes, poisoned foods, polluted waters, fuel shortages….and on and on…) would be an absolute nightmare.
very moving speech…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....r_embedded
Only a moron – (insert Puffybutt, CYNCYN, Marvin the Pervert, TROLL, RICKYD, etc.) would believe that the “conservative” message makes any sense.
They say they are for less government – but only when it suits them. They want the government to regulate sexual conduct between consenting adults, marriage, drug use, etc. How is telling someone what sex acts they can do in their own bedroom with consenting adults LESS government? How is telling a woman what health care decisions she can make regarding her own body LESS government? And speaking of health care – the GOP says that you don’t want the government in your health care business. They have an ad running that says new health care legislation (which hasn’t been drafted yet by the way) will force the government between patients and doctors. Isn’t that what the righties advocate when it comes to abortion, stem cells, birth control, etc.? They claim to be pro-life – but that interest in life appears to end the fucking nanosecond you are born. After that, you can be executed, sent to die in war or left to die in the streets of New Orleans (particularly if you are black) because they don’t want too much government.
This is a plan designed be morons who are too fucking stupid to live. They don’t know what they believe in. They have no real core values utter than hate and greed. They have been rejected by 4/5ths of America for that very reason. Perhaps we should just send them all off a cliff and be done with it.
[It’s still legal – and always God-honoring – to air messages like the following. (See Ezekiel 3:18-19.) In light of government backing of raunchy behavior (such offenders were even executed in early America!), maybe the separation we really need is the “separation of raunch and state”!]
In Luke 17 in the New Testament, Jesus said that one of the big “signs” that will happen shortly before His return to earth as Judge will be a repeat of the “days of Lot” (see Genesis 19 for details). So gays are actually helping to fulfill this same worldwide “sign” (and making the Bible even more believable!) and thus hurrying up the return of the Judge! They are accomplishing what many preachers haven’t accomplished! Gays couldn’t have accomplished this by just coming out of closets into bedrooms. Instead, they invented new architecture – you know, closets opening on to Main Streets where little kids would be able to watch naked men having sex with each other at festivals in places like San Francisco (where their underground saint – San Andreas – may soon get a big jolt out of what’s going on over his head!). Thanks, gays, for figuring out how to bring back our resurrected Saviour even quicker!