The Current State of Our Utah Republican Party

I just read a post from another blogger I have great respect. I will post his entire comments below, however I want to make a point or two about the condition of our Republican Party here in Utah. Because outside of Salt Lake County the Republican Party is in effect “The Utah Political Party” we tend to over look what is happening within our own ranks. Unlike other states where the population tends to define themselves by affiliating with a particular political party, the vast majority of Utah’s population elects not to affiliate with any party. This independence streak goes back to the pioneers who settled this state. But lately we have had some very heated battles being waged between what I would call the establishment Republicans and the fringe element's of our party. Many in these fringe groups claim you cannot be a Republican unless you agree 100% with their issues or platform. Also because many of the other political parties (other than the Democratic) are so small and unorganized that many have become involved in our Party and then try to manipulate their issues into our governing documents.

What I want to communicate here is we as a party need to realize not everyone will agree with our own personal belief system, or morality stances. This however should not disqualify anyone from participating in our Utah Republican Party. We have pro-choice Republicans, pro-Gay Republicans, pro-economic development Republicans, pro-school choice Republicans, as well as anti all the same. What is most important is that we are all Republican. We should have a large enough tent to allow everyone who believes in less government control, and personal responsibility to sit at the table.

With that said, here is one of the finest commentaries on the subject I have ever seen putting electrons to screen. This is a reply from the Blogger http://www.alienatedwannabe.blogspot.com/

"I have tremendous respect for you. And, I think I understand your position. My roots are also in the conservative wing of our party, so I see you as being a kindred spirit.In the limited time I have here, I will try to supply an answer to your question:I am a Republican, not a Libertarian, for a good reason. Just as I do not believe in the "maximum" government of the Socialists and Democrats, I do not believe in the "minimum" government of the Anarchists and Libertarians either. Rather, I believe in the "optimum" government of the Republicans.For me, that is what the divinely inspired Constitution is all about--finding that right balance? As you remember, the original government of the United States, the Articles of Confederation, was too weak. It didn't work. The founding fathers replaced it with one that gave more power to a central government--they recognized the need for balance, "optimum" rather than "minimum."Too many of my fellow Conservative Republicans fail to seek this same balance. They start idealizing "minimum" government as if they were Libertarians instead of Republicans.No one understood the need of limited government more than Thomas Jefferson, but he also understood this principle of balance. He further understood that "limited" is a different concept entirely than "minimum." And, because of that, he was able to act in his country's best interest at a crucial moment in history.When France offered to sell the Louisiana Territory to the United States, Jefferson wisely jumped at the opportunity, even though doing so seemed to require that he use authority not explicitly granted to him in the Constitution.Thank goodness he had the intelligence to do what he did! His actions have proven themselves over time to have been a tremendous blessing to our nation. Indeed, one wonders how dangerously handicapped and stunted our country would have been if he had not the vision and wisdom to do the right thing instead of the simple thing.Too often we conservative political junkies fall into the trap of being intellectually lazy. We gravitate toward a simple direction, right, instead of toward actually doing the "right" thing.I have learned in my life that doing the "right" thing requires balance--effort and judgment. Following a simple direction requires no effort and no judgment; we simply turn off our brain and say either "more government programs!" (left), or "less government programs!" (right)In the past, some who have famously fallen into a similar trap have declared such things as "It is wrong to heal on the Sabbath!" These folks couldn't get past the direction of following the letter of the law, so they failed to understand the balance of the spirit of the law.The spirit of our national and state constitutions is to provide for the common good. As a conservative Reagan Republican, I believe that often requires government to get off the backs of the people, so that their creative energies can be unleashed. But, sometimes it means that the government needs to step in, as appropriate, to build such things as the Eerie Canal--all for the common good.For me, Real Salt Lake's stadium falls into this category. I am convinced that it will produce benefits for our state that are just as vital to the common good as schools and highways. That is why I enthusiastically support the state chipping in a small portion to help make it a reality.I hope this, in some way, does justice to your excellent question."