Atrios' List:Kevin Drum
provides an abridged list that
Atrios created. A list of things "he thinks most lefty bloggers agree on".
It certainly looks good from here. But in addition to the fact that most on the left would agree with the list, it's also useful to examine how different types of Republicans would react to it. Partly to see what cleavages might take place over in Republican-land, but also to establish who the "lefty bloggers" most likely opponents are.
This list takes a stab at how various Republicans might position themselves on each of the issues. Moderate Republicans are what you'd expect, although in the current environment they are sidelined and ignored as well as being timid. Goldwater Republicans are conservative but generally honest and libertarian in inclination. Religious Right seem to care about moral issues to the exclusion of everything else. And Corporate Republicans are looking out for Number One - and keeping and acquiring money is their overriding concern. That said, here is a breakdown on the issues:
| | Moderate Republican | Goldwater Republican | Religious Right | Corporate/Rich Republican |
| Undo the bankruptcy bill enacted by this administration | Probably oppose | Oppose | Indifferent | Oppose |
| Repeal the estate tax repeal | Indifferent | Oppose | Oppose | Oppose |
| Increase the minimum wage and index it to the CPI | Indifferent | Oppose | Indifferent | Oppose |
| Universal health care (obviously the devil is in the details on this one) | Probably oppose | Oppose | Indifferent | Oppose |
| Increase CAFE standards. Some other environment-related regulation | Probably support | Oppose | Indifferent | Oppose |
| Pro-reproductive rights, getting rid of abstinence-only education, improving education about and access to contraception including the morning after pill, and supporting choice. On the last one there's probably some disagreement around the edges (parental notification, for example), but otherwise. | Indifferent | Oppose | Oppose | Indifferent |
| Simplify and increase the progressivity of the tax code | Support | Probably support | Indifferent | Oppose |
| Kill faith-based funding. Certainly kill federal funding of anything that engages in religious discrimination. | Indiffferent | Probably support | Oppose | Indifferent |
| Reduce corporate giveaways | Support | Support | Indifferent | Oppose |
| Have Medicare run the Medicare drug plan | Support | Probably support | Indifferent | Oppose |
| Force companies to stop underfunding their pensions. Change corporate bankruptcy law to put workers and retirees at the head of the line with respect to their pensions. | Support | Probably support | Indifferent | Oppose |
| Leave the states alone on issues like medical marijuana. Generally move towards "more decriminalization" of drugs, though the details complicated there too. | Support | Support | Oppose | Indifferent |
| Paper ballots | Support | Support | Indifferent | Probably oppose |
| Improve access to daycare and other pro-family policies. Obiously details matter. | Probably support | Oppose | Oppose | Oppose |
| Raise the cap on wages covered by FICA taxes. | Probably support | Oppose | Oppose | Oppose |
| Marriage rights for all, which includes "gay marriage" and quicker transition to citizenship for the foreign spouses of citizens. | Probably support | Oppose | Oppose | Indifferent |
It seems clear from the layout that the folks most opposed to lefty blogger policy positions are the Corporate Republicans
or their spokespeople (that means you, Tim Russert), and the Religious Right. At least on domestic issues. Bring in Iraq and you introduce a fifth type of Republican: the Neo Con (and possibly a sixth type: the Bush Groupie).
Setting foreign policy aside, it seems clear from the matrix above that Atrios' List is not radical. That the epithets "far left" and "fanatics" are totally inappropriate for those inclined towards progressive policy positions. That 40% of the nation would support or accept such policies. And that to be even having this discussion shows how much the "center" has moved to the right by commentators, pundits, and hacks.
posted by Quiddity at 5/09/2006 01:49:00 AM
Moderate Republicans? Are there any left? I remember when Gerald Ford was a right winger, any people to his right were just crazy Birchers. Reagan would be a moderate these days.
Nice chart though.
Add iu independents and it becomes interesting. I mean, great chart, will send it to a jillion friends. This is the start of a great debate. Every discussion points out the damage that the Republicans have done to the common good.
I agree with you that the Goldwater Republicans are libertarin in nature and self-consistent. So, don't you think they would support a woman's control over her own body and the freedom of gay Americans to marry?
I also had the same thought as mark centz: Moderate Republicans? Not on this planet.
Rockie the Dog: I considered Goldwater Republicans to be opposed to the reproductive rights business mostly because it involved a program (that costs money and they don't like that). And as for gay marriage, that line item also had quick citizenship for spouses, and I thought they'd be opposed to that as well.
But I can see your point that a case could be made that Goldwater Republicans would be less opposed, likely indifferent, and maybe slightly in favor - of those policy positions.
This was only a quick review and many simplifications and generalizations had to be made. Still, I think the important point is that the Corporate/Rich Republican and the Religious Right are the only really vigorous challengers to policy positions as found in Atrios' list.
One of the difficulties with this list is that the Religious Right, in my experience talking to some of its members, just use the religion thing to cover up Goldwaterism, Bush groupieism, or just plain don't-like-people-ism. A "pure" religious right person would respond as listed, I just haven't talked to one yet.
