Flip-Flopping is a term I hate. Not the footwear, mind you, but the term used in a political arena. Thanks to George W Bush's 2004 election, flip-flopping has now become part of the political vocabulary. Bush's handlers introduced the term as a way to combat John Kerry's changes in political stances, and it worked. Three years later, Kerry is still known in some circles as the great flip-flopper.
For the Republican Party though, Bush's introduction of a "catchy" phrase is now coming back to haunt them. Here is the current crop of flip-floppers, as dubbed by the media and critics:
Rudy Giuliani - In his first losing campaign to become mayor of NY, Giuliani was a strong anti-abortion candidate. After his loss, he went away for 2 weeks and magically became a supporter of abortion rights. In the first Republican debate of 2007, Giuliani pulled a flip-flop in a single answer by laiming to be both pro and ant abortion at the same time. Giuliani claims to personally hate abortion, but has donated money from his own pocket to planned parenthood centers.
John McCain - McCain was once the champion of small government and was very strongly anti-tax cuts to the wealthy. In an effort to court the Republican base that had long avoided him though, McCain now has come out in favor of just these kind of specific tax cuts. In addition, McCain once referred to religious right leaders like Jerry Falwell as evil and corruptive but now sings their praises.
Mitt Romney - Romney (as Gov of Mass) claimed that he would be more pro-gay than Ted Kennedy, supported pro-abortion legislation, and appointed two very-liberal judges to the Mass Supreme Court. Now, he is an anti-gay rights/marriage, anti-abortion, anti politically-inclined judges "conservative" candidate. All this in the span of just a couple years. On a more humorous note, Romney also claims to be a lifelong hunter despite having never registered for a single hunting permit in any of the four states he has lived.
As much as I hate the term Flip-Flopping, I have a feeling that Republicans are going to hate it more by the end of this election season.
For the Republican Party though, Bush's introduction of a "catchy" phrase is now coming back to haunt them. Here is the current crop of flip-floppers, as dubbed by the media and critics:
Rudy Giuliani - In his first losing campaign to become mayor of NY, Giuliani was a strong anti-abortion candidate. After his loss, he went away for 2 weeks and magically became a supporter of abortion rights. In the first Republican debate of 2007, Giuliani pulled a flip-flop in a single answer by laiming to be both pro and ant abortion at the same time. Giuliani claims to personally hate abortion, but has donated money from his own pocket to planned parenthood centers.
John McCain - McCain was once the champion of small government and was very strongly anti-tax cuts to the wealthy. In an effort to court the Republican base that had long avoided him though, McCain now has come out in favor of just these kind of specific tax cuts. In addition, McCain once referred to religious right leaders like Jerry Falwell as evil and corruptive but now sings their praises.
Mitt Romney - Romney (as Gov of Mass) claimed that he would be more pro-gay than Ted Kennedy, supported pro-abortion legislation, and appointed two very-liberal judges to the Mass Supreme Court. Now, he is an anti-gay rights/marriage, anti-abortion, anti politically-inclined judges "conservative" candidate. All this in the span of just a couple years. On a more humorous note, Romney also claims to be a lifelong hunter despite having never registered for a single hunting permit in any of the four states he has lived.
As much as I hate the term Flip-Flopping, I have a feeling that Republicans are going to hate it more by the end of this election season.