REPUBLICANS MUST RETURN TO FIVE DEFINING PRINCIPLES
Millions of Republicans are struggling with the question of how to vote in November. Some are considering staying home, writing in a name of their own choosing or voting for a man they don’t really want to see in the White House.
We three former senators, all Republicans, will not presume to tell these people what to do on Nov. 5. What we do want to offer, however, is a framework for thinking about the decision and for helping to secure America’s future beyond 2024, no matter what happens on Election Day.
We believe that our nation’s well-being depends on having the positive, stabilizing influence of a healthy, two-party system, which we currently do not have; and that one of those parties must reflect the traditional Republicanism which we embraced in our decades of public service.
Recently it has become popular to assert that this traditional brand of Republicanism is dead, replaced by a new populist, radical version. We disagree. In our view, traditional Republicanism, though currently in eclipse, is no more extinct than the sun was over portions of the country on April 8. And all of us who believe in it must do what we can to ensure its expeditious return.
To facilitate this comeback, we and other former GOP officeholders and officials are not leaving the party, but instead forming a new organization within it — “Our Republican Legacy.”
This initiative rests on the most solid of foundations — the five principles that historically have defined our party and been universally accepted across its membership. Sooner or later — and we hope sooner — these principles will reassert themselves. They are: ›
The Constitution — We are pledged to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. Our allegiance to the Constitution includes acceptance of the vote of the people, obedience to the decisions of our courts and support for the peaceful transfer of power. We think Jan. 6, 2021, the date of the mob assault on the Capitol, was one of the darkest days in U.S. history.
› Union — Since the time of Abraham Lincoln, ours has been the party of the Union, of holding a fractured country together as one indivisible nation. That remains our purpose today. We are one people. We stand against the divisive tactics of both right and left that divide “us against them” by exploiting emotions of grievance and rage.
› Fiscal responsibility — In recent years, Republicans have joined Democrats in abandoning that responsibility. The profligate explosion of our national debt is a legacy of weakness that future Americans must inherit. We renew our historical commitment to a sound economy.
› Free enterprise — We support the private sector as the source of prosperity against big government interventions such as high protective tariffs and price controls.
› Peace through strength — We believe that a peaceful world depends on a strong United States that is steadfast in opposing the aggression of Russia and other hostile regimes and is unwavering in our support for our allies.
To sustain these principles, the three of us are launching “Our Republican Legacy.” It will not be a lobbying organization or a political action committee. It will not tell people how to vote in 2024 or beyond. It will be an information hub — a center of news and commentary and ideas about strategies and tactics.
For those who boast that traditional Republicanism is dead we issue this challenge: Tell us — tell the nation — precisely how and why you disagree with this group’s five defining principles. Tell us how the embrace of these principles would contradict the ideals of this great nation. And tell us how their abandonment would make our nation stronger.
John Danforth, William Cohen and Alan Simpson are former Republican senators.