Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party (also called the GOP, for "Grand Old Party") is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery activists in 1854, it dominated politics nationally for most of the period from 1860 to 1932. Eighteen presidents have been Republicans. The most recent Republican president was George W. Bush.
Currently the party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S. political spectrum. American conservatism of the Republican Party is not wholly based upon rejection of the political ideology of liberalism, as many principles of American conservatism are based upon classical liberalism. Rather, the Republican Party's conservatism is largely based upon its support of classical principles against the modern liberalism of the Democratic Party that is considered American liberalism in contemporary American political discourse.
In the 112th Congress, elected in 2010, the Republican Party holds a majority of seats in the House of Representatives and a minority of seats in the Senate. The party currently holds the majority of governorships as well as the majority of state legislatures.
Read more about Republican Party (United States): History, Name and Symbols, Structure and Composition, Ideology and Political Positions, National Defense and Military Spending, Voter Base, Trends, State and Territorial Parties
Famous quotes containing the words republican and/or party:
“The Republican form of government is the highest form of government; but because of this it requires the highest type of human nature—a type nowhere at present existing.”
—Herbert Spencer (1820–1903)
“He said, truly, that the reason why such greatly superior numbers quailed before him was, as one of his prisoners confessed, because they lacked a cause,—a kind of armor which he and his party never lacked. When the time came, few men were found willing to lay down their lives in defense of what they knew to be wrong; they did not like that this should be their last act in this world.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)