Residual Forces

Previous 08 Post Facto breakdowns can be found here.

#1 Senator John McCain: 

Duh! but he is far from alone. McCain couldn’t rally the base and voters to him. The ultimate ‘I told you’ so to beltway types and political pundits and politicians who believe standing on the double yellow line is the only way in politics. 

Those who thought John McCain was the best person should be remembered for such. We had the most liberal Democrat in the history of politics, why we needed one of the most liberal Republicans is beyond me. The good news is a big government, global warming believer, cap and trade pushing, interventionist candidate lost. The bad news, the other one who is the same, but worse did win. 

We needed a staunch conservative who could articulate what real conservatism was to Americans. Most are disillusioned that George Bush is a text book conservative. McCain chose to distance himself on the wrong issues, ante up on other center left ones Bush embraced, and strayed as far from true Government reform as possible. (ahem) Bailout bill, McCain voted for it.

Along with McCain, the DC powerbrokers in the GOP have failed again. The idea that permeates far too many Republican think tanks, columnists’ punditry, and political policy setting war rooms is that true conservatism is dead. I’d believe it if someone would actually try running on, then implementing it in Washington. But no one has.

Those who pulled the strings on the Republican side of this election, especially the ones lashing out at Palin now, will hopefully have served in their last official Republican role and be sent to the posh retirement homes for their types on K Street. 

#2 Governor Tim Pawlenty (R MN): 

The fruits of his 2008 electoral labor died on the vine when Sarah Palin got the job he had been angling for since the 2008 race began in 2007. He wanted that VP slot and losing it was devastating for him. 

The time he spent on the National media and campaign circuits meant he wasn’t back home minding the store. While the cat was away the DFL mice were playing. The Minnesota Democrats and liberal special interests were waging a war on the State House races and 134 great Republicans were forced to fight door to door to defend the entire party. 

Pawlenty wasted his star power and media attention on McCain and failed to make the case for balancing power in the Minnesota House of Representatives. He chose to hitch his wagon to a Washington gravy train and ended up putting himself behind the 8 ball in Minnesota politics. Democrats have an even bigger majority, albeit by just 2, to set the policy and simply wear down the Republican Governor and weak minded liberal (R)epublicans so they can pass bills and override vetoes. Now they only need 3 RINOs to override.

Had he spent time campaigning Minnesota on state issues and the conservative/Republican agenda here, I fully believe the State House results would have been far different. Pawlenty no faces another 2 years of a one sided shoot out on the goalkeeping Governor. 

#3 Republican Party of Minnesota Chair Ron Carey:

This is now his second straight dismal election cycle. Minnesota was on the verge of going red before Ron Carey. Here’s some facts of where we were before Carey and where we are now thanks to his leadership. 

2002 Elections resulted in the 2003-4 State House having : GOP 82- DFL 52

2004 Elections resulted in the 2005-6 State House having : GOP 68 - DFL 66

*** June 2005 Ron Carey was elected Party Chair. 

2006 Elections resulted in the 2007-8 State House having : GOP 49 - DFL 85

2008 Elections resulted in the 2009-10 State House having : GOP 47 - DFL 87

State Senate seats in Republican control have also dwindled under Carey. Upon his election in 2005, we were lead to believe Republicans could actually take control of the body. We were just 4 seats away from taking control in the 2006 elections. Republicans are now unable to sustain a veto. GOP 21 - DFL 45

Statewide Constitutional officers were dominated by Republicans going into the 2006 election. We held all of them except the Attorney General. After the 2006 election, we barely hung onto the Governor’s office, but only for the luck of the DFL Lt. Governor candidate not knowing what E-85 was when asked by a reporter. 

Republican members of Congress are also in decline as well. It was 4 to 4, but is now 3 GOP to 5 DFL. The Republican party has all but written off 4 of the Congressional Districts. A notion Carey promised against earlier in his tenure. 

And now we are on the cusp of losing a US Senate seat. Sen. Norm Coleman is having his reelection results recounted. The DFL Secretary of State has strong ties to ACORN, and guess what, ballots are appearing out of thin air and Counties are changing their totals to DFLer Al Franken’s favor. 

Oh and the sales tax has gone up almost 1% in parts of the state, including a Constitutionally passed one this election for the arts and outdoors. 

Far from a record of overall achievement. Hopefully Carey will announce his retirement from party leadership as soon as the recount is done and we can move forward to picking up the pieces and rebuilding the Minnesota Republican Party. 

#4 House Republican Minority Leader Marty Seifert :

He lost seats in this last election. He was unable to hold his caucus together on a veto override vote on  $6.6 Billion transit tax increase. He did not push his caucus on conservative issues like a state wide smoking ban and may have lost the faith of his fellow members of the state house along the way. I’d heard he would not be reelected to the position even before the election. I can’t believe he would after. 

Some have told me he had aspirations of higher office, and he is a great enough conservative that maybe he could do it, but he just doesn’t seem to have done a good job trying to be a caucus leader. 

#5 The Taxpayer’s League of Minnesota:

It fought against the millionaire’s amendment, oh sorry, it just seemed that way since the millionaire trust fund families of Minnesota banded together to pass it. The Outdoors and Legacy Amendment passed. This was a sales tax increase that passed in a time of recession and increasing unemployment. 

I love the Taxpayer’s League and it pains me to say it, but even though they were out funded by millions and millions in this one, it seems they are a loan wolf barking in the woods right now. They couldn’t mount a campaign or fundraising stream to stop a sales tax in a recession. Clearly they need some shaking up. Phil Krinkie is more than capable. They need to band together with new media, the radio hosts and blogs, and build a new educational outlet for the out of control spending and unaccountable government at all levels in Minnesota. 

#6 Center Right Minnesota Blogs: 

I know, this one pains me too, but the way the Republican party and conservative establishment treated their bloggers this year was a shame. Blogs are the future of the political world and hopefully this last media won election will be the final proof that the party not only needs to embrace blogs, but that they need to include them in the process. 

Sure, some blogs did manage to hold their head above water. Minnesota Democrats Exposed, the NARN/national blogs all did well, and True North emerged on the scene as go to places to find election news and commentary. But the media just doubled down and drank the “Change” kool aid and brainwashed voters as if they were the ones on the ballot. 

I’ll have more of a plan on what role blogs NEED to play in the future of the Republican party at a later date, but for now let’s just say that the Republican party leaders, candidates, and establishment wasted a huge advantage. 

Scores of us lowly bloggers are actively involved in politics and have our fingers on the pulse of the grassroots. We can reach readers who have abandoned the traditional media. We are a conduit to the grassroots base of the party, but we are also the ready, willing, and able alternative to the biased traditional media. 

The Republican party will continue its decline and dwindling electoral numbers unless the party embraces blogs and starts transitioning its media relations to favor those of us who agree with them. They have a friend in us and given a little help in expanding our readership, we will someday replace the biased local TV news and local papers in the minds of voters who want to find out about politics.

My hope is that the people who could change the media focus from the biased liberal to the blogs, realize just what they have been ignoring. We could build a partnership and forge a union that would make it so that most voters don’t turn to the Strib or WCCO to get their election news (ahem, the news Shelby and Editors, hack reporters, and spoon fed Editorialists see fit), but that will take some very highly paid and powerful people realizing that some of us very passionate people in our mom’s basement hold the future of information dissemination at their fingertips. 

I think I have a few more 08 Post Facto recaps in my head. Stay tuned.