One of the traditional beliefs espoused by Republican politicians is that of limited government--the idea of limiting the federal government's intervention in not only the market but also in the daily lives of individuals; however, do Republican politicians actually practice what they preach? Are they truly champions of the limited government, the free market, and individual liberty? The answer is a resounding "NO!"

Are Republicans champions of the free market? A free market is one in which individuals freely engage in the exchange of goods and services absent of coercion and interference by the state. To be pro-free markets is to support the aforementioned situation. Many Republican politicians, however, are not pro-free markets but rather pro-business. What is actually practiced through policy is a quasi-corporatist/fascist economic model where big business and the state collude with one another for their mutual benefit. This often takes the form of corporate welfare, special preferential treatment, and regulation designed to lock out smaller competitors. One need only think of the pharmaceutical industry or defense contractors.

Are Republicans champions of limited government? One need only to examine the Bush presidency to answer this question. Under Republican leadership, the welfare-warfare-surveillance state has ballooned to previously unimaginable proportions. Habeus corpus has all but been erased; the state has engaged in domestic wiretapping without warrants; discretionary domestic spending has skyrocketed; and billions of dollars everyday are spent in an attempt to sustain empire.

In my eyes, the Republican party has lost all credibility. When in power, they generally engage in the same actions they criticized when Democrats were in power. Abuses of executive power are criticized only later to be heralded as necessary. Wasteful spending is criticized only later to be used to buy off votes from farmers. Foreign interventionism is criticized only later to be adopted.

I am calling the GOP on their hypocrisy, and whether you are libertarian, liberal, or conservative, I hope you do the same.