Deconstructing The Moderate Republican

For quite some time now, I have found myself particularly intrigued by that enigmatic entity known as the “moderate” or “liberal” Republican. But before proceeding further, a few preliminary remarks are in order.

There is doubtless any number of characteristics in terms of which the moderate Republican can be identified, but the one feature that most powerfully engages my attention is his unfailing propensity to mercilessly attack his fellow Republicans—specifically, those to his right.

Healthy Debate
Far from being troubling, it is desirable that Republicans should engage one another in spirited, even heated, debate. Contrary to popular opinion, so-called “party unity” emphatically does not preclude disagreement and, in fact, actually requires some degree of it if the unity has any hope of abiding. But the readiness of the moderate Republican to lash out at those of his fellow party members to his right, and the viciousness with which he does so, are what makes him a phenomenon that simultaneously attracts and repels. After all, his disposition is invariably conciliatory toward those to his left, especially members of the opposition party.

Prominent Moderates
Take John McCain, as one example of the moderate Republican. During the Republican primaries in both the 2000 and 2008 presidential election seasons, McCain expressed not a fraction of the scorn for his Democratic rivals as he did the members of his own party. He famously described Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell as “agents of intolerance,” and he blatantly lied about Mitt Romney’s supporting a “time table” for troop withdrawal from Iraq. Let us also not forget that McCain castigated the North Carolina Republican Party when it rightly reminded voters of Barack Obama’s close and lengthy relationship with the Reverend Jeremiah Wright -- a relationship of which McCain said not a word during his campaign.

McCain may be the quintessential illustration of the moderate Republican, but he certainly isn’t the only specimen of this bizarre type. More recently, in front of a predominantly left-leaning audience, Michael Steele wasted no time before he derisively referred to Rush Limbaugh as a mere “entertainer” and his show as “incendiary” and “ugly.” David Frum expressed enthusiastic support for Steele and criticized the latter when he issued an apology. Frum then proceeded to launch an intensely personal attack against Rush in which he alluded to the king of talk radio’s checkered marital history, his weight problem, and his struggles with drug addiction. As if this wasn’t bad enough, Frum juxtaposed his character assessment of Rush with an analysis of President Obama’s /i]virtues.

This list of moderate Republicans can be multiplied exponentially.

Motivating Factors
However, I am not as interested in identifying individual moderate Republicans (at least not at this stage) as I am in identifying what motivates them. And there are basically two reasons, I suspect, that account for their profound, unabashed animosity toward those to their political right.

1.A Liberal Perspective
The first and most obvious reason is that, with respect to many issues, the moderate Republican finds himself more closely aligned with Democrats than with other Republicans. Whether it is the questions of constitutionality in Roe v. Wade, federal funding for embryonic stem-cell research, gun rights, immigration/border control or affirmative action, etc., the moderate Republican consistently sides with his Democratic counterparts against the more conservative members of his own party.

Still, disagreement over issues by itself fails to account for the venom that the moderate Republican reserves for his fellow partisans. After all, he disagrees some of the time with Democrats, yet he always takes the utmost care to articulate his disagreements with civility and respect. In order to render intelligible his rancor toward Republicans, we must look elsewhere.

2. The Need for Respect
The moderate Republican’s animus toward his fellow Republicans is driven primarily by his desire to achieve respectability —that is, acceptance by the left . It is crucial to recognize that it isn’t just, or even primarily, political ambition that drives the moderate Republican to excoriate and ridicule other Republicans; in fact, political ambition may not have anything at all to do with it. Rather, it is a deep and abiding psychological impulse to be accepted and admired by the left-wing media and the popular culture that it both informs and reflects.

The establishment press is all too eager to exploit any situation that reflects poorly on the GOP, and the moderate Republican is the most promising means by which this agenda is furthered. The moderate Republican provides cover for the leftist media, which can then veil its own partisan prejudices; the moderate Republican does the media’s dirty work. Thus, the moderate Republican is then guaranteed plenty of coverage -- all of which is favorable. We need look no further than John McCain, “the Maverick,” for proof of the truth in this proposition.

Consequences for Conservatives
When the moderate Republican is well liked by “the mainstream media,” he succeeds in escaping the fate that awaits his more conservative fellows. Unlike the latter, he hasn’t any concerns about being labeled “racist,” “sexist,” and “homophobe.” Nor, then, does he have to worry about being ridiculed and condemned by the self-declared guardians of our politically correct culture, whether they are print, television, and radio pundits, entertainers, comedians, or other politicians. And in addition to being depicted as more morally enlightened than “those other” knuckle-dragging Republicans and conservatives, the moderate Republican is also credited with being intelligent, in contrast to his “low-brow” brethren.

When the psychical and emotional benefits are considered, it becomes obvious that the temptation to become, or become known as, a moderate Republican is great indeed.

In the final analysis, it is a psychological longing that makes the moderate Republican the creature that he is.