Republicans have rejected the notion of individual rights as delegates at the Nebraska Republican Convention rejected a resolution that condemned degrading remarks “toward women, minorities, and other individuals.”
The resolution, in light of Donald Trump’s coronation as the Republican nominee, was a not-so-subtle censure to Republicans who oppose Trump.
Per National Review, the resolution “in any other year would have been uncontroversial:”
Nebraska Republicans were unwilling to reject ad hominem attacks based on gender or race.
One delegate claimed they were not the “thought police” in the election, according to the Omaha World-Herald.
They also rejected Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse’s calls for a third-party candidate that conservatives could support, demanded a state law for individuals to use bathrooms that corresponded to their gender at birth, and rejected refugees attempting to relocate to the United States.
With the rise of Trump, the Republican Party has become a populist nationalist party. Gone is the party of Robert Taft and Barry Goldwater — the standard has become Jeff Sessions. Neoconservatives and Washington-based think tanks have seen their influence eclipsed. Marco Rubio, who carried the #NeverTrump banner, is now a Trump supporter so as not to “divide the party.” Paul Ryan, who hasn’t officially endorsed Trump, has worked with Trump to achieve “unification.”
Republican voters will ignore their alleged principles and submit to the party hierarchy.
“Faced with the prospect of losing the Supreme Court and a Hillary Clinton presidency, many will vote for incompetence and xenophobia with only the slightest hesitation,” James Downie noted in The Washington Post.
It’s unclear how long the reign of populism in the GOP will last. It’s also difficult to mourn the fall of the technocratic neoconservative consensus that controlled the party since Ronald Reagan, more concerned about marginal tax rates than the interests of its base.
However, it’s an extraordinary situation for a mainstream political party to refuse to condemn the degrading remarks made by Trump. Trump has called Mexican immigrants “rapists,” wants to ban Muslims from entering the United States based on nothing but their faith, and derides women based on their appearance when they disagree with him.
In the not-so-distant past, Republican politicians spoke of individual rights and freedom. For 2016, Republicans only speak in terms of groups, blaming immigrants or whatever group is convenient for problems in the country.
As A. Barton Hinkle wrote for Reason, Trump’s popularity “is built on the appeal of (1) a strong man who (2) endorses mob violence and who (3) promises to restore a nation to greatness by (4) being tough, (5) demonizing minorities, and (6) erecting barriers to stop the free movement of both people and goods.”
That’s a radical departure from the traditions of the Republican Party. Regardless of the November election, the GOP has become a different party, leaving many conservatives politically homeless and concerned for the foundational principles and traditions of the United States.
