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By Gene Quinn |
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Saying that this week has been a difficult week for Republicans is the understatement of all understatements. If you stop and think about the perfect storm that lined up against John McCain and the Republican party it is amazing that he was able to get over 57 million votes. To many it would seem that the only reason McCain was in the election at all and wound up not getting blown out was because his brand was better than the brand of the Republican party. To be sure, McCain is a different kind of Republican, and a different kind of politician. When tough issues need to taken on he has repeatedly crossed party lines to do what he believes is best for the country. So it seems logical that in this anti-Republican climate his independent streak served him well. But what if that conventional wisdom is incorrect? What if people really do identify with the ideals of the Republican party? Then we are about to march off a cliff in the name of re-branding the party and that, in my opinion, would be a tragic. We need to focus on family, a strong and economically independent America, and embark upon a populist conservative agenda.
I firmly believe that people in the United States identify with the Republican party and do not identify with the Democrats. How else could you explain that California voters approved Proposition 8, which amends the California Constitution to define marriage being between members of the opposite sex? I can tell you that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi thinks that voters were confused and actually thought they were voting to approve same sex marriage. How absurd! Whether Speaker Pelosi likes it or not, 52% of California voters decided that marriage should be between members of opposite sexes only. With California being one of the most liberal states in the union why should we jump to the conclusion that America does not identify with Republican ideals when a majority of the state (i.e., 52.4%) decided that the Republican party has the right stance on this important social issue? We need to make sure that we do not lose sight of the fact that almost 61% of California voters voted for Barack Obama, and 52% voted to require a traditional definition of marriage.
It seems clear to me that we Republicans do not want to throw the baby out with the bath water, but we definitely need to get back to our core beliefs. What the victory of Barack Obama showed us was that even when Americans are predisposed to preferring the Republican agenda they are not going to vote Republican when those who proclaim to be Republican are not staying true to a conservative agenda. Bigger government and nationalizing industry is not only not wise, but just plain stupid and un-American. When such policies are urged by Republicans it not only morphs from unwise and stupid into hypocritcal, and my firm belief is that no one likes a hypocrit! If we are going to move forward and make the best out of this debacle we need to get back to conservative basics, choose new party leadership and set out upon an ethical, principled and steadfastly conservative agenda.
Let’s face it, the deck is stacked against Barack Obama and it seems naive to think that he will have a successful Presidency. The economy is in shambles, and it seems like things are only going to get worse. He wants to pursue policies that are going to drive capital out of our markets, which will negatively impact those saving for retirement and familys investing for college. His stance on negotiating with our enemies is even more troubling, and is probably best characterized as naive to the point of being dangerous. I am not one to say we should not meet with rogue dictators, after all I would REALLY like to meet the President of Iran myself and have a heart to heart talk with him, one on one, no cameras, no media. Mr. Obama please don’t forget he was responsible for the taking of American hostages and the only thing to talk to him about is defining in clear and unambigous terms what will happen to his “tiny country” if and when they cause any problems for the US or for Israel.
The likelihood is that an Obama Administration is going to severely injure the US economy, and severely injure our safety and international standing. While I hope the damage is not to great, and I hope that the unthinkable does not happen, the reality is Obama is either going to break all of his campaign promises or we are headed for disaster. So like a Phoenix rising from the ashes we need to position our party for the midterm elections in 2010 and ultimately for a referendum on the Obama Administration in 2012. To set the stage here are some issues that what we need to focus on:
- Smaller Government: Do Americans really believe that bigger government is the answer to our problems? I find it impossible to believe that given the choice between a smaller, less intrusive government and a larger government that imposes its own ideals Americans would choose anything other than the former.
- Corporate Welfare: I am a true believer in an open market economy. There is absolutely nothing to be gained by manipulating industry and markets. This will only allow those companies who are poorly run to survive long after their useful existence is used up. Those conservative Republicans who stood up to the leaders in both parties with respect to the Bailout were correct.
- Abortion: There is nothing wrong with believing that life starts at conception and we should never back away from this fundamental belief. While overruling Roe v. Wade is not presently a realistic goal, we need to do whatever we can to protect the most vulnerable among us – our unborn children. We need to aggressively and intelligently work toward positions on abortion that every thoughtful American should understand to be reasonable, and there are a good number of these positions.
- Environment: Does anyone really want to harm the environment? In years past those who pushed for environmental protections were the enemies of American business, but not any more. We need to embrace the environmental movement as our own, because after all is is our own. It was Teddy Roosevelt who started the environmental movement, and we have allowed the Democrats to steal the issue from us because rather than developing new technologies and encouraging innovation we have given in to greed and clung to fossil fuels.
- Energy Independence: It seems almost silly to add this to the list here because it is what everyone is talking about, but we need to make sure that this issue does not go away like it has in the past. Every time in the past hat oil and gas became scarce we would build momentum toward alternative fuels, only to let it slip away when oil and gas again became plentiful and cheap. Not only is energy an issue that matters for the environment, it is a national security issue.
In the coming weeks and months this list will undoubtedly be expanded, and I plan on elaborating in detail on each one of the above, but we need to realize sooner rather than later that we must get back to basics and we need to stop from over reacting and giving up what we truly believe in.
Tags: gop, John McCain, populist conservative agenda, Republicans
Posted in Conservatives, Obama, Republicans | Comments (6)
November 8th, 2008 at 7:11 pm
How come none of the Republicans have the word REPUBLICAN anywhere on thier literature, posters signs? How can we expect the base to rally around the candidate if we are ashamed of the party! This is the case in our local, state and federal elections.
Walt Bertotti
November 8th, 2008 at 7:31 pm
A friend of mine just emailed me one of your articles from a while back. I read that one a few more. Really enjoy your blog. Thanks
November 8th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
Josh-
Thanks so much for taking the time to read my blog. I hope you continue to enjoy my writings. Please feel feel free to spread the word to family and friends. Together we can make a difference moving forward.
-Gene
November 8th, 2008 at 8:36 pm
Walt-
I agree with you. It is discouraging that so many Republicans are distancing themselves from the party. I admit to understanding why that might be the case this past election cycle, and I am not willing to throw anyone under the bus for it at the moment. Moving forward, however, I say that is you are ashamed to be a Republican and not interested working toward solutions then get out of the way and let the rest of us set the agenda and rebuild the party.
-Gene
November 9th, 2008 at 7:34 pm
I have been a republican since I was able to vote. The national party left me behind long ago when it abandoned it’s conservative values. You seem to think that rhetoric is necessary and actions are not, stop pissing down my back and telling me it’s raining. I decided 10 years ago never to vote for an obstructionist like Mc Cain and yet the party runs him. Throw out the old guard and get new blood into the top spots or the party is doomed to failure forever. Return to Regain’s conservatism roots…it’s the only way back. Ken Roddy, former Republican…New Libertarian
November 9th, 2008 at 8:08 pm
Ken-
What in my writings leads you to conclude that I am form over substance? Action is required, but we have lost hearts and minds because our leaders cannot articulate why the conservative Republican path is the correct path for our country. In addition to acting like conservatives, we need to explain what it means to follow a conservative Republican agenda in terms that everyone understands and accepts.
I appreciate your frustrations Ken. I have supported McCain for years because of the man and his honor and integrity. I am sorry if my support for McCain offends you, but I proudly voted for the best man on Nov. 4.
-Gene