RINO - The New "N-word"

I had a conversation with a family member recently. She went on for several minutes ranting about Newt Gingrich, and how he had turned traitor to America. I guess Newt had the audacity to support a moderate Republican instead of a conservative who was running for office in a congressional district that the conservative candidate didn't even live in (a minor detail). This travesty clearly put Newt right up there with Benedict Arnold and (I kid you not) John McCain, whose transgression I forget but, according to my relative, was egregious enough to morph McCain from "true American hero" to "subversive Liberal operative" in one 24-hour talk radio cycle.

But back to Newt.

My relative spent a lot of her time decrying the scourge of RINOs and how they ruined this country and needed to be purged from the Republican party. Since she was high on Righteous Indignation, it took her a while to catch her breath; but when she did I slipped in a tentative "Uh, you know I'm a RINO, right?"

A gravid pause ensued, during which I could hear the gears grinding as she worked to reconcile this new information that a person she liked and was related to was also evil. While I waited to see what would happen next, I considered what took me so long to speak up.

See, normally I would not have said anything to contradict her on something she so strongly believes because she is a woman I have deep respect for. She has worked hard her whole life, lived to be of service, cared for the ill and infirm, sacrificed (without playing martyr) for the people she loves, lived through incredible hardships and survived and sometimes thrived, all the while doing her best to lift up others - and I honor her for that. So usually during conversations on politics I try to go along where I can - highlight those areas where we agree and gently offer alternative ways of viewing things where we disagree.

But not today. I was tired of it. I felt like I'd been living in the closet for too long and it was time to come out. So I did.

"I'm here. I'm a RINO. Get used to it."

What happened after that was as illuminating as it was anti-climactic. After establishing that I was not in favor of a government takeover of every aspect of American life or of taking away freedom of speech, or a socialist out to subvert the rights of small business owners, she admitted "Well, I don't even know what a RINO is."

Really? After all that vitriol against RINOs, she didn't even know what they were. Huh.

So I told her "RINO means Republican In Name Only. It's the name that conservative rightwing Republicans give to moderate Republicans to put them down, make them less human, and chase them out of the party in order to ensure ideological purity. It's kind of like racial purity, only without the political incorrectness."

After that she changed the subject then got off the phone. But it got me thinking... RINO is the new N-word of the angry social conservative.

Furthermore, it's not the RINOs that are the problem with the GOP. It's not the moderates who need to be vilified and labeled as something evil and out to ruin the Republican party and the entirety of America.

Take a look around the world – it’s not the moderate groups that get the flashy clever names, no. Those self-identifying monikers go to the extremist groups.

Let me give one example. There is a group out there in the world that is also seeking ideological purity, they are called “the Taliban”. There are big differences, sure, on how the conservative rightwingers and the Taliban execute the removal of the not-quite-rigid-enough believers – but the principle of ideolgical purity is something they share. For apostates it’s off with their head – literally or politically.

So instead of the social rightwingers in my party claiming the right of the inheritance to the name that belongs truly to the plurality, to the moderates, to the big tent folks, I propose we come up with a name for our purist extremistsbrethren . They will appreciate the street cred of a flashy name, I’m sure – and they can graffiti it at their next rally next to their Obama as Hitler signs.

Here are a few ideas from me.

CREEPS - Conservative Rightwingers Exclaim Every Policy Socialism
CROWs - Conservative Rightwingers Only Whine
CRIPTs - Conservative Rightwingers Insist on Purity of Thought
CRAP - Conservative Rightwingers Absent Policies

I’m kinda stuck on “conservative rightwingers” right now... that "CR" sound appeals to me. But I'm not married to it - so please feel free to submit your own ideas.