My general impressions of Silicon Valley and California, in general, is that Libertarian-style Republicans would do better out here, and that Bush Republicans havent been doing well out here in a long time, the Senates uber-Libertarian, Rand Paul tells me, during his check-cashing good-will tour to Silicon Valley. <\/p>\n
Republicans desperately want better relations with Silicon Valleys big-pocketed donors and top-tier programmers; the Senators solution is to show them that they can, in fact, love the small-government strain of conservatism. <\/p>\n
Its no shocker that Republicans have an uphill climb in the Bay Area, so I put some tough questions to Paul to see if he could dispel the stereotypes. <\/p>\n
Literally, A Modern Party <\/p>\n
Most Republicans live in this century, not two or three centuries ago, Paul said, in a diplomatic response to my question about his partysnotoriously anti-science perception in the Valleynotably the head of a congressional science committee calling evolution and the big bang lies straight from the pit of Hell. <\/p>\n
In fairness to Paul, Ive been outspoken about dispelling the myth of the luddite Republican: in the House of Representatives, conservatives are more savvy on social media, trailblazers in open government, and designed the most innovative tools in online direct participation. <\/p>\n
Moreover, I think we can be sympathetic to Pauls position of having to both appeal to the liberal bastion of San Francisco without alienating his base. As far as small-goverment conservatives eyeing the presidency go, Paul is as geninually libertarian as one can be and still be a viable candidate. <\/p>\n
Winning Back Support <\/p>\n
Though President Obama won a staggering 84% of the vote in San Francisco, Pauls argues its because were not reaching our potential in appealing to the Valleys libertarian strain. I think, particularly in the tech world people are conscious of privacy concerns and I think theyre conscious of their civil liberties. I think many would like to see a Republican candidate or party that is less aggressive on foreign policy. <\/p>\n
For good measure, he struck a chord with Californias love of the wacky-tobaccy, adding that California citizensmore apt to support politicians who dont want to lock people up and throw away the key for non-violent drug use. <\/p>\n
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Libertarian Senator Rand Paul Hopes Silicon Valley Can Love Some Republicans<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" My general impressions of Silicon Valley and California, in general, is that Libertarian-style Republicans would do better out here, and that Bush Republicans havent been doing well out here in a long time, the Senates uber-Libertarian, Rand Paul tells me, during his check-cashing good-will tour to Silicon Valley. Continue reading