What does the Republican Party stand for?

[MiddleRoad]

At one time, you could point to a few core principles -

Reaganite fiscal conservatism, religious right social conservatism, in a nutshell. Being “like Reagan” was the central theme of any serious contender in the party. It was the yardstick for all major Republican candidates from 1988 to 2016.

But since Trump, what is it?

Is it Trumpian nationalism?

Is it Libertarian isolationism and small government?

Is it Neo-Con internationalism?

Is it states’ rights “get the government out of my education” style big government like DeSantis?

Is it stances on the ongoing cultural wars - see above?

What does it mean to be a Republican post Trump?

I ask this question in good faith. Because I feel Trump and others fractured the party, such that it doesn’t have the same solid core anymore.

[Vosem]

The proposition that most powerful institutions of modern American day-to-day life -- particularly the government and the media -- are untrustworthy, and should be treated with suspicion or resistance.

There are numerous other markers which describe almost all Republicans (virtually all support American gun culture and easy gun purchases, for instance; virtually all believe economic growth is downstream of spending cuts; virtually all are likely to endorse some form of religion as a positive influence in their lives), but I'm not sure any of those are what the party fundamentally stands for.

[darklordoftech]

Cruelty for cruelty’s sake.

[Person Man]

The proposition that most powerful institutions of modern American day-to-day life -- particularly the government and the media -- are untrustworthy, and should be treated with suspicion or resistance.

There are numerous other markers which describe almost all Republicans (virtually all support American gun culture and easy gun purchases, for instance; virtually all believe economic growth is downstream of spending cuts; virtually all are likely to endorse some form of religion as a positive influence in their lives), but I'm not sure any of those are what the party fundamentally stands for.

It sounds like some vague form of Nationalism.

[Ferguson97]

Owning the libs.

[S019]

Democratic backsliding

[Blue3]

Trump

[TML]

Letting “angry white men” have their way and dominate over pretty much all other demographic groups.

[CumbrianLefty]

Bigotry, stupidity, hatred and ignorance mainly.

[Sir Mohamed]

Has mostly became a voice for skeptics and "losers" of globalization and for anti-intellectualism.

[Del Tachi]

The GOP is still obviously the party of middle class economic interests, while the Democrats support policies more favorable to the working classes. 

[Xing]

Tricking ordinary Americans into thinking that they’re on their side in a war against a small group of powerful elites controlling everything. In reality, they’re part of that small group and want ordinary Americans controlled by a small elite, they’d just prefer that their talking points went unquestioned, as that would allow them to more effectively consolidate more power and wealth.

[Senator Incitatus]

Nothing, which is the point of a political party.

[Хahar 🤔]

The GOP is still obviously the party of middle class economic interests, while the Democrats support policies more favorable to the working classes. 

A friend of mine is fond of advancing the idea that Republicans represent fixed capital while Democrats represent mobile capital. I'm not sure I necessarily believe this as wholeheartedly as he does, but it is at least an interesting prism.

[Fight for Trump]

They were founded on sending blacks back to Africa and now it's sending Mexicans back to Mexico.

[Kahane's Grave Is A Gender-Neutral Bathroom]

Racism, Owning the Libs, Hating on those different than you to hide your own insecurities.

[All Along The Watchtower]

The GOP is still obviously the party of middle class economic interests, while the Democrats support policies more favorable to the working classes.  

A friend of mine is fond of advancing the idea that Republicans represent fixed capital while Democrats represent mobile capital. I'm not sure I necessarily believe this as wholeheartedly as he does, but it is at least an interesting prism.

I've seen the formulation "Republicans = the old economy" and "Democrats = the new economy" which, while rather vague and possibly dubious, seems broadly accurate to me?

Another version, which I remember reading in an article by a prominent political writer (I forget exactly who but it was during the Obama era), is that Republicans represent the propertied class while Democrats represent the credentialed class. That's a pretty good description too, especially at the elite level.

[brucejoel99]

The visionary foundation of the GOP, as currently constituted today as of this writing, is regaining power as soon as possible; totally opposing the Democrats in the meantime; implementing more permanent tax cuts for corporations & donors but, if anything, only temporary tax cuts for the middle-class upon regaining power; & otherwise expressing white grievances. This applied to Republicans before Trump's rise as well, back when they used to confirm on-the-record that they actually believed in democracy & this country's basic values, but of course, whatever Trump wants can now override any of these considerations since the last 7 years have transformed the party into an ideological shell of what it once was.

Otherwise, there's only one credible party of any governing quality in the U.S. that, although not perfect, at least has an interest in actually governing, & not just on the sole behalf of our own self-interests & the groups representing them either.

[All Along The Watchtower]

Otherwise, there's only one credible party of any governing quality in the U.S. that, although not perfect, at least has an interest in actually governing, & not just on the sole behalf of our own self-interests & the groups representing them either.

Unfortunately an increasing number of Americans believe otherwise. Worse, many of that party’s constituencies feel consistently betrayed by the people they voted for. It doesn’t matter if this is an unfair assessment—the political consequences of the belief are real enough.

[RINO Tom]

Republicans believe that very sizable elements of the Democratic Party want to fundamentally change the fabric of the nation and its culture, pretty much creating a fetishized expert culture of young college grads, lol.  I saw a great YouTube video about how the Democratic base's goal is pretty much to turn the world into bureaucracy - transferring authority on crime from police to social workers, authority on the economy from capitalists/free market movers and shakers to regulators, authority on societal morality and cultural norms from religious leaders to academics and journalists, authority on foreign policy from the military to politicians, etc.  You can argue that's not true, but Republicans very much believe it's true.

The actual Democrats I know admit that their end goal is an economic structure that, to a center-right person, is more or less socialism.  They admit that they have contempt for traditional cultural attitudes, and they want to secularize society even more.  They admit that they only say someone like George Washington shouldn't get the Andrew Jackson/Woodrow Wilson treatment simply because it wouldn't play well with society "yet," but essentially view him on borrowed time.  Many Democrats might not want these things, but enough do that the Republican Party's voters simply do not trust a single word out of the Democrats' mouths.

So does the GOP stand for "owning the libs"?  Yes, if you mean stopping the Democrats from getting any more power.  Republican voters view Democrats as acting in bad faith, so they oppose pretty much everything they stand for from the outset, figuring they're hiding their true intentions and will just wait it out until they can enact THOSE policies in 10-15 years.  Yes, it's dysfunctional and effectively makes the GOP a non-governing opposition party ... but that's what I think drives them, and frankly it's understandable.

[°Leprechaun]

Trump

When one word can sum up a philosophy or complete lack thereof, that one word speaks volumes.

[Thank you for being a friend...]

In their mind, they stand for patriotism, America First, the flag and the cross, the espousing of Judeo-Christian values, religious liberty (which is tied into defending Judeo-Christian traditionalism), traditional marriage and (heterosexual) families, protection of private property, allowing people to work and keep as much money as they can (which also means rich people keep as much of their wealth as possible), a defunding of Big Government (also known as "starving the beast" and "defunding the left"), a strident opposition to internationalism or "world government", also opposition to all forms of socialism, liberalism, or Marxism (it's all the same), traditional gender roles (men being big strong manly men, women being delicate soft feminine women), etc.

The Democrats, in the minds of the Republicans, stand for: Satanic values (really), a deep hatred of Christianity and the Bible, a love of terrorists, radicals, anarchists, and deviants, and radical Marxist-Leninist communism that wants to destroy America and all "she" stands for.

And, of course, the queers (which are responsible for all of the natural disasters).

[LAB-LIB]

The actual Democrats I know admit that their end goal is an economic structure that, to a center-right person, is more or less socialism.  They admit that they have contempt for traditional cultural attitudes, and they want to secularize society even more.  They admit that they only say someone like George Washington shouldn't get the Andrew Jackson/Woodrow Wilson treatment simply because it wouldn't play well with society "yet," but essentially view him on borrowed time.  Many Democrats might not want these things, but enough do that the Republican Party's voters simply do not trust a single word out of the Democrats' mouths.

We're both citing anecdotal evidence, but all of the Democrats I know are not socialists, and all of them agree there is a huge difference between someone like George Washington and someone like Woodrow Wilson.

[Person Man]

The GOP is still obviously the party of middle class economic interests, while the Democrats support policies more favorable to the working classes. 

A friend of mine is fond of advancing the idea that Republicans represent fixed capital while Democrats represent mobile capital. I'm not sure I necessarily believe this as wholeheartedly as he does, but it is at least an interesting prism.

He sounds like OSR

[HisGrace]

Still a Trump personality cult under proven otherwise.