By all indications, moderate Republicans are already an endangered species on Capitol Hill, but it appears there are a few new efforts underway to make them completely extinct.
House Republicans, for example, are looking at the upper chamber’s alleged moderation with disdain. They’re even plotting to remake the Senate in their image.
Dismayed at what they see as a lack of strong conservative principles on the other side of the Capitol, a group of House lawmakers is laying plans to elect more conservative Republicans to the Senate.
More than 20 House conservatives met recently at the Hunan Dynasty on Capitol Hill to discuss how to put some conservative backbone into the Senate, among other political and legislative priorities. Many of them believe that Republican centrists in the Senate are as much to blame as Democrats for their policy frustrations.
The plans, at this point, are still in the early stages of development. They could include direct financial assistance to GOP conservatives in Senate primary fights with moderates and creating a PAC to counter the Republican Main Street Partnership, a struggling political organization committed to electing GOP centrists.
“Others among our ranks will run for the Senate, and we’d like to have a more coordinated effort to help these candidates,” said Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), a prominent conservative. “Can you imagine having Coburn, DeMint and Schaffer in the Senate? Sounds pretty good.”
Flake said that conservatives may form and raise money for their own political action committee. Another lawmaker suggested urging their supporters to bundle contributions to conservative candidates in other states.
“The goal is to institutionalize this somehow and have a better structure to help out on a more timely basis,” Flake said.
While they’re at it, House Republicans are sticking it to moderates in their midst, as well.
If there’s one thing the House GOP can’t tolerate, it’s a lack of party loyalty. If you vote the way Tom DeLay wants, you’re rewarded; if you don’t, you’re punished. With this in mind, Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), a 12-term moderate and chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, may be stripped of his chairmanship if the GOP keeps its majority in the fall.
While the leadership has grumbled about Smith’s loyalty since he was first handed the chairmanship in 2001, several Republican Members and aides confirmed that discussions about stripping him of his post have grown more serious in recent months, particularly in the wake of his opposition to the fiscal 2005 budget resolution.
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In the view of Republican leaders, Smith does not do enough to defend the GOP’s record on veterans’ issues when outside groups criticize the party.
“He just doesn’t cover our flank on a lot of stuff,” said a Republican leadership aide.
I remember another northeastern GOP moderate who was treated this way by the party leadership. What was his name again? Oh right; Jim Jeffords.
The drive for right-wing ideological purity is a frustrating but predictable development. That said, in one sense I’m glad to see this happen. The more the GOP abandons any pretense of moderation, the more they encourage voters to abandon them.