I find our politics very polarizing. My memory is that we could have a discussion between honorable folks with strong feelings and a resolution would be found or we would congenially agree to disagree. We have drifted to more extreme positions with less room to address differences and find common ground. Can you imagine an appellation such as RINO being acceptable with a party attempting to expand its tent. What does that mean? “Republican in Name Only” I understand. I guess it means if you do not toe someone’s party line, you are not the real deal.
Republican’s bemoan Democratic political correctness, but they too practice it. Maybe we can call it party or cultural correctness. It is a great distance from what I understand of Lincoln, T. Roosevelt, and Eisenhower. My point is that ideological purity has become so important that there is little room for experimentation and growth in either party which may partially explain the growth of independents.
I suggest an excellent article which addresses how American political alignments have changed since the 1990s and what the change means:
