I saw an interesting comment on my Facebook page yesterday. It came from a reader who clearly considers himself a "true conservative" and had to do with the idea of expanding the Republican tent to let more people in. He said he'd be happy to have more people in the tent, provided they all believe in constitutionally limited government, liberty, etc.
Um . . . news flash: The people who believe in those things are already in!
The concern here, which can be a valid one if you don't take it too far, is that you don't want to let go of any and all principles just to make more people feel comfortable in your tent. Often when party leaders talk about expanding the tend, what "true conservative" activists think they mean is abandoning any commitment to conservative ideas so that more liberal voters will consider becoming Republicans.