Shortly before his death, "Mr. Conservative" Barry Goldwater told a reporter he often thinks of "these moneymaking ventures by fellows like Pat Robertson and others who are trying to take the Republican Party and make a religious organization out of it."
"If that ever happens, kiss politics goodbye," he said.
| Alex Knepper reads his column. |
| We sit down with Alex Knepper as we talk about his column on the Barry Goldwater revival. |
Goldwater also supported medical marijuana, the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" and even - in his later years - abortion rights. He said all good Christians should give Jerry Falwell a kick in the behind and that the Religious Right was filled with "a bunch of kooks."
Today, it is highly unlikely that Goldwater would stand a plausible chance at winning the Republican nomination. The no-compromise Religious Right's litmus tests beat Republican politicians into submission. Even John McCain, who in 2000 rightly denounced Jerry Falwell as an agent of intolerance, groveled at the man's feet as he prepared to make a second presidential run - and this was after he blamed abortionists, gays and "pagans" for 9/11. Later on, out of fear of a backlash from the Religious Right, he chose Gov. Sarah Palin, R-Alaska, instead of Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., or former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge as his running mate.
Many people who live in urban areas who would otherwise identify as Republicans refuse to because they don't want to be affiliated with the Religious Right. They hear Mitt Romney say that "freedom requires religion" and Mike Huckabee assert that "God's Law" must be "written into the Constitution." They hear Palin denigrate America's great cities as not being part of the "real America." Then everyone still in the GOP sits around baffled that we've gained a reputation as the Stupid Party.
The Religious Right must stop bullying the rest of the party. It must learn to accept compromise and give up losing issues, like euthanasia, stem-cell research and gay rights. It must realize that the other factions of the Republican Party are in politics to form coalitions, not crusade for Jesus Christ. And it absolutely must stop prioritizing issues that nobody else cares about outside of their niche group.
When the priority of the country is the economy, nobody wants to hear some pastor whine about gays. Moreover, the party must once again see the Constitution as a secular document - so secular, in fact, that religious leaders decried it at the time of its inception because they thought it was an irreligious document. Not one reference to God or Jesus is in the Constitution. The only time religion is mentioned is to note that the government needs to stay out of it!
So it is time for a Goldwater revival. Its prospects are dim - who would lead it? - but it's what we must do if the Republican Party is to become the party of the future. We must again stand for individual liberty, federalism, a strong defense and capitalist values - not a narrow brand of theologically conservative Christianity. If theocracy is the agenda of those seeking to save capitalism, then God save it from its defenders.
Alex Knepper is a freshman in the School of Public Affairs and a conservative columnist for The Eagle. You can reach him at edpage@theeagleonline.com.
