Note: This is a special contribution to the Blue Ear Books Substack newsletter by Paul Rogat Loeb, author of the landmark books Soul of a Citizen and The Impossible Will Take a Little While. Paul is a friend and a writer on American civic issues for whom I have great respect. This article was also published in
This provides very useful historical perspective. Sadly, days of any “moderate Republicans” are in the past. When Republican House members are censured for wanting to get to the bottom of what all was behind the Jan. 6 insurrection, hoping for even one or two moderate Republicans is a futile wish. And oh by the way what exactly makes Senators like Manchin and Sinema get them labeled “moderate”? We are living in sad times and we haven’t hit bottom yet.
Hi Qaisar--great to hear from you and I remember our lovely lunch in DC. It is indeed sad where things have gone, but important I think to keep holding up a higher standard...
Paul Hi. Indeed it was great to have met up with you. Let me know if you are ever in the DC area. Would love to catch up. I understand and applaud the sentiment behind appealing to reason within the Republican Party. I just feel time has come to accept this Party has been taken over by anti democratic even fascist, forces. Moderate people within this Party if any, and I doubt there are any, are too scared or selfish to act in the greater national interest. Sadly, I feel the decline of our democracy is well underway and will be very hard to reverse. At least not until it gets much, much worse.
This provides very useful historical perspective. Sadly, days of any “moderate Republicans” are in the past. When Republican House members are censured for wanting to get to the bottom of what all was behind the Jan. 6 insurrection, hoping for even one or two moderate Republicans is a futile wish. And oh by the way what exactly makes Senators like Manchin and Sinema get them labeled “moderate”? We are living in sad times and we haven’t hit bottom yet.
Hi Qaisar--great to hear from you and I remember our lovely lunch in DC. It is indeed sad where things have gone, but important I think to keep holding up a higher standard...
Paul Hi. Indeed it was great to have met up with you. Let me know if you are ever in the DC area. Would love to catch up. I understand and applaud the sentiment behind appealing to reason within the Republican Party. I just feel time has come to accept this Party has been taken over by anti democratic even fascist, forces. Moderate people within this Party if any, and I doubt there are any, are too scared or selfish to act in the greater national interest. Sadly, I feel the decline of our democracy is well underway and will be very hard to reverse. At least not until it gets much, much worse.