The 2016 GOP Platform

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Seriously:

The platform demands that lawmakers use religion as a guide when legislating, stipulating “that man-made law must be consistent with God-given, natural rights.”

It also encourages the teaching of the Bible in public schools because, the amendment said, a good understanding of its contents is “indispensable for the development of an educated citizenry.”
And it goes downhill from there. For example, The Wall:

…the Republican platform explicitly states: “We support building a wall along our southern border and protecting all ports of entry. The border wall must cover the entirety of the southern border and must be sufficient to stop both vehicular and pedestrian traffic.”

The GOP isn’t just hostile to same-sex marriage, but to homosexuality itself.

Republicans repeatedly rejected efforts to even mention LGBT Americans by name in their platform. Instead, the GOP includes a defense of “natural marriage” and even embraces “conversion therapy”, the controversial and widely banned practice of trying to convert LGBT individuals to being heterosexual.

The GOP is so hostile to LGBT folks that the committee rejected a proposal to condemn Islamic terrorists’ targeting of LGBT individuals.

This is everything the GOP platform says about the environment:

In its entirety, it states, “We believe sound energy, agriculture, and environmental policy can foster sustainable economic growth. We are also the party of America’s growers and producers, farmers, ranchers, foresters, miners, and all those who bring from the earth the minerals and energy that are the lifeblood of our nation’s historically strong economy. We are the party of traditional conservation: the wise development of resources that keeps in mind the efforts of past generations to secure that bounty and our responsibility to preserve it for the future. Now we want to hear from you. What issues are most important to you?”

Global warming? Not an issue. But there is an open question about whether the platform actually calls for ending all national parks (by turning them over to the states) or just some of them. Snopes points out that the language adopted by the platform committee just calls for “certain federally controlled public lands” to be conveyed to states, but doesn’t say which ones.

Random things:

  • The GOP platform opposes adding gray wolves, prairie chickens and sage grouses to the endangered species list.
  • The platform calls for abolition of the IRS.
  • The platform calls for criminalizing abortion with no exceptions for rape or incense.
  • The platform opposes legalizing marijuana even for medical uses.

What do the Democratic and Republican platforms agree on? Two things I know of:

  • Both platform committees refused to condemn the Trans-Pacific Partnership, even though both presumptive nominees (currently) say they oppose it.
  • Both platform committees have called for a return to Glass Steagall. Everybody hates Wall Street. However, if such a thing comes to pass watch Congress water the hell out of it first.

9 thoughts on “The 2016 GOP Platform”

  1. In the words of that great “American” philosopher, “Daffy Duck”

    “”Just thoooooot me now!!!

  2. Sometimes the mentality amazes me. What about separation of church and state? I’m reminded of a question I asked my sister during the Indiana primary. “Who are you going to vote for?” She replied, “Ted Cruz, he’s a true Christian because he’s a Southern Baptist.” I love my sister but this is one reason I can’t live near her. She is intelligent but there is no logical thinking in that answer.

  3. What about a wall on our northern border? There are people in Canadia who don’t even speak English, fer chrissakes. They must be subversives. Also, we’ve got to keep out Quebec maple syrup and protect the jobs of Vermont syrup producers.

  4. Of course, the essence of Trump is a vast internal emptiness, a void of curiosity, a penchant for lying, a lust for attention, an infinitesimal attention span, a stunning deficit of self-awareness and yet, paradoxically, a monomaniacal absorption with self. Combine this with the need to dominate, an indifference to consequence, the complete absence of conscience, and an awe-inspiring lack of empathy for other human beings, and you have a would-be satrap who stiffs small contractors, stints on charity, treats women like serfs, and scams the credulous, whose business career is larded with fraud, bullying and mendacity and whose mode of inspiration is to talk about himself.

    I put that in blockquotes just to insure that nobody thinks I plagiarized that comment in the GOP tradition. Those are not my words, but the thought and intellectual assessment behind them is original to me. I just didn’t get around to voicing those thoughts with such completeness. I’m not sure who the author is, but whoever he or she is certainly has a quality mind.

  5. So let me get this straight, this big-tent party wants to eliminate secular society and establish a theocracy based on “Christian” principles? This will be indoctrinated into our youth by mandatory bible studies in public schools from a bible chosen by whom. Is the Book of Mormon an option? Will the decision be made in Nashville or Tulsa? I am sure the Dewey Rheims version will not be an option. So it is kind of a big tent party in a revival tent sort of way.

    I would ask if any party member gave any serious thought to this but, as it seems from watching a bit of the proceedings, that those having any sense of disbelief had to check it in at the door.

  6. They also want to declare “pr0nography” a public health crisis, because, you know, we can’t allow a woman to use what may in her particular case may her best asset to make a living wage. Slinging burgers for $7/hr has SO much more dignity.

  7. There’s an outbreak of norovirus at the GOP Convention:
    “According to the CDC, symptoms include diarrhea, throwing up, nausea, stomach pain, fever, headaches, and body aches. The virus can spread very quickly in enclosed spaces, like convention centers. The good news for Republicans? The arena has not been anywhere near full capacity.”

    So, it literally IS becoming a shitshow!

  8. Not sure what this brave new breed of Donald Trump Christian is gonna look like. Maybe Jim Hoft’s “come home to the conservative party” strategy is actually some kind of LGBT roach motel. Gays check in, but they don’t check out.

  9. I had the norovirus once. As I remember it, I was vomiting and had diarrhea every hour for about 12 hours after which I was completely exhausted. The most challenging part was how to manage diarrhea and vomiting at the same time. No fun.

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