Republican Party Flashcards
1
Q
Republicans (GOPs) - list a few
A
Reagan, Bush, Bush Junior, Sarah Palin, McCain, Mitt Romney, Lincoln
2
Q
facts about the GOP
A
- younger of two major parties
- founded by anti-slavery activists in 1854
- have been 18 republican presidents first of which was Abraham Lincoln (1861 - 1865)
- ideology based upon American conservatism
- traditionally, party had a powerful moderate, pro-business and socially liberal wing based in the North-East.
3
Q
History of GOP
A
- founded in northern states in 1854 by anti-slavery activists
- GOP first came into power in 1860 with election of Lincoln
- generally supported business, hard money, high tariffs to promote economic growth ,high wages and high profits
- party’s association with conservatism began with their opposition to FDR’s New Deal in the 1930s - they perceived it as socialism
- the conservative coalition was an informal grouping of Republicans and southern conservative Democrats, voting similarly on various issues.
4
Q
Dwight D Eisenhower
A
- post-war period
- moderate conservative
- continued New Deal and expanded social security
- he criticised the right wing of his party
- remembered for the Interstate Highway System and ending the Korean War
5
Q
Richard Nixon
A
- won 1968 election
- president from 1969 - 74
- an era most remembered for the Vietnam War and the Watergate Scandal
- WS prompted Nixon to resign from Presidency
6
Q
- Ronald Reagan
A
- won 1980 election
considered one of the most influential presidents of modern history - his supply-side economic policies, dubbed “reaganomics”, advocated reducing tax rates to spur economic growth, controlling the money supply to reduce inflation, deregulation of the economy, and reducing government spending.
- 2nd term consisted of ending the Cold War, publicly describing the Soviet Union as an “evil empire”
- remains an icon of the conservative movement
7
Q
Who was Newt Gingrich
A
- House Republican Minority Whip
- campaigner on the contract of America
- elected to majorities of both houses of Congress in the Republican Revolution of 1994
- controlling Congress enabled them to implement conservative policies despite the Democrat Clinton being President from 1993-2001
8
Q
What was the “Contract with America”
A
- a manifesto-style document published by the GOP for the 1994 midterms
- Congressional elections are traditionally local and candidate based, so a list of promises published by the national party marked a change
- the contract focused on reducing government spending and shrinking the size of the state
9
Q
George W Bush
A
- won 2000 election
- during his period in office, the GOP was defined by social conservatism e.g. supporting the amendment to the US constitution to ban same-sex marriage and signing into law greater restrictions on abortion access
- a pre-emtive war foreign policy intended to defeat terrorism and promote global democracy
- Bush created a more powerful executive branch
- used supply-side economics
- support for gun ownership
- significant tax reduction for middle and upper income owners
- he was sceptical about climate change, e.g. refusing to sign the Kyoto Protocol, and deregulation
- some pieces of legislation were bipartisan e.g. No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, and increased the size of the federal establishment
10
Q
arguments to suggest G W Bush wasn’t a conservative
A
- doubled the burden of federal spending in just eight years
- Bush was a big spender - he tripled the spending of Clinton from $40 bn to $120 bn which is just domestic spending
- increased budget deficit and overall public debt
- in 2003, Bush signed into laws significant expansion of Medicare (worth $534 billion) and in 2006 attempted to convince the Republican-controlled Congress to pass immigration reform which would have resulted in a partial amnesty for some illegal immigrants (not particularly conservative)
- In Forbes press Daniel J. Mitchell wrote in March 2011 that “George W. Bush was no conservative”
11
Q
Republican Party Platform 2012
A
- “We assert the sanctity of human life and affirm that the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed. We oppose using public revenues to promote or perform abortion - (pro-life and seek to amend the Us Constituion to overturn Roe v Wade)
- GOP have repeatedly tried to reform the budget process, by voting for a Balanced Budget Amendment. “We call for a constitutional amendment amendment requiring a super-majority for any tax increase
- “We affirm our support for a Constitutional amendment defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman. We applaud the citizens of the majority states which have enshrined into their constitutions the traditional concept of marriage”
- “We uphold the right of individuals to keep and bear arms, solemnly confirmed by the second amendment. We acknowledge, support, and defend the law-abiding citizen’s God given right of self-defence.” (opposition to gun-control measures)
- “Obamacare’s impact upon the nation’s health is disastrous. It was about the expansion of government control over one sixth of our economy, and resulted in an attack on our Constitution
- ” we affirm the right of students to engage in prayer in public schools. We assert every citizens right to apply religious values to public policy
12
Q
Factions of the GOP:
Republican Study Committee
A
- 170 conservative members (2014) in HoR
- pushed for significant cuts in non-defense spending, advocated socially conservative legislation, and supported the right to keep and bear arms
- Its website states: “The RSC is a group of House Republicans organised for the purpose of advancing a conservative social and economic agenda in the House of Representatives
- RSC is dedicated to a limited and constitutional role for the federal government, a strong national defines, the protection of individual and property rights, and the preservation of traditional family values
- highly conservative group represents a clear majority of Republicans in the Hosue: 73% are members (170 out of 233 Republicans)
13
Q
Factions of the GOP:
Republican Main Street Partnership
A
- operates in both House and the Senate with 49 declared members
- website describes it as: “group who discuss ways to further centrist, pragmatic Republican agenda - one that could accommodate bipartisan legislative results.
- represents the moderate wing of the party, standing in opposition to ideological conservatives pushing the GOP to the right.
14
Q
Factions of the GOP:
Liberty Caucus
A
- libertarian Republicans, socially and economically liberal and characterised very much on the right of the GOP
- 36 declared members, 32 in the House and 4 in the Senate
- calls for significant cuts in taxes/spending as well as protection of personal freedom
15
Q
Factions of the GOP:
Tea Party Caucus
A
- a now broadly inactive caucus dedicated to promoting fiscal responsibility, adherence to the movement’s interpretation of the Constitution and limited government.
- It was founded in 2010 after the success of the Tea Party movement in 2009
- protests against obamacare and what they perceived as the unconstitutional growth of the federal government
- 66 Republicans have been members
- leader Michele Bachmann ran for the GOP presidential nomination in 2012
- hasn’t met in 2 years and is generally perceived as defunct
