Guardian UK: The war without end (Republican Party purge of anti-war moderates)

[marmar]

The war without end
Slowly but surely, Republican conservatives are purging their party of the moderate members of Congress who voted against the Iraq war
James Antle
February 21, 2008 9:00 PM | Printable version


Since 1990, Wayne Gilchrest has faced 25 primary challengers. To the left of his party - and arguably his Eastern shore congressional district - on taxes, abortion, gun control, and environmental regulations, the nine-term Maryland Republican has been a perennial target of conservatives. On February 12, a conservative challenger in the Republican primary finally sent Congressman Gilchrest packing.

That challenger, state senator Andy Harris, enjoyed high-profile support from the economically conservative Club for Growth. Harris is also a strong abortion opponent, in contrast with Gilchrest's pro-choice position. But the issue that made the difference this time was the Iraq war: the GOP is slowly pruning its last antiwar congressmen.

Like all but six of his House Republican colleagues, Gilchrest voted for the war in 2002. But in May 2007 he told Reason magazine, "After a couple of years, when all that began to unravel, that's when I knew if I had a chance to vote on authorization again I wouldn't vote for it."

By that time Gilchrest was one of the most reliably antiwar Republicans in Congress. After a trip to Iraq, he repudiated his vote to authorize the use of force. He opposed the surge. He repeatedly voted for Democratic legislation imposing a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq. And he stood by those views in a contentious primary.

Gilchrest ended up losing by a little more than ten points, further shrinking the tiny band of antiwar GOP congressmen. Their ranks may get even smaller. In the North Carolina district that houses U.S. Marine Corps Camp Lejeune, Onslow County Commissioner Joseph McLaughlin is taking on Congressman Walter Jones, one of the GOP's most visible converts against the war. .....(more)

The complete piece is at: http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/james_antle/2008/02/the_war_without_end.html

[knight_of_the_star]

1. Good, they make themselves targets

Let them dilute their talent pool, makes our job easier in November.