Principle #4--The American Family

The basic component of the American social fabric is the family. Families come in several different guises, but the primary responsibility of the family is to provide a safe and loving atmosphere for the development of children. A primary role of government is to support the family.

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Government cannot and should not ever be a substitute for the love, support and structure of the American Family, nor should its policies undermine the strength of the family. Government policies and services should be designed to support all American families, even as they seek to promote the traditional, nuclear family. Policies that discourage marriage---such as penalties in the social welfare network assigned to women who do marry rather than cohabitate—have no place in a society in which the prospects of children raised in single-parent homes are less bright compared to children raised in a two-parent home.

While Republicans believe strongly that government sanctioned marriage is a covenant between the state and a man and woman, we believe equally that loving same sex couples should not be denied the basic legal benefits afforded married couples. Preference for traditional marriage should not translate into discrimination or hostility to same-sex couples.

And because Republicans believe so strongly in the sanctity of life and the preference for adoption over abortion, denying same-sex couples the ability to adopt children is no longer compatible with our basic beliefs.

The most effective tool the government has to support the American family is the tax code. Tax credits for family-friendly policies protect the family’s status as the deliverer of support to the growing child. The creation of policies and programs which usurp this responsibility serve only to create a farm system of dependency, one in which children are taught to look outside the family for their support. This cycle will continue into adulthood, creating more and more of a sense of what government must do for the individual. Once again, each and every incursion of government into the roles and responsibilities of the individual represents a loss of freedom.