The Republican war againstwomen

the long version

For over a quarter century Republican insider Tanya Melich had been a loyal player in her party's politics. But as a delegate to the 1992 presidential convention, Melich found herself growing increasingly disillusioned by the direction her party had taken. Suddenly it seemed the Republican credo was no longer "with malice toward none, with charity for all." Instead, the Grand Old Party, pressed by the religious right, had adopted a divisive strategy that deliberately intensified hostility between the sexes - and that was only the beginning. In her acclaimed book, Melich cites chapter, verse, and the actions of participants to document the GOP's twenty-year history of hypocrisy toward women. From its ongoing efforts to curtail programs that could empower women to its deliberate exploitation of antifeminist fears to garner votes, she shows how the Republican Party has been consistently undermining American women. Powerful and persuasive, this updated edition of The Republican War Against Women not only illustrates how these actions cost the party the 1992 and 1996 presidential electionsit shows why the only hope for its future is to adopt a vigorous new vision. Melich calls for all those for whom party affiliation has become an obsolete concept - moderate Republicans, centrist Democrats, and the 39 percent of voters who identify themselves as independents - to join in a New Center Republican Party whose agenda is responsible, equitable, and attuned to the needs of all American citizens.