@Sturgis,
I disagree. I think the Republican Party is broken up into constituents.
One group, formerly the vast majority but shrinking fast, wants to go back to the 1980s under Reagan. These have since been dubbed RINOs and are being driven away from the party.
The next group wants to go back to just before the Federal Reserve bank came into existence in 1913. There actually are a few sane ones among this group, but a much larger group spends their time reading and talking about the Zionist Globalist Imperialist Rothschild New World Order, etc. Also chemtrails.
Another sizable group-perhaps the largest-wants to go back to 1860 so that they can make the case that the South had the right to secede and that the Civil War should be referred to as the Second War of Independence.
Not aware of too many who want to go back to before 1700, unless you mean the Amish and Mennonites.