That's the problem, in a nutshell.
It's waaaaay beyond political parties at this point - the Repubs and the Dems are just 2 sides of the same coin. We're actually BEYOND what the founding fathers fought a revolution over now, today. And we've re-established the Ruling Class, which we (allegedly, and I hope it's still true) install by election. Most Americans don't even KNOW that the President doesn't legally have the authority, under the Constitution, to do most of the things that Bush, Clinton, Bush, and the rest have been doing the last few years. They're truly at a point where they make it up as they go along.
The current Steel on Steel radio program (last weekend) has an excellent treatment of this. Unfortunately, the website is no longer free - but it's well worth the $6 a month to listen to. John's point is that because Bush and Ashcroft are Republicans and claim to be born again Christians, the so-called conservatives turn a total blind eye to every unConstitutional thing they do. John Loeffler gets letters and emails - and phone calls - from people saying "Now, that John Ashcroft (or Bush) is a Born Again Christian - you just leave him alone and let him do his job." John's response is that it's HIS job, as a radio show host, to tell people when "their" leaders are flagrantly violating their oaths of office.