An old adage claimed “elect a Democrat you’ll have a war, elect a Republican you’ll have a depression.” Another maintained that “Democrats care about people while Republicans care about money.”

I suppose I could line up administrations to illustrate these truisms: Wilson, World War One, Coolidge/Hoover, the Great Depression, FDR, WWII, etcetera, but that isn’t where this piece is going. Let’s just say that the two parties had identifiers that each have lobbed at the other for more than a century.

The traditional GOP insisted they stood for small government, morality, the rule of law, a balanced budget, strong security, and principled leadership. However that branding from the early 20th Century has all but faded, the veneer stripped away with the presidential elections of 2016, and 2024.

Criticize what you like about the supply-side economic policies of Ronald Reagan and George W Bush’s foray into Iraq, but there was never any doubt of their fidelity to country. Yeah, the Stock Market collapsed in 1987 and nearly went over a cliff again in 2008, yet Republican patriotism was never in question. President Reagan, in particular stood tall as an anti-Communist crusader, ushering in the collapse of Russian hegemony. Later President George W Bush stood at Ground Zero and vowed to punish the Jihadist attackers following September 11th.

The guiding principle of the Grand Old Party was that through merit, hard work, and talent, every American could participate in a free market without artificial impediments. Still strong among rank and file Republicans was the old notion that one could pick oneself up by the bootstraps and succeed in the game of life. That ethos of individualism had shaped the party since the election of Lincoln, (the epitome of a self-made man). And yeah the wealthy have never liked taxes, but overall as good Americans they generally paid along with the rest of us.

As mentioned above the bedrock of the party stressed government must operate on a balanced budget. As the sun rises and sets campaigning Republicans have forever insisted they are fiscally responsible and have promised to cut pork-barrel spending, lower taxes, and balance the budget from the statehouse to the halls of Congress.

All in all the garden variety Republican has been defined as a patriotic, conservative, morally upright, pro business, pro small government, pro national security, and a person who supports lower taxes.

As I write the national debt has bloomed to over $38 trillion dollars, which broken down to each American comes to around $114,000 per person. Most current federal spending is merely managing mega-accruing interest. In the double-dealing hands of this new Republican Caucus the US Government has teetered on default more than once, with the current President cynically commenting that “debt doesn’t bother me.” And why would he? The man has made around $4 billion since returning to office, despite clear violations of the emoluments clause.

The January 6, 2021 premeditated insurrection by para-military groups who were filmed ripping down US flags and wielding the poles for weapons, vandalized the Capitol, assaulting, and even murdering police officers explains all we need to know about the GOP and their rule of law.

Not one of your party has stepped up to restrain the White House from deploying many of those same rioters, now heavily armed and masked as ICE agents. These men are threatening citizens in their malicious immunity, and yes again killing Americans. This mockery of law and order isn’t limited to offenses across the country. He returned to office a convicted rapist, and guilty of business fraud. By willful indifference he is stalling out the release the Epstein files in violation of your majority passed law, and pardoning countless criminals.

Law and Order Party?

In 2022 over 300 classified documents were discovered crammed into nooks and crannies around Trump’s Mar A Lago golf club, some in his gold-gilt bathroom around the toilet. Sensitive intelligence. He just took them because he thinks he’s entitled. Jim Risch as chair of the foreign relations committee you have done squat. Shame on you. And it appears that Russian strongman, Vladimir Putin already knows what it in those files anyway. Treason in real time.

Attacking Venezuela? Threatening Greenland? These actions are the craziest efforts since Caligula made his horse Proconsul in Rome.

Where is the party of national security?

Clearly the GOP never meant what they stood for, and have lied for decades when professing before God loyalty to the Constitution. America no longer recognizes you as a patriotic, conservative, law abiding, principled party.

Lust for power and greed, (looking at you Mitch McConnell, you could have stopped this in his first term but the payoff was irresistible). Today’s Grand Old Party is no longer that familiar, reliable organization of Buick owners our fathers knew. Today’s elected officials have become nothing more than hand maidens to an unbalanced, corrupt man.

Maybe it is true. Republicans only care about money, but with DJT we get the war and depression to boot.

Gail Chumbley is the author of the two-part memoir “River of January,” and “River of January: Figure Eight,” co-writer of the screenplay, “Dancing On Air” based on those books. She has penned three stage plays on history topics, “Clay” on the life of Senator Henry Clay, “Wolf By The Ears” examining the beginnings of American slavery, and “Peer Review” where 47 is confronted by specters of four past presidents.