Andres Martinez-Fernandez/Contributing Writer
One of the points of contention within the Republican Party right now is the question of electability versus ideological conformity.
The question is: should voters in the primaries “vote their conscience” and choose a hard-line Republican who is most in line with conservative ideological beliefs, will not budge on most political issues and is much less likely to win in a general election, such as Michelle Bachmann?
Or, should they instead vote for someone who is at least perceived to be more moderate, willing to compromise on some of the less important issues and is much more likely to win in a general election, such as Rick Perry?
Perry is perceived to be too moderate by many hardline Republicans and Tea Party conservatives, for reasons such as accepting bailout money and supporting Rudy Giuliani, a social liberal, in the 2008 presidential election. Michelle Bachmann, on the other hand, is a champion to the aforementioned groups for refusing to compromise her conservative beliefs on issues such as raising the debt ceiling.
Although these are only perceptions, it is important to remember that unfortunately, in politics, perception is assumed to be reality. It would behoove conservatives to truly understand the reality of these candidates – there really is no ideological difference between Perry and Bachmann on the major issues. Both are fiscal, social and national security conservatives who realize the importance of reining in government spending by cutting expenditures, which is by far the most important issue facing the country right now. Neither candidate is likely to compromise his or her conservative beliefs on the major issues.
However, Perry has a firmer understanding of the realities of governance and of the electoral process beyond the primary, both of which requires working to gain support from those who may not agree with the Republican party platform on some issues. This often means giving up ground on a less important or less relevant issue to gain ground on a more pressing issue. Having a persona of “my way or the highway” simply does not work in Washington and the founding fathers set up the government to work that way.
In the words of former President Ronald Reagan, “Someone who agrees with the party on 4 out of 5 issues is 80 percent a friend, not 20 percent an enemy.”
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