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The GOP is catering to a base that was fine from the late 1960's to the mid 1990's
that demographic base is shrinking- its time has come and come- Obama knows this- and has played his cards very coolly.
I'm not sure why, but you conveniently omit two things in your thought process:
1) The USA is a conservative leaning country. Look it up.
2) Independents partly consist of former GOP voters. It would be erroneous to believe that they have shelved their conservative views and will not vote for the GOP in the future.
You folks make it sound like the GOP is dead, just as you have done for 50 years. One quick look at party make-up over the last 5 decades proves that this hype is nothing more than wishful thinking.
Michael Gerson is a stalwart GOP conservative who writes for the WaPo several times a week, if not every day.
His column today really hit the nail on the head. For once I find myself in strong agreement with him.
Excerpts (hard to pick just a few, there are so many GOOD ones in the piece:
- Mel Martinez's recent resignation from the U.S. Senate was for personal and family reasons. But the departure of the Republican Party's most visible Hispanic leader crackles with political symbolism.
- By 2030, the Latino share of the vote in America is likely to double. Some Republicans seem to be calculating that this influence can be countered by running up their percentage of support among white voters. But this is not eventually realistic, because non-college-educated whites are declining as a portion of the electorate. And it is disturbing in any case to set the goal of a whiter Republican Party. This approach would not only shrink the party, it would split it. Catholics and evangelicals, who have been central to the Republican coalition, cannot ultimately accept a message of resentment against foreigners. Their faith will not allow it.
I agree with every paragraph in Gerson's piece, and wish people would read it for themselves.
Thank you.
Agree 100% plus McCain put a nail in the coffin for the GOP with female professionals, picking an inept token thinking women voters are stupid....I was registered repub and will NEVER ever vote that ticket again...
The children of illegals aka future democrat voters are a growing demographic.
Republicans have been too scared to touch the immigration issue and..
Democrats push for Amnesty so they can have total power in the near future.
Get ready for a one party system.
I'm not sure why, but you conveniently omit two things in your thought process:
1) The USA is a conservative leaning country. Look it up.
2) Independents partly consist of former GOP voters. It would be erroneous to believe that they have shelved their conservative views and will not vote for the GOP in the future.
You folks make it sound like the GOP is dead, just as you have done for 50 years. One quick look at party make-up over the last 5 decades proves that this hype is nothing more than wishful thinking.
First off the Majority of Americans are not conservative or liberal, they are moderates, meaning they do not hold conservative or liberal ideas on all the issues. Most favor the right of a women to chose, that would be Liberal thinking. Most believe in a strong military, that would be an example of conservative views. To think that the vast majority of Americans fall in either category is pure hogwash.
Secondly, yes there are former GOP members that consider themselves Independents today, but to assume that they will vote Repub no matter which dog is trotted out at election time is ludicrous and an insult to thinking Voters. The odds are that the Repubs will gain some seats in Congress in next years elections, will it be enough to control either House, doubtful, but anything is possible. As for the Whitehouse you seem to forget that the odds are in President Obamas favor, that is true for nearly all Presidents running for re-election. Plus on top of that the economy should be much improved by that time and it is highly likely that he will have also resolved several other major issues by that time and working on more, something the last repub was an utter failure at, accomplishments. And do not forget that by their nature the right has a way of driving voters away from their Party, especially anyone that dares question the Party line or if they belong to any minority. And lastely, who will the Repubs trot out for us to back, Romney, maybe, Huckabee, nope, McCain again, not gonna happen, Palin, the Demos would Love that. Face it the GOP is banking on the demos self destructing for their own candidates to get elected, no new ideas, no solutions, just attacks and rhetoric, how did that work out for them in the last two elections, people see the empty suit and are not impressed. The GOP needs to reform and start being part of the solution rather than part of the problem, otherwsie they do not stand a snowballs chance in hell of regaining power in either House and especially not the Whitehouse. So keep praying that the demos will get the job done for you, but if that is all you got then you are going to be very disappointed, or should I say continue to be disappointed. Fix your Party, come up some real ideas and solutions and then maybe some of us Independents will back your guy come election time, you will not win anything without us.
Casper
First off the Majority of Americans are not conservative or liberal, they are moderates, meaning they do not hold conservative or liberal ideas on all the issues. Most favor the right of a women to chose, that would be Liberal thinking. Most believe in a strong military, that would be an example of conservative views. To think that the vast majority of Americans fall in either category is pure hogwash.
Secondly, yes there are former GOP members that consider themselves Independents today, but to assume that they will vote Repub no matter which dog is trotted out at election time is ludicrous and an insult to thinking Voters. The odds are that the Repubs will gain some seats in Congress in next years elections, will it be enough to control either House, doubtful, but anything is possible. As for the Whitehouse you seem to forget that the odds are in President Obamas favor, that is true for nearly all Presidents running for re-election. Plus on top of that the economy should be much improved by that time and it is highly likely that he will have also resolved several other major issues by that time and working on more, something the last repub was an utter failure at, accomplishments. And do not forget that by their nature the right has a way of driving voters away from their Party, especially anyone that dares question the Party line or if they belong to any minority. And lastely, who will the Repubs trot out for us to back, Romney, maybe, Huckabee, nope, McCain again, not gonna happen, Palin, the Demos would Love that. Face it the GOP is banking on the demos self destructing for their own candidates to get elected, no new ideas, no solutions, just attacks and rhetoric, how did that work out for them in the last two elections, people see the empty suit and are not impressed. The GOP needs to reform and start being part of the solution rather than part of the problem, otherwsie they do not stand a snowballs chance in hell of regaining power in either House and especially not the Whitehouse. So keep praying that the demos will get the job done for you, but if that is all you got then you are going to be very disappointed, or should I say continue to be disappointed. Fix your Party, come up some real ideas and solutions and then maybe some of us Independents will back your guy come election time, you will not win anything without us.
Casper
Exactly the points that have been made by many long-time GOP'ers, to include GOP insiders like Gerson. The gist of what all of those voices are saying is that the GOP, as it NOW exists, is not a viable party and has to change. Oddly, there seems no move to change, only to move further to the right and to let nonsensical mouthpieces stir up people with lies and hatred.
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I'm not sure why, but you conveniently omit two things in your thought process:
1) The USA is a conservative leaning country. Look it up.
2) Independents partly consist of former GOP voters. It would be erroneous to believe that they have shelved their conservative views and will not vote for the GOP in the future.
You folks make it sound like the GOP is dead, just as you have done for 50 years. One quick look at party make-up over the last 5 decades proves that this hype is nothing more than wishful thinking.
The USA WAS a conservative leaning country when the demographics where different- the nation is less white now- and that white percentage has shrunk- the GOP and their race baiting teabaggers are hardly a good recruiting poster.
The GOP has become a prisoner of its 'southern strategy' of attracting angry whites- but the GOP has become now a 'southern based political party' with a few states in the great plains and inter-mountain states- not enough for an electoral majority in the changing demographics I mentioned.
You are looking at the past- that is time come and gone. The USA is no longer a right leaning nation- but one that is at best dead center. And the coasts it leans a fair amount to the left. Until the GOP begins to moderate some of its harsh stances- that border on Neo-Fascism they will remain a geographically limited political party.
Last edited by xyz affair; 10-23-2009 at 03:03 PM..
Look at the news gallop pols and it looks like the democrats are the ones that are comitting suicide and very quickly;I might add.Congress at a new all time low of 21%. Bush looked popualtr compared. look at the independent approval droping like a lead brick.
Quote:
A lot of conservatives seem to think the relative unpopularity of the GOP is a temporary "hangover" from the Bush years that will gradually dissipate.
Quote:
But if you look at the public opinion data on party favorability (which can all be found together at PollingReport.com), what's striking is that the GOP's bad reputation isn't getting any better
Michael Gerson is a stalwart GOP conservative who writes for the WaPo several times a week, if not every day.
His column today really hit the nail on the head. For once I find myself in strong agreement with him.
Excerpts (hard to pick just a few, there are so many GOOD ones in the piece:
- Mel Martinez's recent resignation from the U.S. Senate was for personal and family reasons. But the departure of the Republican Party's most visible Hispanic leader crackles with political symbolism.
- By 2030, the Latino share of the vote in America is likely to double. Some Republicans seem to be calculating that this influence can be countered by running up their percentage of support among white voters. But this is not eventually realistic, because non-college-educated whites are declining as a portion of the electorate. And it is disturbing in any case to set the goal of a whiter Republican Party. This approach would not only shrink the party, it would split it. Catholics and evangelicals, who have been central to the Republican coalition, cannot ultimately accept a message of resentment against foreigners. Their faith will not allow it.
I agree with every paragraph in Gerson's piece, and wish people would read it for themselves.
Thank you.
Well for one, conservatives today don't conserve much of anything, they like to spend just as much or more as their arch nemesis, the liberals. They really aren't living up to their credo's, and it isn't just with money either. They are supposed to be all about small government and what do they do, add another huge branch and put the government in our e-mails, phone calls and essentially right in our face.
But most importantly is that societies of all kinds are under constant change, and they have to be to avoid becoming static and stagnant. Thus, political parties need to change. And if there's anyone out there who wets the bed and cradles their teddy bear over the mere mention of the word change, it's conservatives. I don't mean that in a bad way either, it's just a part of conservatism - change is bad, unless of course it's changing back to the 50s.
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