What Makes a Republican a Republican?

By Dorothy Moon

In Idaho, becoming a Republican is as easy as checking a box on a form, and we welcome all who support time-tested Republican values. What are those values, really? What is it that makes a Republican a Republican?

Ask around and you’ll hear lots of opinions about what true Republicans believe. The left-wing media has all sorts of ideas, as do Democrats (and those that support Democrats, like Jim Jones). Why let them tell you what a Republican should be? Let’s go back to the beginning.

Our party formed from the ground up as men and women sought moral clarity in a divided nation. The principle that all are created equal was written into our founding documents, but slavery made a mockery of those words. The original Republican platform of 1856 reaffirmed the self-evident truth that all people are endowed with the inalienable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and that the purpose of government is to secure those rights.

• Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican president, said, “Our reliance is in the love of liberty which God has planted in our bosoms. Our defense is in the preservation of the spirit which prizes liberty as the heritage of all men, in all lands, everywhere.”

• Frederick Douglass, who escaped slavery to become one of the great American orators, said, “The Republican Party is the ship, all else is the sea.”

• When big corporations first began to threaten the freedom of individual men and women with monopoly power, it was Republican Teddy Roosevelt who fought to ensure fairness: “A man who is good enough to shed his blood for his country is good enough to be given a square deal afterwards.”

• Yet when government sought to control free enterprise in the name of central planning, it was Republican Calvin Coolidge who held the line against socialist ideas: “It will be the part of wisdom to give business a free hand to supply its own remedies.”

These timeless principles inspired Republicans in Idaho to pass laws to protect unborn children, who are the most vulnerable human beings in existence. Republicans ensured that parents have the ability to remove obscene materials from public schools and libraries, where our children learn and grow. Republicans have taken a firm stand against ranked choice voting, which is intended to confuse the electoral process.

For 170 years, the Republican Party has stood firm on the words of the Declaration of Independence, the foundation for the greatest and most free nation in history. Today, unchecked progressivism once again makes a mockery of those words. The Idaho Republican Party will never stop fighting for faith, family, and freedom. If you believe in those values, then we welcome you to the fight.

Dorothy Moon was elected to serve as the chairwoman of the Idaho Republican Party in July of 2022. Moon served three terms in the Idaho Legislature as State Representative for District 8. Moon’s career in public service has focused on the advancement of individual liberties and reducing the size and scope of government.