A Look At The Republican Party Of Texas Platform

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If you haven’t yet had the opportunity to examine the Republican Party of Texas’ new platform yet (and, if you haven’t who can blame you–no one likes to induce projectile vomiting upon themselves), chances are you wouldn’t be surprised that it is as radical and right-wing as ever. Here is a summary of the worst of it.

You are created in the image of God, period, and natural death must include executions, according to the Republicans:

We believe that human life is sacred, created in the image of God. Life begins at the moment of fertilization and ends at the point of natural death. All innocent human life must be protected.

So, if you don’t believe in God, tough: you were created in his image anyway. Oh, and that “natural death” part? We assume the Texas GOP counts a lethal injection as a “natural death.”

And, of course, it wouldn’t be a GOP platform without gay-bashing within the first 1,000 words:

We believe that traditional marriage is a legal and moral commitment between a natural man and a natural woman. We recognize that the family is the foundational unit of a healthy society and consists of those related by blood, marriage, or adoption. The family is responsible for its own welfare, education, moral training, conduct, and property.

No surprise there.

On stem cell research:

Promote adult stem cell research with public funds, and prohibit public funds for research that destroys human embryos.

Isn’t that kind of emasculating stem cell research?

Also, the GOP, in their infinite wisdom, wants to see prosecutions for methamphetamine production made a higher priority for law enforcement than murder, rape, and basically any other crime (except child sex abuse):

Law enforcement should make Child and Sex Abuse and Methamphetamine Drug Manufacturing their top priority.

Stricter sentencing for Methamphetamine traffickers is needed.

Seriously? Not just a “war on drugs,” but a “war on meth?” Fighting meth should be a higher priority than fighting domestic violence, rape, and murder? How sad.

And, of course, no GOP platform is complete without something to make sure the money men get theirs and smack down immigrants:

Protect the authority of the State Board of Education to manage the Permanent School Fund and control textbook content; expand the cap on charter schools; and remove funding for bilingual education.

First and foremost, the part about the PSF is strictly so the SBOE can make sure that the PSF can invest in things like whatever James Leininger’s latest business venture happens to be. As for controlling textbook content, we’ve seen that is a disaster. As for removing funding for bilingual education, the RPT just needs to get a clue.

And, surprise, surprise! Republicans are now attacking the Census:

Census – We oppose the Census Bureau’s obtaining data beyond the number of citizens residing in a dwelling, and we oppose statistical sampling adjustments in the “mid-decade” census. We urge that U.S. citizens who, because of religion or conscience, are compelled to withhold their full response to any census question, be held guiltless.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

And, though reparations haven’t been mentioned in the last decade, the RPT somehow finds it necessary to dredge that up:

Reparations - We oppose any form of reparation based on discriminatory criteria.

The Republicans also want to turn churches into an extension of political parties:

Free Speech for the Clergy – We urge change of the Internal Revenue Code to allow a religious organization to address issues without fear losing its tax-exempt status. We call for repeal of requirements that religious organizations send government any personal information about their contributors.

The below, of course, directly relates to a former state legislator’s daughter:

State Bar Requirements — Attorneys who obtain their law degree through learning by electronic means or U.S. mail, from an accredited school of law, should be allowed to take the Texas Bar Exam.

Here is what we’ll call the “Leo Berman” amendment which is directed at Texas’ teachers’ unions:

Protecting Union Member’s Dues – We support legislation requiring labor unions to obtain consent of the union member before that member’s dues can be used for political purposes.

And, voter ID rears its ugly head:

We support modifications and strengthening of election laws to assure ballot integrity and fair elections. Specifically, we support a federal or state government-issued photo ID at in-person voting…

Here is one Republicans would use to purge moderates from their own ranks:

Platform/Legislation - We urge the Legislature to permit a political party to require each of its candidates to indicate their position on each platform plank before their acceptance on the primary ballot. Publication and distribution of candidate responses should be permitted.

And, of course, they support giving the Public Integrity Unit to the AG’s office and making it a political pawn:

Public Integrity Unit – We urge the Legislature to secure the impartiality and probity of the Travis County Public Integrity Unit, by transferring its powers and funding to an impartial statewide elected judicial entity.

FYI: The AG is not a “Judicial Entity.” Do they support giving it to the Court of Criminal Appeals or adding another elected official to the statewide slate? Or, did someone just write this one badly?

And, no surprise, they oppose the Two-Thirds Rule in the Texas Senate:

Rosebush-Blocker Rule - We oppose the Rosebush-Blocker rule in the Texas Senate.

And, more needless legislation for something already blocked under our constitution:

Marriage Licenses - We support legislation that would make it a felony to issue a marriage license to a same-sex couple and for any civil official to perform a marriage ceremony for such.

And here is their wacky-ass take on homosexuality:

Homosexuality – We believe that the practice of homosexuality tears at the fabric of society, contributes to the breakdown of the family unit, and leads to the spread of dangerous, communicable diseases. Homosexual behavior is contrary to the fundamental, unchanging truths that have been ordained by God, recognized by our country’s founders, and shared by the majority of Texans. Homosexuality must not be presented as an acceptable “alternative” lifestyle in our public education and policy, nor should “family” be redefined to include homosexual “couples.” We are opposed to any granting of special legal entitlements, refuse to recognize, or grant special privileges including, but not limited to: marriage between persons of the same sex (regardless of state of origin), custody of children by homosexuals, homosexual partner insurance or retirement benefits. We oppose any criminal or civil penalties against those who oppose homosexuality out of faith, conviction, or belief in traditional values.

How stupid! I would think that Texas Legislators mingling with prostitutes also contributes to the contraction and spread of communicable diseases, but I missed any plank about that in the GOP platform.

And when will the Texas GOP get off its sodomy horse:

Texas Sodomy Statutes - We oppose the legalization of sodomy. We demand that Congress exercise its authority granted by the U.S. Constitution to withhold jurisdiction from the federal courts from cases involving sodomy.

Is this a Republican Platform or a pornographic dime novel?

In addition to numerous planks opposing abortion, the platform includes this:

RU 486 - We urge the FDA to rescind approval of the physically dangerous RU-486 and oppose limiting the manufacturers’ and distributors’ liability.

Morning After Pill – We oppose sale and use of the dangerous “Morning After Pill.”

Let me get this straight: the party of tort reform wants to exclude pharmaceutical companies that manufacture RU 486 from tort reform? Wow.

Not even teenage nookie got a pass from the new GOP platform:

Age of Consent - We support raising the age of consent for consensual sex to 18 years.

And, the GOP thinks that, if foster parents are allowed to beat their charges, there will suddenly not be a shortage of foster parents:

Foster Care - We support eliminating bureaucratic prohibitions on corporal discipline and home schooling in foste homes to help alleviate the shortage of foster parents.

And, how about more bureaucracy? Try this:

DFPS Accountability - We support the appointment of local elected officials to review charges of abuse of discretion by the Department of Family and Protective Services with respect to intervention into the family unit. It is imperative that this local board have the authority to recommend appropriate corrective and disciplinary action as needed. We believe that only law enforcement officers may remove a child from his or her home or school when there is an immediate danger to the child’s physical health or safety. All other removals of a child shall be pursuant to a court order. No child may be interviewed by the state without video or audio recording of the interview, and the recording shall become evidence. DFPS/CPS will require the tipster to identify themself by name and contact information to the agency. This information will be kept confidential, and the tipster will be notified by the agency that false information will be prosecuted and that false tips will be subject to a fine. A family shall have the right to learn of their accuser with a judicial order. Only findings determined in open court and by trial may be retained by the State.

That last part seems quite a nod to the recent FLSD controversy.

Naturally, the GOP also wants to do away with Social Security, and not require you to even have an SSN:

Social Security - We support an immediate and orderly transition to a system of private pensions based on the concept of individual retirement accounts, and gradually phasing out the Social Security tax. We insist that Social Security benefits be non–taxable. To protect the Social Security System, its funds should not be co–mingled or spent with general revenues or invested in private or public corporate stock. We support Americans being allowed to purchase directly, and hold directly as part of their tax-deferred retirement and educational savings plans, United States Treasury obligations, personally managed investment accounts, and tax-free equities. Individuals, who qualify for Social Security benefits, including school teachers, should receive all of the benefits for which they are entitled without penalty, for any reason including earned, passive or portfolio income. To protect freedom and privacy, government and private institutions should not require Social Security numbers as ID. Application for Social Security numbers should not be required before the age of consent.

To give you an idea of the hypocrisy of the GOP platform, banning adoptions by gays is mentioned at least half a dozen times, but this is all the platform contains on helpingmentally disabled Texans:

Caring for Our Mentally Disabled Citizens - We urge the Legislature to continue funding and operating all state schools for the mentally disabled, increase training standards of state school employees, and ensure efficient funding and quality of service.

And, of course, they are pro-discrimination:

Americans with Disabilities Act - We support amendment of the Americans with Disabilities Act to exclude from its definition those persons with infectious diseases, substance addiction, learning disabilities, behavior disorders, homosexual practices and mental stress, thereby reducing abuse of the Act.

And check out how nicely cloaked in rhetoric the GOP has integrated school vouchers into their platform:

Parental School Choice – We encourage the Governor and the Texas Legislature to enact child-centered school funding options – which fund the student, not schools or districts – to allow maximum freedom of choice in public, private or parochial education for all children. As a prerequisite, we urge passage of a constitutional amendment prohibiting imposition of state regulations on private and parochial schools.

The translation: VOUCHERS!

And, of course, they are against education for immigrants:

Educational Entitlement – We encourage legislation that prohibits enrollment in free public schools of non-citizens unlawfully present in the United States, whether or not such illegals pay or offer to pay tuition for such education.

And, of course, they want to make public schools churches:

Religious Freedom in Public Schools – We urge school administrators and officials to inform Texas school students specifically of their First Amendment rights to pray and engage in religious speech, individually or in groups, on school property without government interference. We support
and strongly urge Congress to pass a Religious Freedom Amendment, which provides: “Neither the United States nor any State shall prohibit student–sponsored prayer in public schools, nor compose any official student prayer or compel joining therein.” We urge the Legislature to end censorship of discussion of religion in our founding documents, and encourage discussing those documents.

In one of its most idiotic of planks, the GOP thinks the state should bear the responsibility of defending schools who discriminate against students and don’t follow the law:

School District Lawsuits - We support legislation authorizing Independent School Districts threatened with lawsuits by organizations, such as the ACLU, or sued to certify the lawsuit to the Attorney General of Texas to represent the Independent School District in the suit where the issue is of significant statewide import, and the Attorney General of Texas agrees to take the case.

Interesting that they didn’t mention Pat Robertson’s ACLJ, since they also sue school districts all the time in Texas.

And, of course, this old standard:

As America is a nation under God founded on Judeo-Christian principles, we affirm the constitutional right of all individuals to worship in the religion of their choice.

Except, of course, non-Judeo-Christian religions.

And, as a nod to Governor Perry, no gays in the Boy Scouts:

Boy Scouts of America – We support the Boy Scouts of America and reject any attempt to undermine or fundamentally change the ideals of the organization.

And, the GOP is anti-union:

Right-to-Work – We oppose the Employee Free Choice Act and any action that eliminates the secret ballot. Every worker should have freedom to work in their preferred job without being forced to join or pay dues to any organization. Our Right-to-Work Law has provided this freedom and a good climate for industrial expansion, higher employment, and a stable management-labor relationship. We encourage adoption of a National Right-to-Work Act.

And…NO MINIMUM WAGE:

Minimum Wage – We believe the Minimum Wage Law should be repealed.

And, this is amusing:

Illegal Immigration – No amnesty! No how. No way.

And more idiocy:

Birthright Citizenship – We call on the Legislative, Executive and Judicial branches of these United States to clarify Section 1 of the 14th amendment to limit citizenship by birth to those born to a citizen of the United States: with no exceptions.

And, of course, it wouldn’t be a GOP platform without a demand we withdraw from the UN:

United Nations – We believe it is in the best interest of the citizens of the United States that we immediately rescind our membership in, as well as all financial and military contributions to, the United Nations. We will:

1. support legislation similar to “The American Sovereignty Preservation Act”, which would remove the United States entirely from the control of the UN;

2. demand that Congress ratify no more, and rescind any existing treaties that compromise the United States Constitution;

3. support immediate recall of our military forces from UN initiated engagements, and restore them to their traditional mission of defending the liberty and freedom of the people of the United States of America;

4. support an amendment to the United States Constitution stating, “a treaty that conflicts with any provisions of the Constitution shall not be of any force or effect”;

5. urge our Texas Senators to unalterably oppose any agreement or treaty that seeks to establish an International Criminal Court (ICC), make the United States a participatory party to such a court; recognize the jurisdiction of such a court within the United States or upon any native-born or naturalized citizen of the United States; and

We oppose:

1. UN control of any United States land or natural resources;

2. the use of Presidential Executive Orders to implement UN treaties, thereby circumventing our elected Congress;

3. any attempt by the federal government, or the UN, to directly or indirectly tax United States citizens for UN support;

4. a UN resolution that would force the United States to adopt gun control measures by treaty;

5. the placement of the UN flag and emblem on public property or in government facilities;

6. payment of any debt allegedly owed to the UN;

7. Any attempt to grant veto power over the sovereignty of the United States to set national defense priorities, wage effective war, and negotiate peace in terms favorable to our vital interests; and

8. Ratification of the Law of the Sea Treaty (LOST).

We urge Congress to evict the United Nations from the United States and eliminate any further participation.

This could be the most wing-nutty of the GOP’s recent platforms.

Popularity: 32% [?]

Vince Leibowitz posted this article under Uncategorized on Friday, June 20th, 2008 at 2:20 pm You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment or trackback from your own site. View Technorati Linkbacks.