BY RHETA MOAZZAMI
Los Alamos
Regarding Gary Stradling’s letter of March 4: let’s take his second sentence: “As President Donald J. Trump swept the elections…” Trump was widely quoted as claiming a “sweeping victory.”
He had 1.6% more popular votes and 7.3 more electoral votes. All that tells us is that the electoral college is not representative of the populace. The media picked up his “sweeping” the election. I’m pointing out this twisting of language because I think it just feels good to know that there are enough thinking people in the US that he did not “sweep the election.” Well, at least not in the English that used to be used in this country before Donald Trump told so many lies that this one seems normal. (For the 13 biggest lies of his first month back in office, see https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/20/politics/analysis-trumps-13-biggest-lies-first-month-2025/index.html) It’s so normal now, I doubt if anyone’s still counting.
Then, there’s the second paragraph: “Conservatism seeks to maximize individual freedoms within a constitutional framework of representative government, emphasizing minimal laws that restrict our inalienable rights.” Unfortunately only the Democratic party is fighting for either the US Constitution or representative government. Only an upcoming Supreme Court decision will decide if we have a Constitutional Government, or a complete dictatatorship, in which a President and his unelected sycophant can decide to override any law in the land that was legally made by a duly elected Congress; can free any murdering, rampaging thugs out to destroy Democracy; can fire or call for impeaching duly and legally appointed/elected judges, etc.
So, it’s a good thing Stradling said his statement does not necessarilyrepresent the Republican Party. If anyone in the Republican Party seeks to “maximize individual freedoms, within a constitutional framework of representative government, emphasizing minimal laws that restrict our inalienable rights” they may feel free to switch parties immediately, because they can seek all they want, but they aren’t going to find this anywhere in the Republican Party of today.
Then, Stradling goes on to preach his version of “Taliban Christianity,” which should properly be addressed in his religion’s newsletter–not as a part of any national debate pertaining to our constitutional laws. Then–I’m truly embarrassed for him by this– he tries to legitimize his argument with a quote from…drumroll…himself!
His laughable, if it weren’t so sad, quote “The hero of the Republican Party, Abraham Lincoln…” How do you suppose Abraham Lincoln would feel about the continuing treatment of the people he helped free from slavery, after all these years, and the man who is doing his best to turn back any rights they may have wrested from the “party of Lincoln.”
Next, he pretends with innuendo that our elections have not been fair, despite exhaustive investigations and trials by juries of our peers.
He goes on, “As Conservatives, we believe in reasoned and civil debate. We do not harass, vandalize, riot, nor defame.” Again, he is only talking about the Democratic party here, at least for the last eight years or so.
So, if all of you Republicans who adhere to all the tenets Stradling outlined in what a Conservative is (well, maybe with the exception of his own version of Christianity), I say, “WELCOME TO THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY! Our door is always open to you!”