wombat_socho

W was running as a moderate in 2000, too; it just isn't as obvious, because he was more willing to moderate his fiscal conservatism than his social conservatism. And you can just look at the national debt figures to see where that got us. Actually, you could say the same for just about anyone described as a neoconservative, at least post-Reagan.

Anyway, you'll note that I never said the alliance between fiscal conservatives and social conservatives is weakening, because I don't think it is. I do think the social-conservative wing of the Republican party is getting smaller, though, mostly because it's based on a set of demographics that tends to skew elderly and (a few religious sub-demographics aside) reproduces at below replacement rates.