Recently at Reason.tv: Rep. Jeff Flake on How the GOP Can Get Its Groove Back

At last November's Reason Goes Hollywood conference celebrating 40 years of Reason, Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) spoke about why the Republican party was in a shambles-and what it needs to do to stage a comeback. A principled libertarian who actually votes his conscience, Flake is one of his own party's toughest critics.

In these days of runaway spending, historic deficits, and nationalization of industries, Flake's message of a return to free minds, free markets, and limited government has never been more relevant.

Comments

[Rosa Luxemborg]

It is the wingnut laissez faire policies of fascists like Flake that got us into this mess.
Now it is time for the grownups to put government to work getting us out.Your so-called "free market" was free for the rich at the expense of working families.Now it is claw-back time.Life's lottery doesn't entitle you to all of the pie.

[jtuf]

Rosa, do you even know what "fascist" means? It was charicterised by "private ownership of the means of production under centralized governmental control" (1958 edition of Webster's Dictionary). Flake opposes centralized government control over the economy. He also said in the video that Republicans should stop fighting immigration. That is as far as you can get from fascism's nationalism. Rosa, not everyone who disagrees with you is a facist.

[jtuf]

I think flake put it well when he called Libertarians the lode star for Republicans. The CPUSA serves the same function for the Democrates.

[Rosa Luxemborg]

The GOP was all for socialism for the rich when they were in charge.Now they hypocritically flip-flop and want President Barack Obama, America's working families and our banking system to fail.Stop taking your orders from Rush Limbaugh.

[BakedPenguin]

Rosa ought to know a thing or two about fascism. After all, one of her colleagues was Benito Mussolini...

[P Brooks]

We're all fascists, now.

[jtuf]

Rosa, I agree that the GOP's spending habbits in the past decade were disgraceful. However, the post was about Flake and his efforts to reform the GOP. Did you bother to check his record before accusing him of hypocrisy?

Flake sponsored HR727, HR2788, HR4181, HR5567,HR5911, HR6472, HR6534, HR7184, HR1867, HR2764, and HR2771, along with ammendments for HR2643, HR2829, HR2641, HR3043, HR3074, HR3093, HR3161, HR3222, HR2857, HR2537, HR5658, HR 1338, HR6599 in 2007. One of these bills would make it easier for immigrants to become perminant residents in the US. The rest would reduce wasteful spending. Flake sponsored this legislation over a year before the elections, so you can see he has been consistent with his small government principles for a while.

[Hazel Meade]

The GOP was all for socialism for the rich when they were in charge.

Um yeah. We're against that. Find another windmill.