The Increasing Extremism of the GOP

There are some who claim I overstate the situation of the Christianist take over of the Republican Party. At times, if anything, I think I understate the problem. As the Texas Tribune is reporting, polls in Texas show Rick Santorum - the true Christofascist of the GOP nominee field - holding a huge lead over all other contenders. And frighteningly, a similar phenomenon probably holds true across the evangelical South where far right religious dogma trumps science, knowledge and any respect for the constitutional rights of other citizens. I continue to believe that far right Christians pose a clear and present danger to constitutional government in this nation and a clear threat to minority rights. One need only look at what's happening to Virginia for a first hand example. Here are some article highlights:

Former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania has a commanding lead among Republican presidential candidates in Texas, according to a new University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll.

Santorum would get the votes of 45 percent of the respondents if the election were held today, according to the survey. The other three candidates in the GOP race — former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas — are clustered well behind. Gingrich got 18 percent, Romney received 16 percent and Paul garnered 14 percent.

"The GOP primary electorate has been and remains very conservative," Henson said. "The second thing is that Republican Party identification is still the name of the game in Texas. If you're the guy with 'R' next to your name and you're running against Barack Obama in a general election, you have a pretty significant advantage."

Santorum is the only Republican in the race who received more favorable grades than unfavorable grades from voters.

"Three or four months ago, I thought Republican voters were just looking around, that they didn't just dislike Romney, but that they thought there might be a better option. I don't know that you can think that anymore," Shaw said. "I think it's pretty clear that they're not just looking around in a way that would allow them to ultimately come back and settle with Romney. They seem to have looked at him and rejected him. They will not settle for the guy."

The GOP establishment created a Frankenstein monster that is now on the loose and there may be no way to kill it other than crushing electoral defeats. And if that doesn't happen, this country is headed down the toilet.