Comparative Party Platforms

Christ First Conservatives
Apr 30, 2022
2 min read

You may be wondering why, on a site devoted to conservatism, we would take the time to share the platforms of other political groups. The reason will become clear as you review the material below.

You may be aware that the Republican Party in Idaho is comprised of a significant number of individuals who policy positions align more with the Libertarian Party than the Republican Party, but who are running for office as Republicans. Why? Because the Libertarian Party is not big enough to compete on its own. This is true not just on the state level, but on the national level as well.

One thing you may not be aware of is exactly what Libertarians stand for. Though they most often run as Republicans, they have as much in common with Democrats as they do with Republicans. The Libertarian holds personal autonomy and self-determination as the highest value and therefore regards any effort on the part of society or government to establish generally accepted standards of moral behavior as an infringement on liberty. Accordingly, while Christian Conservatives find common cause with Libertarians in the areas of limited government and free markets, our views on social issues are dramatically different. In fact, on social issues, Libertarians are far more likely to side with Democrats.

If you are to be an informed voter, you cannot just see the “R” next to a candidate’s name and assume they will vote the Republican platform. We encourage you to do your research; with incumbents, how have they voted on your non-negotiable political policies in past terms? If they are challengers, it is much harder to get underneath the Republican veneer to see how a person will vote on controversial social issues. Political affiliations, endorsements and contributions can give some insight; we also encourage you to ask candidates directly and check their political and private social media for clues. Professions of religious affiliation ought to help too, though in this day of compromise, it is difficult to ascertain the degree to which someone has driven their beliefs through their policy positions. Please refer to the diagram below which clearly sets out the party platforms of the Republican, Democrat and Libertarian parties. We’ve also included links to the platform statements themselves so you can read in greater detail what these three distinct groups stand for. We strongly encourage you to do so. You will quickly get a flavor for each group.