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Monday, May 4, 2009
FAR-RIGHT FRINGE DESTROYING GOP
The significance of the defection of Sen. Specter
Most conservatives on TV said “good riddance” to Arlen Specter, citing his tendencies to side with Democrats. Sean Hannity called him “Benedict Arlen”; thanks, Captain Obvious. I’m appalled at the nonchalant manner in which this departure by a senior GOP Senator has been approached by many in the Republican Party. This is huge. Believe that.
Specter’s departure, mainly for self-serving reasons should be taken seriously for several reasons. Number one, it should scare all Republicans that we are now one seat away from the Democrats having a filibuster-proof majority, especially since it appears as though Al Franken will be seated. Secondly, major conservative groups have been funneling money into Specter’s Primary opponent, Pat Toomey, in an attempt to usurp the Senator’s seat in the next election; by doing this, not only did they cost us immediate damage in the short term, but also ensured that Toomey won’t be elected. Third and most importantly, the far right-wing of the GOP drove him away. This trend of alienating moderate Republicans is disturbing and extremely counter-productive. Why many in the far-right don’t understand this is beyond comprehension. Through their actions, they have ceded another Senate seat. They gave it away, which can only lead one to conclude that the fringe elements of the GOP don’t actually care about winning seats in Congress or doing things that make sense. This is exactly what we saw in the summer of 2008, when prominent right-wingers were absolutely opposed to John McCain’s selection as the GOP’s presidential candidate, causing McCain to go against his gut instinct, which was to choose a fellow moderate as the VP. Instead, we got Sarah Palin and got our butts kicked. But at least Rush was happy, right? That's important, right? Wrong. This myth of “shoring up the base” cost the GOP the 2008 Presidential election. As I have said many times, “the base” will always vote Republican; Moderates and independents won’t. Hence our loss in November and failure to win any swing-states; where the moderate, independent vote is so critical. The truth is that words and actions of “the base” scare moderates and independents away; they don’t want to be associated with that behavior. There is not anything more polarizing and unattractive to the moderate voter than Sarah Palin egging on a raucous crowd of 20,000 in the South about how much of a pinko-commie, America-hating, Muslim-lover Barack Obama is. I cannot believe the leadership of this party actually thought that was a good idea. I am also shocked that some continued to believe McCain had a snowball’s chance in hell of winning. I will always maintain that most moderates did not want to vote for Obama, but they were forced to by the actions of the out of control, hate-spewing, extremely partisan Republican Party.
Specter probably saw the writing on the wall shortly after the stimulus vote, apparently, sparking the switch. I would have preferred that Specter switched to Independent, much like Joe Lieberman. However, campaign financing becomes difficult at that juncture. It makes one wonder what kind of “deal with the devil” Specter agreed to. Regardless, I doubt Specter wanted this, but he was forced into it by the GOP fringe that has done so much to damage to the likelihood of any Republican gain in Washington in the near-term.
The hard-right effort (pandering to “the base”) in the Republican Party is and will remain the problem; and IS the reason we can’t and won’t make any significant gain in 2010 or beyond. Unfortunately, most of these people are too arrogant to realize or even admit to this. It is the unsaid reality of the current state of the Republican Party.
Conservative commentators love to claim that this is a “center-right” Nation. Well, if that is so, then isn’t Arlen Specter exactly the type of politician that the GOP needs? The same goes for John McCain. What the far-right doesn’t realize (or maybe they do) is that their actions are totally counterproductive to the interest of the Party. If this is a center-right country, as Conservative voices love to claim, then center-right politicians are exactly what we need, right? Are they not the type of individuals we want to run for office? This is simple logic, but when center-right candidates or sitting Congressmen act like moderates, they get destroyed by prominent Conservative voices.
Time and again, we see the topic of conversation brought up: Is it time for some soul-searching for Republicans? Do Republicans need to “find their way”? What happened to the GOP? The three major Cable news networks, Fox News, CNN and MSNBC have hosted this conversation on more than one occasion, if not daily. The right-wing fringe continues to maintain that Republicans need to “return to their conservative roots” or “act like conservatives”, or my favorite: “Republicans again need become the Party of Reagan”. This false view needs to be exposed and discussed at length.
Ronald Reagan wasn’t the prolific Conservative that Sean Hannity likes to claim. Reagan talked a good game, made a lot of promises, but followed through with few of them. Sorry to insult the Messiah of the GOP, but this view simply isn’t true. The truth is that the Federal Government grew almost 10% during Reagan’s presidency. The deficit expanded during Reagan’s tenure, mainly due to tax cuts and Cold War-related military spending. A common edict borne of Reagan’s economic policy was simply that “deficits don’t matter”. Despite pledges to lower taxes, after his initial tax cuts, he raised them and imposed new taxes four times by 1984 (most notably a gasoline tax and closing corporate loopholes). There were several other Reagan decisions on other top conservative issues that would cause him to be destroyed by the right-wing fringe today, most notably: granting amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants (something conservative commentators routinely forget to mention), never seriously followed-up on promises to outlaw abortion, ensured the survival and perpetuation of Social Security, negotiated with the Soviet Union on arms control against protest from hard-line conservatives, failed to abolish the Departments of Energy and Education as promised, but instead created the one of the largest bureaucracies in the federal government, the Department of Veterans affairs. By 1984, the initiative to significantly diminish the federal budget was, to quote David Stockman, Reagan’s first budget director, “an institutionalized fantasy.” In public speeches, Reagan still promised to get government out of the way of the people, but the reality was that the federal government pretty much stayed the same and in fact, expanded. Reagan’s presidency will be remembered as perpetuating the “umbrella party” edict that is so often associated with 1980s-era Republicans: he was able to bring together supply-side economists, the religious right, libertarians, defense and foreign policy hawks, Wall Street, Democratic moderates appalled by Carter’s presidency and also common, middle-class moderates. Most of the coalition that Reagan built has been lost or deeply destroyed today by the hard-line approach of many in the GOP. This insane idea that if you don’t “toe the line” on every single conservative issue, you aren’t a “real” Republican nonsense, has cost us the most important group of all: moderates. It appears as though many of the other “groups under the umbrella” have remained somewhat intact, but the moderates are gone. This sealed our fate in the 2008 election and it will again in 2010 and 2012 unless something is done.
The bottom line is that Arlen Specter’s departure shouldn’t be viewed as a relief to the Republican party, but as a major blow that will continue the downward spiral. Something must be done to fight the far-right approach. The moderates have to retake the party or we are doomed. I advocate the following:
1. Let the far-right fringe break off and make the Conservative Party mainstream. Get Conservative Party candidates on ballots. Stop voting Republican and most importantly, disassociate yourselves from the Republican Party. All those in Congress that want to switch to the newly formed New Conservative Party, be my guest.
2. Moderates: Publicly mourn the loss of Specter and work to prevent this from happening again. Be frank about how much damage the far right does to the party; Name names. Seek out moderate candidates for the GOP. Make friends and allies with conservative Dems. Give some leeway/make concessions on traditional social issues like gay marriage, abortion and church/state. Admit the Iraq War was a mistake and support its' end. Become more Federalist, advocating states' rights. Support some measures of Obama's budget. Make sincere attempts at bi-partisan legislation. Go on MSNBC and tell them you are proud to be moderate and you believe that the far-right fringe of the GOP should make their own party. Get yourself as far away from: Limbaugh, Coulter, Hannity, Palin, DeLay, Huckabee, etc. as possible. Make them seem very crazy and NOT representative of you or your views. Congratulate them on forming a new political party, the NewCons.
Oh yeah, one more thing: Tell Mike Steele to get on-board or get lost.
Do this, and the GOP can be saved. Do it not, and we are doomed.
Most conservatives on TV said “good riddance” to Arlen Specter, citing his tendencies to side with Democrats. Sean Hannity called him “Benedict Arlen”; thanks, Captain Obvious. I’m appalled at the nonchalant manner in which this departure by a senior GOP Senator has been approached by many in the Republican Party. This is huge. Believe that.
Specter’s departure, mainly for self-serving reasons should be taken seriously for several reasons. Number one, it should scare all Republicans that we are now one seat away from the Democrats having a filibuster-proof majority, especially since it appears as though Al Franken will be seated. Secondly, major conservative groups have been funneling money into Specter’s Primary opponent, Pat Toomey, in an attempt to usurp the Senator’s seat in the next election; by doing this, not only did they cost us immediate damage in the short term, but also ensured that Toomey won’t be elected. Third and most importantly, the far right-wing of the GOP drove him away. This trend of alienating moderate Republicans is disturbing and extremely counter-productive. Why many in the far-right don’t understand this is beyond comprehension. Through their actions, they have ceded another Senate seat. They gave it away, which can only lead one to conclude that the fringe elements of the GOP don’t actually care about winning seats in Congress or doing things that make sense. This is exactly what we saw in the summer of 2008, when prominent right-wingers were absolutely opposed to John McCain’s selection as the GOP’s presidential candidate, causing McCain to go against his gut instinct, which was to choose a fellow moderate as the VP. Instead, we got Sarah Palin and got our butts kicked. But at least Rush was happy, right? That's important, right? Wrong. This myth of “shoring up the base” cost the GOP the 2008 Presidential election. As I have said many times, “the base” will always vote Republican; Moderates and independents won’t. Hence our loss in November and failure to win any swing-states; where the moderate, independent vote is so critical. The truth is that words and actions of “the base” scare moderates and independents away; they don’t want to be associated with that behavior. There is not anything more polarizing and unattractive to the moderate voter than Sarah Palin egging on a raucous crowd of 20,000 in the South about how much of a pinko-commie, America-hating, Muslim-lover Barack Obama is. I cannot believe the leadership of this party actually thought that was a good idea. I am also shocked that some continued to believe McCain had a snowball’s chance in hell of winning. I will always maintain that most moderates did not want to vote for Obama, but they were forced to by the actions of the out of control, hate-spewing, extremely partisan Republican Party.
Specter probably saw the writing on the wall shortly after the stimulus vote, apparently, sparking the switch. I would have preferred that Specter switched to Independent, much like Joe Lieberman. However, campaign financing becomes difficult at that juncture. It makes one wonder what kind of “deal with the devil” Specter agreed to. Regardless, I doubt Specter wanted this, but he was forced into it by the GOP fringe that has done so much to damage to the likelihood of any Republican gain in Washington in the near-term.
The hard-right effort (pandering to “the base”) in the Republican Party is and will remain the problem; and IS the reason we can’t and won’t make any significant gain in 2010 or beyond. Unfortunately, most of these people are too arrogant to realize or even admit to this. It is the unsaid reality of the current state of the Republican Party.
Conservative commentators love to claim that this is a “center-right” Nation. Well, if that is so, then isn’t Arlen Specter exactly the type of politician that the GOP needs? The same goes for John McCain. What the far-right doesn’t realize (or maybe they do) is that their actions are totally counterproductive to the interest of the Party. If this is a center-right country, as Conservative voices love to claim, then center-right politicians are exactly what we need, right? Are they not the type of individuals we want to run for office? This is simple logic, but when center-right candidates or sitting Congressmen act like moderates, they get destroyed by prominent Conservative voices.
Time and again, we see the topic of conversation brought up: Is it time for some soul-searching for Republicans? Do Republicans need to “find their way”? What happened to the GOP? The three major Cable news networks, Fox News, CNN and MSNBC have hosted this conversation on more than one occasion, if not daily. The right-wing fringe continues to maintain that Republicans need to “return to their conservative roots” or “act like conservatives”, or my favorite: “Republicans again need become the Party of Reagan”. This false view needs to be exposed and discussed at length.
Ronald Reagan wasn’t the prolific Conservative that Sean Hannity likes to claim. Reagan talked a good game, made a lot of promises, but followed through with few of them. Sorry to insult the Messiah of the GOP, but this view simply isn’t true. The truth is that the Federal Government grew almost 10% during Reagan’s presidency. The deficit expanded during Reagan’s tenure, mainly due to tax cuts and Cold War-related military spending. A common edict borne of Reagan’s economic policy was simply that “deficits don’t matter”. Despite pledges to lower taxes, after his initial tax cuts, he raised them and imposed new taxes four times by 1984 (most notably a gasoline tax and closing corporate loopholes). There were several other Reagan decisions on other top conservative issues that would cause him to be destroyed by the right-wing fringe today, most notably: granting amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants (something conservative commentators routinely forget to mention), never seriously followed-up on promises to outlaw abortion, ensured the survival and perpetuation of Social Security, negotiated with the Soviet Union on arms control against protest from hard-line conservatives, failed to abolish the Departments of Energy and Education as promised, but instead created the one of the largest bureaucracies in the federal government, the Department of Veterans affairs. By 1984, the initiative to significantly diminish the federal budget was, to quote David Stockman, Reagan’s first budget director, “an institutionalized fantasy.” In public speeches, Reagan still promised to get government out of the way of the people, but the reality was that the federal government pretty much stayed the same and in fact, expanded. Reagan’s presidency will be remembered as perpetuating the “umbrella party” edict that is so often associated with 1980s-era Republicans: he was able to bring together supply-side economists, the religious right, libertarians, defense and foreign policy hawks, Wall Street, Democratic moderates appalled by Carter’s presidency and also common, middle-class moderates. Most of the coalition that Reagan built has been lost or deeply destroyed today by the hard-line approach of many in the GOP. This insane idea that if you don’t “toe the line” on every single conservative issue, you aren’t a “real” Republican nonsense, has cost us the most important group of all: moderates. It appears as though many of the other “groups under the umbrella” have remained somewhat intact, but the moderates are gone. This sealed our fate in the 2008 election and it will again in 2010 and 2012 unless something is done.
The bottom line is that Arlen Specter’s departure shouldn’t be viewed as a relief to the Republican party, but as a major blow that will continue the downward spiral. Something must be done to fight the far-right approach. The moderates have to retake the party or we are doomed. I advocate the following:
1. Let the far-right fringe break off and make the Conservative Party mainstream. Get Conservative Party candidates on ballots. Stop voting Republican and most importantly, disassociate yourselves from the Republican Party. All those in Congress that want to switch to the newly formed New Conservative Party, be my guest.
2. Moderates: Publicly mourn the loss of Specter and work to prevent this from happening again. Be frank about how much damage the far right does to the party; Name names. Seek out moderate candidates for the GOP. Make friends and allies with conservative Dems. Give some leeway/make concessions on traditional social issues like gay marriage, abortion and church/state. Admit the Iraq War was a mistake and support its' end. Become more Federalist, advocating states' rights. Support some measures of Obama's budget. Make sincere attempts at bi-partisan legislation. Go on MSNBC and tell them you are proud to be moderate and you believe that the far-right fringe of the GOP should make their own party. Get yourself as far away from: Limbaugh, Coulter, Hannity, Palin, DeLay, Huckabee, etc. as possible. Make them seem very crazy and NOT representative of you or your views. Congratulate them on forming a new political party, the NewCons.
Oh yeah, one more thing: Tell Mike Steele to get on-board or get lost.
Do this, and the GOP can be saved. Do it not, and we are doomed.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
GOP admits mistakes, issues.
Not a good start, but it's a start.
Some prominent GOP members; Romney and Cantor examine what went wrong with the GOP in 2008. Reference my post below on the same issue, which outlines the following as major mistakes:
1. George Bush (economy, Iraq)
2. McCain's "hard right" turn/Palin VP selection
3. Letting the Far Right fringe speak for the party on the national level.
According to this Politico piece, the economy is to blame. Which is ridiculous, because we had problems before the economy went south.
Some prominent GOP members; Romney and Cantor examine what went wrong with the GOP in 2008. Reference my post below on the same issue, which outlines the following as major mistakes:
1. George Bush (economy, Iraq)
2. McCain's "hard right" turn/Palin VP selection
3. Letting the Far Right fringe speak for the party on the national level.
According to this Politico piece, the economy is to blame. Which is ridiculous, because we had problems before the economy went south.
R.I.P. Jack Kemp
Jack Kemp, the ex-quarterback, congressman, one-time vice-presidential nominee and self-described "bleeding-heart conservative," died Saturday. He was 73.
Kemp died after a lengthy illness, according to spokeswoman Bona Park and Edwin J. Feulner, a longtime friend and former campaign adviser. Park said Kemp died at his home in Bethesda, Md., in the Washington suburbs. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., called Kemp "one of the nation's most distinguished public servants. Jack was a powerful voice in American politics for more than four decades."
Former President George W. Bush expressed his sorrow after hearing of Kemp's death.
"Laura and I are saddened by the death of Jack Kemp." he said. "Jack will be remembered for his significant contributions to the Reagan revolution and his steadfast dedication to conservative principles during his long and distinguished career in public service. Jack's wife Joanne and the rest of the Kemp family are in our thoughts and prayers."
Kemp, a former quarterback for the Buffalo Bills, represented western New York for nine terms in Congress, leaving the House for an unsuccessful presidential bid in 1988.
Eight years later, after serving a term as President George H.W. Bush's housing secretary, he made it onto the national ticket as Bob Dole's running-mate.
With that loss, the Republican bowed out of political office, but not out of politics. In speaking engagements and a syndicated column, he continued to advocate for the tax reform and supply-side policies — the idea that the more taxes are cut the more the economy will grow — that he pioneered.
Feulner, president of the Heritage Foundation, a Kemp family friend and his former campaign deputy chief of staff, said Kemp's legacy will be his compassion.
"The idea that all conservatives really should regroup around and identify with is that this is not an exclusive club," Feulner said. "Freedom is for everyody. That's what Jack Kemp really stood for."
Kemp's rapid and wordy style made the enthusiastic speaker with the neatly side-parted white hair a favorite on the lecture circuit, and a millionaire.
His style didn't win over everyone. In his memoirs, former Vice President Dan Quayle wrote that at Cabinet meetings, Bush would be irked by Kemp's habit of going off on tangents and not making "any discernible point."
Kemp also signed on with numerous educational and corporate boards and charitable organizations, including NFL Charities, which kept him connected to his football roots.
Kemp was a 17th round 1957 NFL draft pick by the Detroit Lions, but was cut before the season began. After being released by three more NFL teams and the Canadian Football League over the next three years, he joined the American Football League's Los Angeles Chargers as a free agent in 1960. A waivers foul-up two years later would land him with the Buffalo Bills, who got him at the bargain basement price of $100.
Kemp led Buffalo to the 1964 and 1965 AFL Championships, and won the league's most valuable player award in 1965. He co-founded the AFL Players Association in 1964 and was elected president of the union for five terms. When he retired from football in 1969, Kemp had enough support in blue-collar Buffalo and its suburbs to win an open congressional seat.
In 11 seasons, he sustained a dozen concussions, two broken ankles and a crushed hand — which Kemp insisted a doctor permanently set in a passing position so that he could continue to play.
"Pro football gave me a good perspective," he was quoted as saying. "When I entered the political arena, I had already been booed, cheered, cut, sold, traded, and hung in effigy."
Longtime football colleague, Billy Shaw, a Hall of Fame offensive guard who played for the Bills with Kemp, said his friend was extremely smart.
"Jack was probably one of the most intelligent men that I've ever been around, and I'm not just talking football," Shaw said. "He was one of those kind of people that drew you to him because of his ability to communicate and the intelligence that was there.
"He was the kind of politician he was because he wrapped his arms around the people in Buffalo and represented them so well."
Kemp was born in California to Christian Scientist parents. He worked on the loading docks of his father's trucking company as a boy before majoring in physical education at Occidental College, where he led the nation's small colleges in passing.
He became a Presbyterian after marrying his college sweetheart, Joanne Main. The couple had four children, including two sons who played professional football. He joined with a son and son-in-law to form a Washington strategic consulting firm, Kemp Partners, after leaving office.
Through his political life, Kemp's positions spanned the social spectrum: He opposed abortion and supported school prayer, yet appealed to liberals with his outreach toward minorities and compassion for the poor. He pushed for immigration reform to include a guest-worker program and status for the illegal immigrants already here.
At the Department of Housing and Urban Affairs, he proposed more than 50 programs to combat urban blight and homelessness and was an early and strong advocate of enterprise zones.
In 1993, along with former Education Secretary William Bennett and former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Jeane Kirkpatrick, he co-founded Empower America, a public policy organization intended to promote economic growth, job creation and entrepreneurship.
His choice as Dole's 1996 running mate was seen as a way for the Republican Party to reach groups of voter that Dole could not. And it came even after Kemp endorsed Steve Forbes for the nomination — a move many considered political suicide — and declared himself a "recovering politician."
-Associated Press
Kemp died after a lengthy illness, according to spokeswoman Bona Park and Edwin J. Feulner, a longtime friend and former campaign adviser. Park said Kemp died at his home in Bethesda, Md., in the Washington suburbs. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., called Kemp "one of the nation's most distinguished public servants. Jack was a powerful voice in American politics for more than four decades."
Former President George W. Bush expressed his sorrow after hearing of Kemp's death.
"Laura and I are saddened by the death of Jack Kemp." he said. "Jack will be remembered for his significant contributions to the Reagan revolution and his steadfast dedication to conservative principles during his long and distinguished career in public service. Jack's wife Joanne and the rest of the Kemp family are in our thoughts and prayers."
Kemp, a former quarterback for the Buffalo Bills, represented western New York for nine terms in Congress, leaving the House for an unsuccessful presidential bid in 1988.
Eight years later, after serving a term as President George H.W. Bush's housing secretary, he made it onto the national ticket as Bob Dole's running-mate.
With that loss, the Republican bowed out of political office, but not out of politics. In speaking engagements and a syndicated column, he continued to advocate for the tax reform and supply-side policies — the idea that the more taxes are cut the more the economy will grow — that he pioneered.
Feulner, president of the Heritage Foundation, a Kemp family friend and his former campaign deputy chief of staff, said Kemp's legacy will be his compassion.
"The idea that all conservatives really should regroup around and identify with is that this is not an exclusive club," Feulner said. "Freedom is for everyody. That's what Jack Kemp really stood for."
Kemp's rapid and wordy style made the enthusiastic speaker with the neatly side-parted white hair a favorite on the lecture circuit, and a millionaire.
His style didn't win over everyone. In his memoirs, former Vice President Dan Quayle wrote that at Cabinet meetings, Bush would be irked by Kemp's habit of going off on tangents and not making "any discernible point."
Kemp also signed on with numerous educational and corporate boards and charitable organizations, including NFL Charities, which kept him connected to his football roots.
Kemp was a 17th round 1957 NFL draft pick by the Detroit Lions, but was cut before the season began. After being released by three more NFL teams and the Canadian Football League over the next three years, he joined the American Football League's Los Angeles Chargers as a free agent in 1960. A waivers foul-up two years later would land him with the Buffalo Bills, who got him at the bargain basement price of $100.
Kemp led Buffalo to the 1964 and 1965 AFL Championships, and won the league's most valuable player award in 1965. He co-founded the AFL Players Association in 1964 and was elected president of the union for five terms. When he retired from football in 1969, Kemp had enough support in blue-collar Buffalo and its suburbs to win an open congressional seat.
In 11 seasons, he sustained a dozen concussions, two broken ankles and a crushed hand — which Kemp insisted a doctor permanently set in a passing position so that he could continue to play.
"Pro football gave me a good perspective," he was quoted as saying. "When I entered the political arena, I had already been booed, cheered, cut, sold, traded, and hung in effigy."
Longtime football colleague, Billy Shaw, a Hall of Fame offensive guard who played for the Bills with Kemp, said his friend was extremely smart.
"Jack was probably one of the most intelligent men that I've ever been around, and I'm not just talking football," Shaw said. "He was one of those kind of people that drew you to him because of his ability to communicate and the intelligence that was there.
"He was the kind of politician he was because he wrapped his arms around the people in Buffalo and represented them so well."
Kemp was born in California to Christian Scientist parents. He worked on the loading docks of his father's trucking company as a boy before majoring in physical education at Occidental College, where he led the nation's small colleges in passing.
He became a Presbyterian after marrying his college sweetheart, Joanne Main. The couple had four children, including two sons who played professional football. He joined with a son and son-in-law to form a Washington strategic consulting firm, Kemp Partners, after leaving office.
Through his political life, Kemp's positions spanned the social spectrum: He opposed abortion and supported school prayer, yet appealed to liberals with his outreach toward minorities and compassion for the poor. He pushed for immigration reform to include a guest-worker program and status for the illegal immigrants already here.
At the Department of Housing and Urban Affairs, he proposed more than 50 programs to combat urban blight and homelessness and was an early and strong advocate of enterprise zones.
In 1993, along with former Education Secretary William Bennett and former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Jeane Kirkpatrick, he co-founded Empower America, a public policy organization intended to promote economic growth, job creation and entrepreneurship.
His choice as Dole's 1996 running mate was seen as a way for the Republican Party to reach groups of voter that Dole could not. And it came even after Kemp endorsed Steve Forbes for the nomination — a move many considered political suicide — and declared himself a "recovering politician."
-Associated Press
Friday, May 1, 2009
The State of the GOP
We (the GOP) are hurting for some good press. We are in such bad shape and NO ONE can seem to figure out what to do. Why is this? Why is it that only 20% of Americans will admit to being a Republican? Well, Bush was no help. Iraq was unpopular. The economy stinks. Palin was a complete flop. But I think this goes deeper. Much deeper.
There is no doubt that George Bush stained the Republican Party for years; maybe entire generations. Iraq, the economy, scandals, arrogance/hubris of the Administration, etc. But that is not all. The Bush issue is separate from the "conservative base" problem. Yes, the base is the problem. I said it. I don't care. What Republicans seem to forget is that you cannot win elections, particularly Presidential elections, with only "the base".
The selection of John McCain by voters in the primaries should have said something to party leaders. It should have indicated that the party needed and wanted a moderate and a uniter; not a paralyzing partisan divider (like Sarah Palin). When far-right hacks like Limbaugh and Coulter started talking trash on McCain, and criminal Tom Delay proudly exclaimed that he wouldn't vote for McCain on the Sean Hannity show, the end result had already been decided.
This was because McCain predictably and stupidly started pandering to "the base" (which in my estimation is only about 5% of registered Republicans). If I were John's campaign manager, I would have confronted the far-right fringe and told them publically that they are out of touch with reality; that this was a center-right country that needs a center-right leaders, not a far-right nutcase. But McCain was intimidated into choosing Palin, the ultimate nail in the proverbial coffin. McCain would have been better off choosing Joe Lieberman. Let the far-right bitch and moan...do you really think they were going to vote for Obama? No.
The truth is McCain could have won the election if he would have chosen Romney or Giuliani, and concentrated his forces in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida. The red states would have gone red. How different things could be. But we drove independents and moderates to vote for Obama. I believe that many were geniunely terrified of his past liberal voting record and complete lack of experience. But his victory should be proof of how far we've fallen. Americans were not wrong to vote for Obama. Many leaders in our party made him their only choice, because they so badly alienated non-conservatives during the campaign.
How do we fix this? Patience, reflection, moderation and guts. Guts to stand up to the very small, but very powerful element of our party that is destroying us: The Far-Right. That's right, Rush. You and those of your stripe are the reason we lost the White House have literally no power in Congress whatsoever. It is the far right that drove Arlen Specter away, and it is their fault that so few Americans will admit to being registered Republicans. Because to be a member of the GOP is embarrassing right now. Can you blame people?
There is no doubt that George Bush stained the Republican Party for years; maybe entire generations. Iraq, the economy, scandals, arrogance/hubris of the Administration, etc. But that is not all. The Bush issue is separate from the "conservative base" problem. Yes, the base is the problem. I said it. I don't care. What Republicans seem to forget is that you cannot win elections, particularly Presidential elections, with only "the base".
The selection of John McCain by voters in the primaries should have said something to party leaders. It should have indicated that the party needed and wanted a moderate and a uniter; not a paralyzing partisan divider (like Sarah Palin). When far-right hacks like Limbaugh and Coulter started talking trash on McCain, and criminal Tom Delay proudly exclaimed that he wouldn't vote for McCain on the Sean Hannity show, the end result had already been decided.
This was because McCain predictably and stupidly started pandering to "the base" (which in my estimation is only about 5% of registered Republicans). If I were John's campaign manager, I would have confronted the far-right fringe and told them publically that they are out of touch with reality; that this was a center-right country that needs a center-right leaders, not a far-right nutcase. But McCain was intimidated into choosing Palin, the ultimate nail in the proverbial coffin. McCain would have been better off choosing Joe Lieberman. Let the far-right bitch and moan...do you really think they were going to vote for Obama? No.
The truth is McCain could have won the election if he would have chosen Romney or Giuliani, and concentrated his forces in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida. The red states would have gone red. How different things could be. But we drove independents and moderates to vote for Obama. I believe that many were geniunely terrified of his past liberal voting record and complete lack of experience. But his victory should be proof of how far we've fallen. Americans were not wrong to vote for Obama. Many leaders in our party made him their only choice, because they so badly alienated non-conservatives during the campaign.
How do we fix this? Patience, reflection, moderation and guts. Guts to stand up to the very small, but very powerful element of our party that is destroying us: The Far-Right. That's right, Rush. You and those of your stripe are the reason we lost the White House have literally no power in Congress whatsoever. It is the far right that drove Arlen Specter away, and it is their fault that so few Americans will admit to being registered Republicans. Because to be a member of the GOP is embarrassing right now. Can you blame people?
RSK?
Who am I?
I am a proud Republican. I believe that my party is in dire straights.
I want to save my party and make it legitimate once again.
I believe that far-right fringe conservatives are destroying the GOP with their words and deeds.
I know the only way to win back trust from moderates and independents that we have lost, is to separate ourselves from the far-right and their poisoned brand of partisan hatred.
I named this blog "Steady Right Hand", because I think it is the right approach for Republicans in this new century and at this time in our nation's political atmosphere. Notice I didn't name the blog "Violent Right Fist". I think you get where I am going with this...
Join me in this fight.
Please email me with questions or comments at: randall.stuart.keith@gmail.com
I am a proud Republican. I believe that my party is in dire straights.
I want to save my party and make it legitimate once again.
I believe that far-right fringe conservatives are destroying the GOP with their words and deeds.
I know the only way to win back trust from moderates and independents that we have lost, is to separate ourselves from the far-right and their poisoned brand of partisan hatred.
I named this blog "Steady Right Hand", because I think it is the right approach for Republicans in this new century and at this time in our nation's political atmosphere. Notice I didn't name the blog "Violent Right Fist". I think you get where I am going with this...
Join me in this fight.
Please email me with questions or comments at: randall.stuart.keith@gmail.com
Hello
I'm Randall Stuart Keith. Welcome to my blog. I'm glad to have you here. I welcome any visitor and appreciate any feedback. Take Care and God Bless,
-RSK
*email me with questions or comments at: randall.stuart.keith@gmail.com
-RSK
*email me with questions or comments at: randall.stuart.keith@gmail.com
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