LETTERS: JEFFORDS SENDS SHOT ACROSS BOW REGARDING UNITY

To the editor:

In his announcement to leave the Republican Party, U.S. Sen. James Jeffords stated his reason succinctly. He declared the Republican Party had lost its moderate thrust.

The struggle to merchandise the words "conservatism" as good and "liberalism" as bad started after our singular unity during World War II began to dissipate and reached its highest point during the Reagan administration. The continued worship at the shrine of this accomplishment by perhaps half of the electorate contributes to the virtually equal division of votes for the two major parties. Conservatism and liberalism have been so bandied about that they have lost any significant meaning. For self-proclaimed conservatives, any less than adherence to laissez-faire ideology is liberalism or something nearly as bad.

The quest for bipartisanship and surely moderation elude us. We are still standing on both sides of the street calling each other names. This is what Jeffords is talking about. George W. Bush, the desperate hope of the Republican Party to bring bipartisanship to Washington, may be master of his agenda, but he is awash in the tide of unforeseen circumstances.

Jeffords' move has made a dramatic change in the Senate, but we are still the same divided, floundering nation. Could it be that Jeffords' action is a shot across the bow of our national consciousness to address the pressing issues and needs of our society?

GILBERT DEGENHARDT

Cape Girardeau