I have been a Republican all my life, and even held minor party office in some of the places I've lived.
On the other hand, I've had my issues with the current Administration, and with the national Republicans generally. (In fact, I have occasionally been known to refer to myself as a "swing voter.")
So when I was asked to run for precinct committee, I was kind of conflicted. But I said yes anyhow.
So why would I publicly identify myself with the Republican Party, in the hour of its greatest disgrace since 1974?
1. My economic views are pretty consistent with what Republicans used to believe: balance the budget, at least in good times. Be a little more skeptical of government programs than the Democrats, and a little less skeptical than the Libertarians.
2. The most successful municipal governance in my lifetime was that of a Republican, Rudy Giuliani in NYC. And I do think I'm a social conservative in the Rudy Giuliani sense, though not in the Karl Rove sense. That is to say: I prioritize social order over equality, and sometimes even more over liberty.
3. The last politician who inspired me was a Republican (Ron Paul). And I think my foreign policy views have moved in his direction, though I'm certainly not as radically noninterventionist as he.
4. Intellectually, the Republicans are where the action is in American politics; the Democrats seem to just react to Republican mistakes rather than setting the agenda themselves, even under President Clinton. Has any Democratic presidential nominee since 1984 stood for anything to speak of? Well, maybe something, but not very much. I don't think Obama is an exception.
5. And where I live (in one-party Jacksonville, in basically-Republican Florida) the Republicans are basically where the action is, period.
