As a Republican, reading op-ed pieces like this one gives me a queasy feeling in my stomach. Not because I think it's left-wing and against my party, but because it has real potential to be correct.

Over the past decade or so, the GOP has been sliding further and further away from the values of fiscal conservatism and limited federal influence that were, and still are, what I consider to be the most important issues for deciding who will be our next president.

Increasingly, the Republican Party has found itself reaching out to a base of social conservatives, who put issues like overturning Roe vs. Wade and blocking homosexual marriage above issues like a balanced budget and more state and local government responsibility.

This election has highlighted this slide clearly. Disgusting acts of racism like the hanging of the Barack Obama effigy on the University of Kentucky's campus and the shouting of "kill him" at rallies for Sarah Palin are deep cuts to the fabric of American society. I feel embarrassed and ashamed to be associated with a party that is capable of these acts.

I'm also embarrassed by the fiscal policies of Republican politicians over the last decade. The increases in government control and spending are disgusting and in direct contradiction with the ideals the party worked to build with Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

The GOP needs to redefine itself as a party primarily concerned with running an efficient government with a minimum of revenue from taxes. It should be a party that upholds the Fiscal Responsibility Act as well as the other 9 acts of the Contract with America that was passed by the 104th Congress.

Less important are social issues like the 2nd Amendment, which is a guaranteed constitutional right, are of little importance to national politics. Supreme Court judges should uphold the 2nd amendment any time it is challenged, and any bill that acts in disagreement would be obviously unconstitutional.

Pro-choice or pro-life is an issue of morality and personal belief. Roe vs. Wade is a landmark case and has served the country well for three decades. Ban late-term abortions, but allow doctors to offer an abortion if they so choose, and allow women and couples to make the decisions based on their personal morals and beliefs.

Government has no place in the personal decisions of its citizens, and homosexuals are not exempt from this thinking. Regardless of sexuality (and whether you believe its a choice or not) all people and all couples should have the same rights. Homosexual couples that adopt a child should qualify for tax breaks that traditional couples are given.

The Republican Party needs new leaders that reject backward-thinking social conservatives and embrace policies that focus on balancing the national budget, keeping spending less than collected revenue, paying off public debt, and increasing American exports through free trade to allow surpluses on the capital and current accounts. Surpluses will allow investment in reduced taxes and increased incentives for investment that will allow the balancing of the 10 trillion dollar public debt that we as a nation owe to countries like China that has been building over many many years (not to mention the 56 trillion dollar total debt when Medicare and Social Security is factored in).

We need a Republican Party that pursues a foreign policy of strengthening our trade relations around the world, honoring treaties, strengthening our domestic economy to allow us to work with international agencies that spread humanitarian aid and democratic ideals, using economic pressure to punish regimes that refuse to work against terrorism, and continuing a tradition of a strong, well-equipped military that can be used in defense of our territory as well as in special cases worldwide to fight terrorism and defend human rights.

The Republican Party should reject leaders that spread intolerance and hate and embrace those that have interests in securing individual freedoms and choices, providing a strong economic environment for investment, and a safe country that stands by all world citizens with aspirations of living better lives.