I am a lifelong Republican, and I am fed up with the hijacking of the Republican Party over the past couple of decades.
The GOP has lost sight of the vales on which it has been founded.
Watch my video to see exactly what I am talking about.

I am a lifelong Republican.    I have donated money to most of the Republican candidates in my district.   When Republican Ben Cline was running for Congress, I donated to his campaign.  I canvassed neighborhoods.  I attended rallies.  I marched in multiple parades, even driving his own truck in one of them.

I even served as Vice Chair of the Republican party here in Augusta County in 2018 and 2019.

I believe in the values on which our party was founded and are outlined in the Virginia Republican Creed.   Our party has a long, rich history of serving our citizens while upholding our values.

But Trumpism and America First have taken over today’s Republican party, and the values which our party stood for have been lost.  Honor and integrity have given way to lies, hatred, and division. 

Over the past few years, I have traveled all over our great state of Virginia, and talked to many different people, and found many Republicans who feel the same way I do.

But I am not willing to sit around and watch our party fall completely apart.  I am speaking out to all current and former Republicans.  Let’s fix our party and return to our core values.

Let’s start by looking at all of the good our party has done over the years:

We freed the slaves!  We fought the Civil War and preserved the Union.   Remember, it was the Democrats who seceded from the Union and became the Confederacy!

Theodore Roosevelt

Teddy Roosevelt was a progressive.  He was a liberal.  He was one of our greatest presidents, and one of my personal heroes.

He protected the free market by breaking up the large business monopolies such as Standard Oil.  He broke up the “Beef Trust”, where the six largest beef producers had conspired to fix and raise prices on beef.  Today we have four large meat producers who have raised prices this year while reporting their largest profits ever!

He signed into law the Meat Inspection Act of 1906 and the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act, which regulated these industries, established standards, and provided for inspection of plants and factories.  These acts led to creation of the FDA. 

Roosevelt improved labor conditions by introducing the 8 hour work day for federal employees.  He protected the rights of union workers to strike for better working conditions.

Roosevelt pushed for laws against corporate contributions to political campaigns.  He would have been appalled at the Citizens United Decision.  Today’s RINO Republicans support that awful decision.

Roosevelt believed that anyone who wanted to come to America, learn to speak English, and BE a loyal American should be welcomed, and be treated on an exact equality with everyone else.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Dwight Eisenhower was another fantastic president, and was probably the most influential Republican President we have ever had.  

He signed into law the first Civil Rights bills; ten years before the landmark Civil Rights Acts of the 1960’s! 

He created the Interstate Highway System, one of the largest public works projects since the New Deal.  

He vastly expanded and strengthened our military.

And he did all that while balancing the budget with a maximum marginal tax rate of 91% on the wealthiest Americans.  Today it’s less than 40% and Republicans are wanting to gut it even more. We are supposed to be the party of fiscal responsibility, but we can’t do that if we run a budget deficit every year.  I am not saying we need the top tax rate back to 91%, but a small bump to 45% would solve many of the financial problems we face today, and it would still be less than half of what it was back then!
He increased the Minimum Wage to protect the lowest paid workers. 

Eisenhower racially integrated our military, and It was Eisenhower who sent the National Guard to Arkansas to force the integration of its schools.

Eisenhower appointed Earl Warren to the Supreme Court, leading to some of the most important decisions that court has ever handed down. 

• Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education (desegregation of schools)

• Gideon vs. Wainwright (All defendants are entitled to an attorney)

• Miranda vs. Arizona (Criminals must be read their rights)

• New York Times vs. Sullivan, which established the “actual malice” standard needed to prove libel against public figures. 

• Mapp vs. Ohio, which held that the 4th Amendments restrictions against unreasonable search and seizures also applied to state officials.

• Griswold vs. Connecticut, which legalized birth control and paved the way to Roe v. Wade.
  
  

Richard Nixon

hile Richard Nixon may have left office in disgrace, he also accomplished a lot of good during his terms.  

His foreign policy was brilliant. He opened up China to the rest of the world.  He got us out of Vietnam.  It was messy and people died, but by biting the bullet and getting us out, he ended a long war and prevented many more casualties.  Biden just did the same thing in Afghanistan, something presidents George W. Bush, Barrack Obama, and Donald Trump promised to do but failed.

The EPA was created under Nixon to protect our environment.  Before that, pollution was so bad one of our rivers actually caught on fire!

Nixon signed the Endangered Species Act into law.

Nixon provided the first funding to Planned Parenthood, not to pay for abortions, but to provide other services women so separately needed then and still do today.

And it was Nixon who appointed Warren Burger to the Supreme Court.   It was Burger’s court that handed down Roe vs. Wade, with a 7-2 decision.  Of the 7 justices who concurred, 4 were Republicans; 2 appointed by Eisenhower and 2 appointed by Nixon.  Only 1 Republican Dissented.  Roe v. Wade took a very difficult social issue and decided it in a way that balanced both the rights of the unborn and a woman’s right to choose.

Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan was the first Republican President I really remember, and the first president I ever voted for.  He was a great leader whose love for America was apparent for all to see. 

Reagan pushed immigration reform, granted amnesty to over 3 million illegal immigrants and gave them a path to citizenship.  When signing that bill, he said:

“The legalization provisions in this act will go far to improve the lives of a class of individuals who now must hide in the shadows, without access to many of the benefits of a free and open society. Very soon many of these men and women will be able to step into the sunlight and, ultimately, if they choose, they may become Americans.” 

In fact, he was the one ended the Cold War and famously said, “Mr. Gorbachev, TEAR DOWN THIS WALL!”  

George H.W. Bush

The NAFTA treaty was negotiated and signed by George H.W. Bush.  (Most people think it was Clinton, but that’s not true.  By the time Congress ratified the treaty and created a law implementing it, Bill Clinton was President, and signed that bill into law.  But it was Bush who negotiated the terms.  Donald Trump repeated attacked NAFTA and claims to have replaced it, but all he really did was fix a few issues that addressed changing social and technological issues that arose since NAFTA was signed.  Most of NAFTA is still in effect today, just under a different name!)

George H.W. Bush also signed the Americans with Disabilities Act into law.

This was the party I have known and loved!

THIS WAS THE PARTY THAT I HAVE KNOWN AND LOVED.  

It stood for equality.  

It protected those less fortunate. 

It stood for law and order.

In fact, our party platform in 1956 stated, “We believe that basic to governmental integrity are unimpeachable ethical standards and irreproachable personal conduct by all people in government. We shall continue our insistence on honesty as an indispensable requirement of public service. We shall continue to root out corruption whenever and wherever it appears.”

Hijacking of the Republican Party

Richard Nixon was re-elected in 1972 and won 49 out of 50 states!  A landslide! But, less than a year later, Republicans forced him to resign when it came out that he had broken the law and attempted to obstruct justice.  No one was above the law, not even the President.

What has happened to our party?   Donald Trump is a habitual liar, obstructed justice, and tried to overthrow the will of the people by making false allegations of voter fraud. Instead of trying to lead, he spent years spreading hate and division. He made promises and said he had solutions, but he did not.  He just told people what they wanted to hear. 

Donald Trump makes Richard Nixon look like a saint, but instead of condemning him, today’s leaders cowardly bow down to him. 

Good God!   Lincoln, Roosevelt, Eisenhower, and Reagan are turning over in their graves right now!

Today, Our Party is nothing like the party I have known and loved.   Today’s Democratic party is closer to the party of Lincoln than today’s Republican Party.

Our Party no longer tolerates anybody who doesn’t toe the party line on every point.  Compromise at any level is no longer allowed or even discussed.  

Elected officials and party leaders who do have differing opinions either keep their mouths shut, or are minimized, ridiculed, shunned or simply forced out of the party. 

Just look at Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger — two of the very few Republican leaders have the courage or integrity to stand up to these bullies.

Our party’s greatest leaders — Lincoln, Roosevelt, Eisenhower, and Reagan — would not recognize the party today.  If they were alive today, they would be labeled as RINO’s and forced out.

Just look at our most recent party leaders:   John McCain, Mitt Romney, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush. 

All four are true Republicans and have all come out against Trump and what the party has been saying and doing. 

And they are not alone.  Other prominent Republicans such as Jeff Flake, Colin Powell, Tom Ridge, John Danforth, John Warner, Denver Riggleman, Larry Hogan, Phil Scott, John Kasich, George Pataki, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bill Weld, Clint Eastwood, and George Conway, just to name a few, have also spoken out.

Today’s Republican Party has nothing to offer the American people. They have no solutions to our country’s problems. Instead of admitting that a lot of the Democrat’s policies are on the right track, they have focused their efforts on attacking the Democrats. They do this by spreading lies, hate, and division.

They use labels like “liberal”, “woke”, and “RINO” to divide our party and oust those who disagree.   Liberal has become a four letter word. 

But in 1956, our own Republican Party Platform stated, “Our great President Dwight D. Eisenhower has counseled us further: “In all those things which deal with people, be liberal, be human. In all those things which deal with people’s money, or their economy, or their form of government, be conservative.”

What’s really ironic is that these radicals who have hijacked our party have the gall to call true Republicans “RINOS”.  

That’s bullshit!   THEY are the Republicans in Name Only.  They are the ones that have completely lost sight of the values on which our party was founded.  

The real “RINO’s”

Donald Trump, Jim Jordan, Ron DeSantis, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, Sean Hannity, and Tucker Carlson, to name a few, don’t have a clue what it really means to be a Republican.   All they have to offer is hate and division.  

Today, all you hear from Republican leaders is that Democrats hate America, and we must fight them at every step.

The tell you that Democrats want to take away your guns.  THAT IS A LIE.   Most Democrats SUPPORT the Second Amendment.  Joe Biden does.  

Our right to bear arms, just like all of our other rights, comes with responsibilities.  Universal background checks, waiting periods before buying a gun, red-flag laws that allow law enforcement to intervene in emergency situations are just plain COMMON SENSE.   

In the 1990’s, most Republican leaders SUPPORTED these kinds of laws, and most Republican citizens still support them today.  Recent polls have shown that 90% of Republican Voters support universal background checks.

The tell you that Democrats want to kill babies.   We all agree abortion is a terrible thing, but it’s a problem without a simple solution.   But today’s leaders would have you think that Democrats want women to be able to get an abortion right up until the time of birth if they want.  THAT IS ANOTHER LIE.  

Over 90% of abortions are performed in the first trimester.  Only 1% were performed after 21 weeks.  Late-term abortions are not performed just because the mother wants one.  They are only done when the life of the mother or baby is at great risk.  

Remember, 4 out of the 7 justices who handed down Roe v. Wade as a sensible compromise 50 years ago were appointed by Republicans, and today’s leaders are doing nothing but attacking it!

They tell you that Democrats want to Open the Borders and let anyone in.   THIS IS ALSO A LIE. 

Democrats are generally more liberal when it comes to immigration reform, but NONE of them have EVER suggested that we have open borders. 

In fact, the ONLY President I have even seen that even mentioned wanting any type of “open border” was Ronald Reagan back in 1980! 

The tell you that Democrats want Socialism and then show you pictures of Venezuela.   

THEY ARE LYING TO YOU AGAIN.   

There is a difference between Socialism and Social Programs.  Socialism is when the government owns the means of production.  No stock markets.  No private businesses.  No small businesses. No Walmart.  No Amazon.  Everyone works for the government.  

NO ONE HAS EVER SUGGESTED THAT HERE IN THE U.S.    

On the other hand, Social Programs provide relief and assistance to people in need.  Social programs do not have anything to do who owns businesses.    Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Food Stamps, Public Schools, Fire Departments, Police Departments, Public Libraries, National Parks — all of these are Social Programs. 

The tell you that Democrats hate America!  

THAT IS ANOTHER LIE.  

The vast majority of ALL Americans, both Democrats and Republicans, LOVE America. 

They are patriotic, hard-working, honest, loyal people that I am proud to call my friends.   

This HATE and DIVISION of our country HAS GOT TO STOP!

The Democratic Party – Then & Now

Let’s look at the Democratic Party.

It used to be very different than it is today.  Remember, it was the Democrats who seceded from the Union and started the Civil War.   It was the Democrats who supported the KKK back in the 1920’s.  They were the racists.  They opposed Civil Rights.  They opposed racial integration.   They did not want whites and blacks even to be allowed to marry.  

But many Democrats saw the error of their ways, and they kicked out the racists and radicals, who left to form the short-lived Dixiecrat party.  

The remaining Democrats adopted many of the policies that we Republicans had been pushing ever since we were founded.   Today’s Democratic Party looks a lot like the Republican Party of the 1950’s.

Let’s fix our party!

We need to do the same with our party today. 

The Hijacking of the Republican Party has got to stop!

We need to VOTE OUT all of the leaders who spew hate and division bullshit.   We need leaders that will UNITE ALL the people.

THE TRUTH is most people are MODERATES and we all want basically the same thing:  

To be able to live the American Dream. 

To have access to a high-quality education. 

To have access to opportunities to succeed.  

To have access to adequate health care.

To leave the world a better place for our children. 

THAT is what we should be talking about.

We may disagree on how to reach those goals, and that’s fine. That’s what Democracy is supposed to be about.  We work together and compromise.

For more on what I believe, look at https://seriouslyscott.com/what-i-believe/