John Cross: "Moderate Republicans Should Take Back Control Of Their Party Through Pragmatism & Fiscal Conservatism"

Asserts the moderate resident of Maine: "How is it that the party of Dwight D. Eisenhower, George Herbert Walker Bush and Olympia Snowe has been hijacked by the likes of Sarah Palin, Donald Trump, Rick Santorum and Rush Limbaugh? Why is the Republican Party now perceived as anti-black, anti-Hispanic, anti-gay, anti-women and anti-middle-class? Too many Americans now believe that Republicans are the party of the rich, by the rich and for the rich, period. Moderate Republicans need to reassert themselves and bring some sanity to the current discussions about immigration reform, tax reform, gun control and the economy."

More: "The Republican Party can start 2013 by proposing legitimate spending cuts, including cutting the enormous amount of wasteful (and, yes, obscene) spending at all levels of government. Unfortunately, at the federal level, congressional Republicans, like Democrats, are just too prone to bringing home the bacon to their constituents and also providing major tax breaks for their friends, usually individuals or corporations that have lined their pockets. It's time to cut the fat and the hypocrisy, and Republicans should take the lead. And everything should be on the table, including entitlement programs and defense spending. We can cut spending without breaking the backs of the middle class."