William F. Buckley Jr. and President Ronald Reagan in the White House living quarters during a private 75th birthday party for the President, in 1986. That was thirty years ago, and, today, I\u2019m painfully aware that things have dramatically changed. \u00a0(Wikimedia Commons public domain)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve been a faithful Republican since I was old enough to vote. \u00a0In fact, as some may know, my brother permitted me to pull the lever for Senator Barry Goldwater in 1964, so I\u2019ve been a conservative Republican for a very long time.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
But no longer.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
My lifelong political party has been seeking to\u00a0divorce me for many months now, and, tonight, I\u2019ve granted the party\u2019s request. \u00a0I\u2019m now unaffiliated.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
This saddens me. \u00a0I never thought it would happen. \u00a0I didn\u2019t see it coming last year. \u00a0And I hope that, perhaps someday, the Republican Party will return to its senses.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
In the meantime, though, I see no real choice. \u00a0Moreover, it\u2019s one way that I know to make a statement.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
A nice illustration from\u00a0Matthew Continetti that encapsulates some of the problem: \u00a0Mr. Donald J. Trump can allege, over and over and over again,\u00a0that Senator Ted Cruz isn\u2019t really an American. \u00a0Mr. Trump can repeatedly call Senator Cruz\u00a0a liar. \u00a0Mr. Trump can mock Senator Cruz\u2019s wife, Heidi, as ugly, and repeatedly suggest that Senator Cruz\u2019s father, Rafael, was a conspirator in the Kennedy assassination. \u00a0But, by dang, if Senator Cruz fails to bow the knee to Our Leader,\u00a0and\u00a0\u2014 instead \u2014 even\u00a0goes so far as to suggest that Republicans should vote according to their consciences, that\u2019s simply unacceptable<\/em>.<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Incidentally \u2014 in Utah, at least \u2014 changing one\u2019s voter registration seems to be quite easy. \u00a0You just\u00a0go to this site and follow the instructions there:<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
https:\/\/secure.utah.gov\/voterreg\/index.html<\/a><\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
There is, fortunately, some comfort in the fact\u00a0that my wife has joined me in accepting the Republican Party\u2019s request for a divorce.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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<\/a>