In a book by famous Republican lawyer John Dean, I came across this, which is a quote from an article written years ago by sociologist/political scientist Alan Wolfe. This seems to fit in very well with reality. For instance, Democrats used their power to create a starting point for health care that would cover more people; Republicans immediately moved to get rid of it - but without having anything better to offer.
Why Conservatives Can’t Govern
Political parties expend the time and grueling energy to control government for different reasons. Liberals, while enjoying the perquisites of office, also want to be in a position to use government to solve problems. But conservatives have different motives for wanting power. One is to prevent liberals from doing so; if government cannot be made to disappear, at least it can be prevented from doing any good. The other is to build a political machine in which business and the Republican Party can exchange mutual favors; business will lavish cash on politicians (called campaign contributions) while politicians will throw the money back at business (called public policy). Conservatism will always attract its share of young idealists. And young idealists will always be disillusioned by the sheer amount of corruption that people like Gingrich and DeLay generate. If yesterday's conservative was a liberal mugged by reality, today's is a free-marketer fattened by pork.
https://washingtonmonthly.com/2006/0...s-cant-govern/
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