Trust him! He’s wearing a flag lapel pin — and pointing heavenwards!

Matthew Jacobson

Today’s Democrats do not realize the extent to which the Republican Party, and the media machine that it so expertly operates, have transformed politically emotional energy into pure, purposeful political power. They do not realize that issues no longer count for much in the new reality of American politics. Emotions, and the identification and manipulation of specific political emotions, count for a lot.

The Modern Republican Party does realize all this.  Indeed, modern Republican leaders have created a new reality.  Specific issues, and specific words, are to a great extent only vehicles consciously chosen by Republican leaders to drive the political emotions of American voters. In many cases, political emotions do much of the “thinking” for voters in what’s left of the American democracy.

How did the founders and leaders of the Modern Republican Party (MRP)…