There's been a political shift of the parties populist rhetoric. It's fairly common for the populist rhetoric of the party that is in power to be pro establishment while the party that isn't in power is anti establishment. We saw this in the bush years as well as many democrats were echoing anti establishment anti war attitudes that republican populists are echoing now to drum up grassroots voter support.

In reality both parties are very much pro establishment but only so much as they establish their own party. The internet has shaken up the rules of the game a little bit but now as it is better understood it is being used more effectively as a political propoganda tool just as television radio and newspapers were before.

The puritanical roots of American society I do think lend themselves to the kind of moral panic hysterical arguments we tend to see (not a controversial statement really until you get into what actually constitutes a hysterical argument and a legitimate concern, I tend to argue more things that hit the mainstream contain threads of both).

It's easier to understand American political discourse and party positions if you consider their practical use by the party to gain voting bloc support rather than coherence to any ideological base. Typically the ideological justifications come afterwards as a way of placating the various disparate groups that make up each parties voting base. The Republican base for example contains the hardline religious fanatic voters who prefer authoritarian imposition of their moral rules on the larger population, as well as the more, shall we say crass business minded anything goes lazefaire conservatives who want no regulations on vice. Yet somehow they are part of the same party. The Democrats are simultaneously painted as evil vice promoting sexual monsters who want to corrupt the children while also being painted as the party that wants to regulate everything and make "consent forms" necessary for relationships as well as mandate that porn actors wear condoms on film.

Meanwhile if you are s democrat you probably consider the republicans as the moralist authoritarian party that wants to ban everything that isn't strictly in the bible. At the same time they are the dangerous anti regulation party that wants to let capitalists run rampant and do whatever they want regardless of the consequences.

In the end of it all there is likely some truth behind all of these viewpoints, I don't think you'll find much sense in trying to understand any logic behind the party platform as it pertains to any coherent ideological positions save one "how can we win the next election?"