Schlomo Here!

Following up on a piece I read on BuzzMachine it is clear to me that I am not alone in my opinion regarding the GOP and the religious schism created by the Terri Schiavo case. And it's more than one pundit. You might think that it's some 'treasonous' leftie liberals like Michael Moore, but you would be dead wrong. My peers are none other than so-called conservative commentators.

Here is a smattering of blurbs that the oft-brilliant Jeff Jarvis culled from the right-wing blogosphere.

Andrew Sullivan:

"It's been clear now for a while that the religious right controls the base of the Republican party, and that fiscal left-liberals control its spending policy. That's how you develop a platform that supports massive increases in debt and amending the Constitution for religious right social policy objectives. But the Schiavo case is breaking new ground ... the demands of the religious right pre-empt constitutionalism, federalism, and even the integrity of the family. When conservatism means breaking up the civil bond between a man and his wife, you know it has ceased to be conservative. But we have known that for a long time now. Conservatism is a philosophy without a party in America any more. It has been hijacked by zealots and statists."

Mark Daniels:

"In taking jurisdiction over Terri Schiavo's case from the state courts, where conservative Republicans would have previously said it belonged, and handing it to federal judges, the Republican Party arrogated to the federal government breathtaking new powers that would have made Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan wince."

Glenn Reynolds:

"National security is the glue that has held Bush's coalition together. The war isn't over, and we haven't won yet, but it's going well, and [the Schiavo case] is allowing the divisions to show. All of the people I've quoted are on the right, and they're all unhappy."

Joe Gandelman:

"The genie is now out of the bottle: this wing of the GOP is at variance with process conservatives and many libertarians -- and is defining the party as the party of theocracy."

Neal Boortz:

"I want Terri Schiavo to die because I believe she's earned it...Across America there are thousands of families who have faced similar situations and made their difficult decisions without political interference. There are tens of millions more who have expressed their wishes, both in writing and in words, that they never be kept alive in this manner. Now these people are watching this hideous spectacle of politicians plotting the literal kidnapping of Terri Schiavo ... to please a powerful political constituency, the antiabortion lobby. Maybe it's just me, but I don't think that there are many people out there who, when faced with medical disaster, want to be turned over to politicians to be used as political pawns. I'm wondering if these people will be anxious to keep Republicans in power."

As the right-wingers are beginning to realize the neo-conservative made the fundamental mistake of embracing complete whack jobs in order to get power. They were willing to stop at nothing to achieve their goals. The question is how does the GOP divorce itself from the religious right without losing their stranglehold on the government?

Let's hope that Howard Dean has the answer to that question.

Currently I'm listening to Dead Man Walking (A Dream Like This) from the album "Dead Man Walking" by Mary Chapin Carpenter