Right wing fears being terminated
By Diane Carman, Denver Post Columnist
In California, where not a single Republican holds statewide office, Arnold Schwarzenegger is heralded by some as God's gift to the Grand Old Party. The big guy seems almighty, invincible, bulletproof.
But despite his movie-star visage, his he-man persona, his universal name recognition and his flagrant millions, for many Conan the Republican may be the candidate from hell.
And not because of the skeletons in his closet.
Face it, few really care if he ran with that godless Hollywood crowd, chased women in his youth or even that his father was a Nazi.
Nope, the thing that worries the party faithful is Schwarzenegger's shameless liberal streak.
He's on the record as pro-choice, pro-gay rights and pro-gun control. He's supported environmental protection regulations. He almost single-handedly passed Proposition 49, an initiative that calls for $550 million in state funds for after-school child-care programs. He married a Kennedy.
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And, if all that's not lefty enough, he even trashed the impeachment of Bill Clinton.
"We spent one year wasting time because there was a human failure," he told George magazine in 1999. "I was ashamed to call myself a Republican during that period."
No wonder Rush Limbaugh is frothing at the mouth.
But Limbaugh, the Traditional Values Coalition, the Christian Coalition and the rest of the party's right wing may not be able to silence the Terminator the way they have other moderates, according to Jim Martin, a University of Colorado regent who bolted the GOP last spring.
Schwarzenegger's got the power, Martin said. He doesn't need the party.
"The party is very intolerant," he said. Its leaders "have these litmus questions, and unless you vote the strict party line, you're branded as not being a good party member."
The litmus tests began with the abortion issue, he said, and expanded to require candidates to oppose gay rights, affirmative action, environmental protection "and anything that looks like compassion."
"There are no moderate Republicans elected in the state of Colorado," Martin said. The party "disposes of them" before the public ever has a chance to vote.
Schwarzenegger, he said, is "an unfortunate" candidate for conservative Republicans because his name recognition is so high he doesn't need to toe the line.
"It would be the same thing with John Elway in Colorado," he said. "If he ran, he could do anything he wanted. He would not let some party machinery tell him what to say."
Republican leaders in Colorado were reluctant to discuss Schwarzenegger.
When asked if she supports him, Rep. Marilyn Musgrave offered a "no comment." Ditto Gov. Bill Owens. Reps. Tom Tancredo and Bob Beauprez equivocated.
"I don't know a thing about him politically," Tancredo said.
"I've never even shaken his hand," Beauprez said.
Still, Beauprez insisted that although Schwarzenegger is "more centrist and moderate than many in the party, I know he will be welcome."
Kathie Finger, a Republican political consultant with Katy Atkinson and Associates, said Schwarzenegger is good for the party.
"Sometimes the other voices are not as vocal or as media savvy as the conservatives," she said. "With Arnold Schwarzenegger's candidacy, people are now seeing that the Republican Party is more diverse."
If that's true, nothing would make Joe Barrows happier.
The former banker and lifelong Republican activist in Colorado said it's been hard for him to stay in the party in recent years. "But I refuse to let them kick me out," he said.
An openly gay man who is one of only two Republicans on the national board of the Human Rights Campaign, Barrows said, "There have been a number of times that I felt my message wasn't very welcome."
"Face it," he said, "it's difficult to be a gay person and a Republican anywhere in this country, but especially in Colorado."
Both Barrows and Martin said they believe "the pendulum will swing back" and the right wing will lose its grip on the party.
Naturally, this trend would not be cheered by everyone.
Some on the right have criticized President Bush for not campaigning for a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage and for not endorsing Sen. Rick Santorum's outlandish comments equating homosexual acts with bigamy, polygamy and incest.
Ken Connor of the far-right Family Research Council even suggested recently that "pro-family voters perhaps should begin to reconsider their loyalty to the party."
This is why the Schwarzenegger phenomenon is so disturbing for those who have staked their careers on their unwavering conservative credentials. Because if the Terminator is the future of the party, they unquestionably represent the past.
And we all know what that means.
Hasta la vista, baby.
Diane Carman's column appears Sunday, Wednesday and Friday
denverpost.com
Take that, dawg! :-) |
