Congressional Republicans showed surprising fidelity to principle
in opposing the Democrats' big spending pork-ridden "stimulus"
package. But the toughest battle now is occurring among the
governors. Men of principle, like South Carolina's Mark
Sanford, are opposed by proto-Democrats like California's Arnold
Schwarzenegger. Reports
the New York Times:
Republican governors split sharply during the weekend over how
to respond to the economic crisis, a debate whose outcome will
go a long way toward shaping how the national party redefines
itself in the wake of its election defeats of recent years.
The divisions were evident at the annual winter meeting of the
National
Governors Association here as the Republicans differed both
in their approaches to their own states' budget shortfalls and
in their attitudes toward President Obama's
$787 billion stimulus
package.
Some party leaders said Republicans should compromise with the
Democratic president and move to the political center to
attract independents' votes. A small but vocal group of
conservative governors countered that the party instead must
rebuild by standing against new spending and taxes to regain
the trust of conservative voters.
"There's a tug of war right now within the party as to where we
go next," Gov. Mark Sanford of
South Carolina, one of the conservative Republican leaders,
said in an interview. "I am in the camp that says we go back to
basics. There are other folks who say something a little
different. The answer will be determined in this tug of war."
Among those tugging opposite him is Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger of California, who only last week concluded
a battle to close his state's $42 billion budget deficit over
the opposition of Republican state lawmakers who opposed tax
increases in the compromise. While Mr. Schwarzenegger was in
Washington for the governor's meeting, a petition condemning
him circulated back home at the California Republican
Party convention.
This is a moment for the grassroots to speak up. The
Republican Party has a chance to regain its voice in opposing
wasteful spending. The rank and file need to make clear who
speaks for them.
About the Author
Doug Bandow is a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute and the Senior Fellow in International Religious Persecution at the Institute on Religion and Public Policy. A former Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan, he is author of Beyond Good Intentions: A Biblical View of Politics (Crossway).
