The Republican's war on women is, I believe its an opening salvo in a war against sexuality...

[Humanist_Activist]

right now the focus is on controlling women's sexuality, but it certainly won't end there. The problem is that the Republican party has wedded itself with religious conservatives 30 years ago, and have really not done much of what the religious conservatives wanted. Abortion is still legal in all 50 states, Birth Control hasn't been restricted enough, Gay Marriage and LGBT rights are slowly expanding, state by state.

For us on the left, these rights and progression of rights either aren't secure enough, or aren't happening fast enough, but to a traditionalist Republican, this is like the end of times. The Republican party, instead of changing with the times, is instead digging its heels in and saying "Enough!", which is precisely the wrong thing to do if you want to remain a relevant national political party.

Politics requires compromise, but when your entire base is made up of people who only see things as black and white, good and evil, then your party cannot be flexible, but rather stays static. Even worse, the demographics they rely on, the straight, white, older and religious males, and females, are literally dying. The demographics of the entire country is changing to be younger, more brown, secular and much more liberal, socially at least, if not economically.

I think, at this point, the Republican party may, especially if this next election cycle goes against them, and they are using it as a test, write off this entire generation and cede national politics to the Democratic party, at least for now. They will try to chip away at any gains the Democrats achieve in the fall, but that may be all they can do.

Notice that much of their efforts are focused on states they have great influence or majorities in. This is no accident, the party of "states rights" wants states they can control to be able to restrict and abolish what they feel are moral and religious issues. If they can't maintain influence on the national level, then the state level will do just fine.

In addition, they are focusing on women's sexuality because, to be honest, for many people in this country, women are easy targets, despite being a majority. This country is quite prudish, look at the framing used, Rush Limbaugh may be a shock jock and asshole of the worse sort, but he most likely honestly thought the blowback from calling Sandra Fluke a slut, a defamation that shouldn't exist by the way, wouldn't be as bad as it is.

I think he underestimated the backlash because of a simple fact, people here are also getting less prudish as time goes by. We are, as a nation, moving past the old "slut shaming" and other antiquated ways of viewing sexuality, and this has to scare the Republicans stiff, for without the mainstays of their traditional wedge issues, they would have to run on their economic policies, which, I think even they are aware of, suck for the vast majority of Americans.

So instead they are in full on persecution mode, even though, at this time, they are the ones trying their best to do a last gasp of repression of women's rights and access to health care. They want to succeed because of the old rule that laws are harder to overturn a law after they pass than it is to pass them in the first place. Make no mistake, if they make any gains in the fall, no matter how slight, they will turn that molehill into Mount Everest and run with it as fast and as far as they can. I would say reinstating DADT would be next, if they get the presidency, then trying to pack the court will be next on the agenda, gotta try to finally overturn Griswold v. Connecticut and Roe v. Wade somehow.

I will say though, as I hinted above, I think they are overreaching, and their base is smaller than they realize, particularly if the Democrats don't screw the pooch this coming election. The Republicans are being extraordinarily stupid this election, they are damn near handing the election over to the Democrats. This is a golden opportunity to show that the country is moving on past the wedge issues and past the traditionalists. That we are no longer bound to kowtow to their bigotry, short sightedness, and antiquated values.

[JHB]

1. That's what many people have been trying to point out for years...

...but for most people the signs were too far below their radar to believe it.

There used to be talk about finding common ground between the pro-choice and "pro-life" camps, but those efforts always failed completely because ONE side would never bend, particularly when it came to contraception and contraceptive devices.

Why would they do that when it could help prevent abortions? Because the real motivation was that it was the sex that was wrong, and contraceptives would only encourage it by "removing the consequences".

Anyone could see this when talking to "pro-life"ers: they would get the angriest, just red-faced, teeth-gritting, spittle-flecking apoplectically furious, when the topic got onto people having unauthorized sex and getting away with it.

This isn't a temporary overreach. It's a long-term project that needs to be watched and beaten back over an equally long term.

[sendero]

2. Me too..

... I realized long ago this was not about babies, it is about sex.

Sexually repressed people cannot stand the fact that some people are getting laid and liking it. That someone else would enjoy something they don't have the guts to do just sticks in their craw. And ESPECIALLY that you don't have to have money to do it, well it is simply an outrage.

Tough shit puritans, that ship has sailed and it is not going back. Flail until you are blue, nobody is buying your bullshit.

[JHB]

3. They don't need to bring the ship back if they can torpedo it and keep you from building a new one

Never be too sure it can't go back: history is filled with periods of repression after more relaxed attitudes were common.

There ARE people who buy their bullshit. Some wholesale, and some who think they're being being selective and just agreeing with part of it (e.g., being "pro-life" because "using abortion for birth control is wrong" but ignoring, dismissing, or not even aware of the more aggressive agenda pushed by the movement's leaders) but it's enough to get them fighting in the wrong direction.

[sendero]

6. The wingnut contingent..

... is 20%, 25% tops. I'm not worried about it.

[pinto]

4. With the blatant (R) obstructionism in Congress, it seems we have no legislative national consensus.

At least for the time being. Hence the political actions at the state level. And many of the state laws being enacted, especially on the "wedge" issues, are heading to the Supreme Court for constitutional review.

Agree with your point - they're ovreaching. Somewhat desperately. Time and national demographics are outpacing the Republican extremists.

[drm604]

5. They're desperate to get control this fall.

You can see this in the coordinated state campaigns at gerrymandering and voter suppression.