Residual Forces

Things are looking very ugly for Republicans this election. It appears that Congressional campaign leadership is losing the faith of its members. We have a Presidential candidate that is purposefully disenfranchising segments of the conservative base. And on the Senate end of things, it seems that even with a slim single digit minority, Republicans are unable or unwilling to fight toe to toe with liberal Democrats and instead proud to be working with them.

So what gives? How has this party become so unravelled? How can fringe left wing special interest fueled and funded liberals manage to out ‘message’ the Grand Old Party with voters?

I know why some Republicans in Washington are losing faith in leaders. It is the same reason grassroots activists around the country are fed up and starting to revolt and take it out on whoever they can. 

The leaders have lost sight of why Republicans matter. They’re not supposed to be there to rubber stamp what Democrats want to do to America. They bring balance to the political world. You can’t have single party rule. But unfortunately on some pretty major issues, the Republican message is marginally different or indistinguishable than that of the liberal Democrat’s.

Republicans have fallen for the Dick Morris ploy of ‘triangulation’. While the Democrats stand firm on issue after issue, Republicans think if they play along and compromise their principles “to get stuff done” it will somehow bring comity to Washington and they will somehow be gleaned as favorable in the eyes of voters. 

Yes, the problem can be described simply as Republicans cared more about winning elections than they did about the actual politics.

Their desire to win at all costs has taken the reigns and controls the agenda now in Washington. Gone are the bold ideas and message of conservatism, they’re replaced with the latest polling report and voter ID quota. They have staked out positions on Democrat turf in order to “adopt” moderate and swings voters for an election. The party moved its message to what they thought voters wanted. The problem is that voters don’t know what Republicans really stand for anymore because it seems to change with the tide. They gave up entirely on trying to move voters to our ideas. 

Contacts Does Not Equal Connections

Voter ID has replaced the art of connecting with voters. God bless Karl Rove, but you can’t win elections with spreadsheets, databases, and math. You can ID all the voters in the world, but if they don’t care for what you’re selling, it doesn’t matter how much time, money, and energy you spend making sure they get out to the polls. Heck, for all you know they may pull the lever for the other side once you do drag them to the polls. Sure it may work once or twice, but eventually people figure out that not every single election and race is the most important one…. EVER in the history of elections.

Reagan didn’t win 49 states by running a 72 hour GOTV plans or in each. He won landslides because he stood his ground on the issues and communicated with them in ways that drew the voters to him. It wasn’t smear and fear, it was issues and the differences on them that voters got enthused enough to show up and vote for.

Here we are now looking at the possibility of a second straight election where Democrat candidates get to masquerade as the more conservative candidate. That’s not something that is the fault of each and every Republican candidate. Sure there are some liberal Republicans out there, but the problem is that the party allowed simply being (R)epublican to equal being conservative and having the brand of the party watered down enough so that every single member was comfortable, no matter of they were rock ribbed limited Government types, or Big Government liberal country club ones. The only requirement was an (R). 

Conservatism is what sets us apart from Democrats. The Democrats stand for liberal ideas, we shouldn’t. We make our case, they make theirs, may the best candidate and eventually ideas win.

I’m one that believes that Conservatism is the only thing that can provide for a sustainable, prosperous, and free future for America and in turn the world. The only thing out there to deliver on that is the Republican party. Unfortunately the Republican power-brokers in Washington have sold out conservatism for a few electoral wins here and there. And what’s worse that strategy has trickled down to state parties as well through the RNC manipulation and king-making.

The power and control of the party became centralized and the party was no longer controlled by the grassroots. Instead we were treated as pons in some grand Risk-like election game-plan. Party leaders and elite strategists based win or lose decisions on polls and battlefront reports from key areas of the election map, much in the same way generals did in the World Wars and conflicts of the past. (That race is lost, cut our losses and send reinforcements over to so-and-so…)

So what can Republicans do to save this election cycle?

It may be too late for that, but it can’t hurt to try. We need to get back to being the party that stands for conservatism. Our elected officials have got to start acting like the conservatives they claim to be at the grassroots events and are purported to be by the party elites. They need to stop pandering, letting polls dictate their policy stances, and take actions that will define ourselves as the center right party - not the center of the road one.

It is time to focus internally on just what we should be doing (ahem the policies) should we actually be lucky enough to get elected or stay in office and forget basing every single decision (on the campaign trail or the Floor) we make on whether or not it will poll well or please that lobbyist or special interest group. The special interest group that the Republican party should care most about is the citizens of this country. But not the way the Democrats do where they punish companies and hand out entitlements for votes.

In America, there will be winners and losers and not everyone can or should be equal. We can’t all be CEOs, but we can’t all be janitors or on food stamps either. There has to be a balance, but it is not the role of Government to decide what the economy looks like.

If we can maintain a freedom and fairness that provides for the opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for any who dare, and there is a level playing field for people to achieve whatever dream they see fit. Peoples’ dreams shouldn’t be limited or defined by any politician or level of Government. We should be able to be as great as God gave us the ability and desire to be.

Lead or get out of the way. (That’s the PG version of what I want to say, see photo, use imagination)

There are scores of us out here at the grassroots level in the Republican party who are watching a few people controlling the Republican party who are more concerned with their own personal career or friends than stopping the liberals from destroying this great nation.

We either need new Congressional leaders or the ones there need to realize it is time to admit mistakes and change the approach. Party leaders and power brokers at all levels need to be held accountable. Much of the same mistakes that have blown our Congressional Majorities have been repeated at the State levels with similar results. Sure many are quick to point fingers towards DC to cast blame for local losses as well, but they too have made colossal mistakes and no it wasn’t Foley and Iraq that gave Minnesota Democrats some 30 plus Minnesota House seats since 2004.

Here in Minnesota we have a state party that refuses to get involved on legislative issues and seems to be all about mudslinging. Sure we have a party platform, but the top of the ticket Republicans don’t give a rip about it and the party does nothing when Republicans go ahead and vote and advocate policies like liberal Democrats.

Our party is fracturing at the seems. Our National candidate in a Presidential year is very divisive. Not in the way one may think of Bush or Hillary IE polarizing, but rather with in his own party. McCain is going to be a drag at the grassroots, rubber meets the road, electoral workers level of the party.

Because of the recent record of Republicans (like McCain) obstructing the conservative agenda we are fed up and tired of wasting our time and energy getting them elected. We weigh the decision of putting our time and money into helping someone who is just a little bit better than the Democrat get elected or spending that same time with the kids and family at the lake or taking in a nice ball game. (Name your pleasure) Maybe this year we’ll take a trip to the North Shore to see the Fall colors instead of making all those phone calls for Candidate X.

We have a serious problem in this party. The current leaders refuse to even acknowledge that. I don’t know if it is lust for power, foolish pride, or just plain stubbornness but 2008 may make 2006 look like a heaven unless we get someone leading the party both nationally and at the state level who will be delivering a message that differentiates us from the liberal Democrats for the benefit of all Republicans, not just the ones at the top of the ticket. And no, so and so screwed up on their taxes is not a policy distinction. 

I don’t want someone who takes more pride in crossing party lines and working on liberal legislation with Democrats representing me. Or someone who takes more pride in throwing mud than doing the work I want them to do for me in Washington. I don’t want to work to get someone elected who believes in the pyramid scheme of man made global warming and is openly advocating for the freedom squashing policies that will destroy the America I love and cherrish. I don’t want to have someone in office telling me how and where I can drive, live, or what kind of work I must do, or that I have to to be compassionate to illegal aliens or pay for some strangers health care. 

That’s why I am a Republican damn it!

America is supposed to be the land of the free and home of the brave. The liberal Democrats do not share that idea. They believe in the nanny state and trying to bring socialism to our shores, one policy at a time.

It is time for Republican leaders to lead or get out of the way.

The rest of us out here who want to see conservative ideas have representation in the Legislature and Washington, we need to find great local candidates and spend our time and resources getting them elected to the US or State House. We can’t expect anyone one else to do it. We can’t leave it to chance. Let’s get them elected, then we will have someone we can agree with while we are trying to get rid of the dead weight at the top. 

If we can get a majority of the Republicans to be solid conservatives…. who knows, maybe the party will get back on track and begin reconnecting with voters as a whole. In the meantime, unfortunately the statewide and national leaders haven’t got a clue. They wouldn’t know a winning conservative idea unless it was poll tested. Then again, Amnesty was opposed by 70+% of Americans, but that won’t stop John McCain.

Clearly it is up to us at the local level to save this country from Liberalism, in a bi-partisan way of course.

The choice is yours to stay home if you want, but remember, the future of the Republican party and America is at stake.