Republicans

==Platform==
===2008===
* The GOP Platform from 2008 in PDF. 
* GOP Chairman Platform-preamble
* National Security-planks-GOP2008
* Reform-planks-GOP2008
* Economy-planks-GOP2008
* Energy-planks-GOP2008
* Environment-planks-GOP2008
* Health Care-planks-GOP2008
* Education-planks-GOP2008
* Crime-planks-GOP2008
* Values-planks-GOP2008
==Links==
===Media===
* Stop Supporting Fake Republicans by Colin McNickle of the Trib in April 2006.
* Fresh activists can revive GOP, local leaders say - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review - By David Brown - June 15, 2008 - Local Republicans are hoping an effort to recruit more young people will reinvigorate the party's base in Allegheny County. A similar effort in Westmoreland County is credited with boosting GOP numbers by nearly 30,000 voters over the past decade."
===Blogs===
* The Conversation: You heard the man about Colin McNickle, the arch-conservative editor of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review editorial page, who tells conservatives to take the GOP behind the woodshed on Election Day. October, 2006.
==Insights==
:Internet posting from November, 2006. 
===What Republicans Shoud Believe===
This is a good, if idealistic, statement of what the Republican Party SHOULD stand for (even if it hasn’t been lately). Democrats and others might want to look at it because it will at least tell you what values motivate your counterparts. That is usually a good start toward mutual understanding. Republicans can use this as an apologetic for their party. If any Democrats out there have a similar catechism, I would be interested in seeing it.
The basic principles that most Republicans can agree and rally around are:
* Freedom is the best solution to the human condition because freedom makes people responsible and accountable for their own lives. Freedom produces the responsibility to accept the consequences of our own decisions and actions. With freedom also comes the belief that each individual human being is important and worthy of respect.
* Less government and regulations are better than big government and more laws. Big government destroys freedom and enterprise. It is the government's duty to arbitrate disputes, enforce laws, provide a criminal justice system, defend against foreign invasion, and support common infrastructure. Government should not intrude into the personal lives of the citizens.
* Free markets (Capitalism) is the best economic system because it produces the most creativity, opportunity, and prosperity for the most people.
* Lower taxes are better than high taxes because people know better what to do with their money than the government elites.
* Private property rights are sacred. "The moment the idea is admitted into society that property is not as sacred as the laws of God, and there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it, anarchy and tyranny will commence." -John Adams, 2nd President of the U.S.
* A strong national defense is important because the military protects our people and our interests in the world. Without the military, we could not preserve the freedom that we hold dear.
* Rule of law is important for a stable society. Therefore, judges should make decisions based upon the current laws in effect and not make up their own rules. Trust and predictability are the cement that holds society together. To arbitrarily and capriciously change the laws without consensus destroys trust and stability.
* An even-handed criminal justice system that treats everyone equally and that is tough but fair on criminals is a requirement for a smoothly working society.
* Traditional values are important with the family as the central building block of society. We respect the collective wisdom of those who came before us and build upon it because our inherited values are what have made our country the greatest on earth. To throw away our heritage for unproven social theories and fads is pure folly.
* The U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights are the founding documents of our nation. All our legislation and judicial decisions should not violate the principles or the spirit of these documents.
* Patriotism is good and our nation is very special because it is the example of freedom and hope in the world. That is why so many people want to immigrate to this country rather than to any other nation on earth. 
category:Planks_from_elsewhere