If you want to make a Conservative angry, tell him a lie. If you want to make a Liberal angry, tell him the truth.
I think the 24-hour news cycle has helped exaggerate the differences between the parties. You can always find someone on TV somewhere carping about something. That didn't happen 20 years ago.
The difference between American parties is actually simple. Democrats are in favor of higher taxes to pay for greater spending, while Republicans are in favor of greater spending, for which the taxpayers will pay.
Whereas all liberals are thought to erupt self-righteously whenever they feel like it, conservatives believe that they themselves are never permitted to say what they really think.
I have learned, by some experience, that virtue and patriotism, vice and selfishness, are found in all parties, and that they differ less in their motives than in the policies they pursue.
It's awfully hard to get into the head of a liberal. Instead of logic and reason, they are drawn to emotions and feelings.
So I'm a pretty conservative fellow, but not conservative enough for the Tea Party.
Even if corners were cut, (Iran-Contra) was a brilliant scheme. There is no possibility that anyone in any Democratic administration would have gone to such lengths to fund anti-Communist forces. When Democrats scheme from the White House, it's to cover up the President's affair with an intern. When Republicans scheme, it's to support embattled anti-Communist freedom fighters sold out by the Democrats.
I do still think there is a big disconnect between Republicans in Washington, D.C., and Republicans everywhere I go. When you start talking about, you know, foreign entanglements, they just don't want any part of it.
Thanks to former President George W. Bush - remember the compassionate conservative? - I have a good name for the fundamental principle that should guide the Democratic alternative: compassionate deficit reduction.
I'm not a conservative or a republican but I know that there's conservative republicans who I probably vigorously disagree with but I also am smart enough, or something enough, to understand that they really think that they're right, and they're looking at me like I'm crazy.
I will conduct a respectful debate. Now, it will be dispirited -- it will be spirited -- because there are stark differences. I am a proud conservative, liberal Republica-- conservative Republican...Hello? Easy there.
Democrats name their children after politicians, athletes, and entertainers. Republicans name their children after whichever grandparent has the most money.
I think our party and particularly our movement, the conservative movement, does have more of a problem with con men and charlatans than the Democratic Party. I mean, the incentives seem to be set up to allow people - as long as you have a band of a few million fanatical followers, you can make money. The Democrats have managed to figure out how not to do that.
I think we should not do what the Republicans did, which is to spend eight years saying they would do absolutely nothing because we do stand for the country.
As I've said repeatedly, Republicans are very good at describing things in black and white; Democrats are very good at describing the 11 shades of gray.
While I am grateful for the friendships and relationships that I have with my Republican colleagues, it would be naive to pretend that those friendships will change the way that major policies are enacted in Arizona.
As long as there are two nations, two parties, two sexes or even two people there are going to be divisions. And all the talk in the world isn't going to change that. Thank goodness!
Politics is always a difficult thing to talk about because, like football, the views are radical. You think this way; that guy thinks the opposite way. It is, like, nearly a fight, and feelings are very strong.
For decades now, Republicans and Democrats have shared the same mythology around the great American meritocracy. The only real difference was that republicans thought the American meritocracy was already perfect and Democrats believed it could be perfected if we just dealt with racism and sexism and other forms of bigotry.
Mr. President, in carrying out my conscientious views I greatly regret that it is sometimes necessary for me to vote on the same side with the Senator from Louisiana [Huey P. Long]; but when I do so, I wish to assure the Senator from Louisiana that it makes me feel doubtful of my own position... The Senator is so generally wrong that I can hardly believe that he is right any time.
Before this learning experience, I had assumed that with regard to programs that sought to help people out of poverty, the political world was essentially divided into two camps: conservatives who opposed these for a variety of reasons, and liberals who supported them.
It wouldn't be fair to say that conservatives cherish property the way liberals cherish equality. But it would be fair to say that the takings clause is the conservatives' recipe for judicial activism just as they say liberals have misused the equal protection clause.
Democrats never agree on anything, that's why they're Democrats. If they agreed with each other, they would be Republicans.
Democrats make up plans and then do something else. Republicans follow the plans their grandfathers made.... Republican boys date Democratic girls. They plan to marry Republican girls, but feel they're entitled to a little fun first.
