I'm a Democrat who believes in a strong two party system. I feel that way because I know that nothing ever gets accomplished by talking to only those who think the way you do. It's because of that point of view that I suggest that the Republican Party begin to get about the job of replacing its base.

In the recent past the working Republican Party was an amalgam of conservative evangelicals and fiscal conservatives. That coalition was destroyed by the Bush administration. Promises to the religious right were hardly ever kept and conservative fiscal policy went out the door with the unjustified spending tax cuts and unjustified spending spree that the Republicans, with some unthinking Democratic support, went on. The evangelicals, particularly the younger ones, are peeling away from the politics of division. They are rightly looking forward to what can be accomplished rather than what can be destroyed. If the fiscal conservatives have any good ideas they seem afraid to espouse them for fear that would not be nominated to run. And once in office they feel obliged to "protect" the crazies in the base in order to protect themselves. What's left of the Republican Party is an unruly, spiteful, overly angry, and destructive base. They have no real leader, save for the likes of Limbaugh and Gingrich, because no one wants to lead or be associated to these nuts. So let me suggest to the reasonable Republicans that they bite the bullet and work at the tedious task of creating a new base that, without abandoning its conservative principles, is more mainstream and reasonable to deal with. They changed their base 40 years ago and they can do it again. Our democracy will be better off for it.