Conversations with Republican friends have brought me to the generalization that Republicans are more likely to be fundamentalists in their religious beliefs than Democrats. These were conversations on politics, not religion.

A recent conversation began with agreement that we would like to see both parties work together. Why couldn’t they approach the idea or proposal of the other with a positive attitude? Then I mentioned the vote on the stimulus package put forward by President Obama and how I admired the three Republican senators who voted for it.

“Oh, we’re on opposite sides of that!” my Republican friend exclaimed.

“But isn’t that an example of cooperation?”

“Obama was the one who wasn’t cooperating. He rammed that through too fast without giving Republicans a chance to have their input.”

“Hey, wait a minute. Wasn’t there an urgency to get something done? All the experts on both sides said this was ‘uncharted waters’. Nobody came forward to say ‘this is the way out of this. This is what we must do to revive the economy.’ Nobody! No one claimed to have the answer. Wouldn’t it be better to say, ‘OK Mr. President, we’ll go with your plan’ especially since the President had listened to Republicans and had put a significant tax relief in it.”

“No. He just pushed it through so quickly no one had time to look at it critically.”

“What about the financial bailout pushed through a couple of months before Obama took office?”

“What bailout?”

“Remember the three page legislation that put $700 billion it Paulson’s hands to pretty much do with as he pleased? Remember how urgent it was to push that one through? Paulson got down on his knees to Congress and Bush signed it a week later. One week! Wasn’t that pushy?”

Republican amnesia on that one.

Fundamentalists take their dogma without question. Republican presidents and legislators are always right even if what they say today is a direct contradiction of what they said a month ago. Similarly The Bible is God’s word no matter that it is filled with contradictions. Could it be that being brought up to believe the Bible without question prepares them to accept whatever Republican leaders say no matter how nonsensical?

One more dialogue:

“I can’t stand Slick Willy.”

“What do you mean?”

“All his slick real estate dealings. He’s a crook.”

“Ken Star spent nearly $40 million investigating his ‘slick’ deals and found nothing.”

“He was impeached.”

“Yeah, for lying about getting a blow job, not for any slick dealings unless you call ejaculating on a red dress slick.”