Scott, Observing the Republican "big tent" over the years, I long ago concluded that it did not mean the party welcomes different viewpoints. Regardless of one's political philosophy, Republicans have long been expected to vote the party line on every issue. Yes, the Republican party welcomes your vote, but "big tent" never meant the party welcomes your point of view.

As far as I can see, the GOP has moved on, back to the economy. And since Scott is joining the Obama campaign's "War on Women" theme, we should be talking about the Obama administration's own "War on Women". The Obama administation has caused millions of women to LOSE THEIR JOBS. Or never get a job in the first place. --Democratic party plank is: NO JOBS for women, just collect welfare checks and food stamps.

The GOP is reaping the results of two decades of intolerance. Show them their attitude is reprehensible. Reject Romney, Ryan and Brown before they reject you again.

Miker6, please tell us how the Obama administration "caused" job losses. The economy collapsed under Bush, who also doubled the national debt from $5 trillion to over $10 trillion. But here's one thing that Obama did: "CBO: Stimulus added up to 3.3M jobs" [ http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1111/68965.html ]. Oh by the way, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 7949.09 when Bush left office. It closed yesterday at 13057.46.

Miker6-What in the world are you talking a about? It's Republicans who destroy jobs for women. Look what has happened at the state level to public service sector employment. When public unions are attacked, who gets cut? Women. Clerks, teachers, school psychologists, social service workers of all kinds, hospital workers, day-care workers etc., etc. All at the insistence of the multinationals and their bought GOP stooges like Scott Walker. Vote for Romney and he'll complete the job by closing entire branches of the federal government dedicated to helping the poor and undeserved; all staffed heavily with women.

Abortion should be avoided. It's a nasty business and more public money should be made available to promote the adoption route. Safe, legal and rare is the responsible mantra on this topic. Stop your nonsense.

When the issue of abortion comes up, Democrats love to dig in their heels and create issues like the "big tent" one that Scot is trying to play. It is meaningless, though. The Supreme Court has spoken on the issue, and only a subsequent ruling by the court overturning Roe, or a constitutional amendment could reverse the original ruling. So really, who cares? NEW PARAGRAPH: Now, I understand Scot's dilemma. Poor Barack Obama has only one chance of winning a second term, and that is that he demonize the GOP so badly that they seem worse than a second Obama term. Scot must comply, and work to make the GOP seem bad. But the hype over Akin and abortion is truly meaningless. He said a really dumb thing, and he apologized. That should be the end of it. NEW PARAGRAPH: Of course, the "big tent" issue is only one for GOP critics like Scot. After all, how many pro life Democrats are allowed to speak at thei convention? How many former pro life Democrats are criticized for flip flopping on the issue when they seek national office? Bill Clinton and Al Gore fit that description. Most Democrats who dare stray from the party line are treated like Joe Lieberman, who was excommunicated for supporting President Bush in certain war on terror policies. The party line was to root for American defeat. But "big tent" is only a GOP bashing metaphor, because you will never see Scot use it to describe his own party.

The old cliche holds true; "If you're under 25 and vote rupublican you have no heart and if you're over 25 and vote democrat you have no brain". BTW, Tom, how old are you??

Richmond, The abortion debate is pretty meaningful if you are female. My thanks to Akin for bringing public attention to this far right plank of the Republican platform. Roe may be the law of the land, but the more the religious right picks away at it, mandating ultrasounds and waiting periods, and parsing circumstances and types of rape, the more barriers stand in the way of access. With a platform that fails to make allowance for the health of the mother, any living, breathing mother of a family could be sacrificed to a protected cluster of cells inside her. Where is her right to life? And don't you think it's at least worth mentioning that the presidential candidate shows no desire to reconcile the platform's stance with his own, whatever that is?

America as we know it could end if Obama is reelected. Joe the Plumber and I just want to know what happens what happens when Congress or the Supreme Court simply lose control over the executive branch. Abortions are a fact of life as is homosexual (Gay?) marriage. This senseless discussion is all smoke and mirrors. Only liberal journalists and the Alphabet media are interested. America's "Big Tent" is filled with Obama's circus. Internet talk is filled with Obama's executive order government. His Secretary of Homeland Security is being sued by ICE agents because she has warned them that enforcing immigration laws will get them fired. The just turned loose hundreds of thousands of illegals into the job market to compete with America's unemployed citizens. His latest Executive Order declares him in complete control of all natural resources if he deems the existence of any national emergency. Other than screaming that he will make the "rich" pay for more government investment he hasn't offered a single specific for a second term. If he is reelected watch him turn the EPA, the National Labor Relations Board and the small bank killing Dodd-Frank law into an executive order paradise. A second term of his "big tent" operation will get you a front row seat to watch his bureaucrats supercharge all those executive orders that make Congress and federal laws an artifact of history. His second term will fine tune the regulatory apparatus he has designed to go around Congress. That, "folks" is what we should be talking about in the Big Tent of this election year.

I'm nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too? Then there's a pair of us--don't tell! They'd banish us, you know. How dreary to be somebody! How public, like a frog To tell your name the livelong day To an admiring bog!

Great articl!!! .The big tent has been a way to garner more votes,not to welcome diversity. There is more at stake in the pro-choice vs pro-life issue.There is access to sex ed,contraception,reproductive health services etc.These have been under assault by Repubs for quite a while.The Repub convention platform does not bode well for these either. It seems that many not favored by Repub policies e,g, Blacks,Hispanics,women,seniors are seeing this and are considered likely Dems. However with voter disenfranchisement,deception and outright lies the outcome at the voting booth remains in question.

Cyst'em: I'm nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too? Then there's a pair of us--don't tell! They'd banish us, you know. How dreary to be somebody! How public, like a frog To tell your name the livelong day To an admiring bog!

I'm nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too? Then there's a pair of us--don't tell! They'd banish us, you know. How dreary to be somebody! How public, like a frog To tell your name the livelong day To an admiring bog!

Has your account been hacked, profox? While your posts have always been partisan Republican, they haven't been quite so full of horseshyte. No, America as we know it is not at risk if Obama is reelected. Nor will there be anti-women goon squads trying to force women to be barefoot and pregnant by their rapists if the GOP sweeps in 2012. Take a deep breath and calm down.

Lieberman still caucuses with the Democrats, and he was not stripped of any of his chairmanships. Your post is BS.

Holy How Many Far Right Cliches Can I Get Into A Single Paragraph Batman!!!! I tried to hang on past your first erroneous sentence, but when you revealed that you're unaware that Joe the Plumber was actually a relative of Charles Keating (of the Keating 5 scandal that McCain was a big part of), I was laughing too hard to read the rest of your post.