Part II - Approaches To The New Administration

“If one morning I walked on top of the water across the Potomac River, the headline that afternoon would read "President Can't Swim”

-President Lyndon B. Johnson


This statement was directed at the press, but is also illustrates quite well the level of political discourse in this nation as it has existed for the past few decades. Since well before the election was held on November 4 there has been some consternation as to where the Republican Party is going, and what should it do to once again become relevant. That debate largely fueled the publication of this blog and will be a significant focus of our work.

Following the first two years of the President Clinton’s first term, conservatives were the dominant force in the Republican Party. Newt Gingrich of Georgia and Tom Delay of Texas crafted a masterful strategy that enabled republicans to control congress for the first time since the elections of 1952. Conservatism was strong and the voters wanted a substantive change in government. The new congress proposed the Contract with America (CWA)and there was new life and new winds in Washington.

There are a few other significant events that occurred during this election. Republicans overturned 20 state legislatures and 12 governor’s chairs. For the first time in 50 years the Republican Party controlled a majority of the states as well as the federal government.
It is imperative to understand why the conservative movement was abandoned in the intervening years, and why the election of 2008 was a foregone conclusion immediately after the Democrat Party’s convention. The expedition in Iraq that has become lengthy and tiresome, coupled with an economic meltdown during the course of the campaign contributed, but I posit that the GOP itself is the main culprit in its own downfall. In 1995 Republicans moved quickly on the provisions of the CWA with some success, but ultimately had to compromise with the Democrats due to the inability to gain consensus in the Congress regarding the specifics of the legislation.

In the time period since the CWA was introduced, Republicans have offered little in the way of distinction between the party and the Democrat Party. The Bush administration made no progress, and indeed exacerbated the problem of government spending, for example. There was no priority placed on reigning in the size and scope of the federal government. Without the drive to accomplish something the party was left dangling in the wind and directionless.

The party became exactly what it had fought against in 1994. In pork-barrel spending, the Republicans surpassed the levels of earmarks that the Democrats had passed in Congress. The party mitigated its stand on values and morals, allowing the issues of the to day fall by the wayside. As the adage says, “If you don’t stand for something, then you stand for nothing’” and that became the condition of the Republican Party. The Party establishment made selections for candidates who were not conservatives, and in fact have steadily “moderatized” the party candidates. Following Ronald Reagan’s second term, the candidates were George H.W. Bush, Senator Bob Dole, and Senator John McCain. All of these men are personally admirable and worthy of respect, but their politics was not conservative as desired by the American voter. In 1994 American voters told the nation that they wanted true conservative values and limited government, yet the party did not heed the call.

During this time frame, the relationship between the parties was little more than the trench warfare mentality of World War I. The War in Europe was fought between trench lines, with little effort to advance and capture territory. Instead, each side sat in their own bunkers and fired small arms and artillery into the other side’s trenches, taking and giving casualties yet the battle lines remained stagnant.

All is not lost. During the Obama administration conservatives have a prime opportunity to recreate the party into a conservative movement. Democrats control both the Congress and the White House, so the onus of decision making and responsibility for outcomes is on our opponents. Historically, the off year elections, such as the one that will take place in 2010 favor the minority party as the public juxtaposes the election day expectations with the reality if policy and legislation. Conservatives are in a position to reawaken the stagnant conservative voters who exist in massive numbers. It is the approach of the party that will determine success and failure.

A revolution of the kind exhibited in 1994 is what is needed not just to take political control in Washington and across the land, but necessary to revitalize conservatism among the minds and hearts of a nation.

Recommendations For Action

1) The GOP should find the common threads that can bind the various wings of the party and make those threads the tenets of the new conservative movement. Despite the diversity of the party and the presence of several factions, there are commonalities of beliefs that should be the strength of the party, and not let single issue politics divide a united front.

2) The GOP should engage the base. The establishment of the party has lost touch with the run of the mill conservative, the “Joe the Plumbers” of the nation. The party leadership should listen to talk radio, read blogs, and seek the counsel of those they are sworn to serve.

3) The GOP should reinstate statesmanship as opposed to continuing as politicians. George Washington did not want to be President of the new United States. He wanted nothing more than to retire to his plantation in Virginia, yet the nation called and he responded. We should seek leaders that approach leadership as an obligation, not a new suit that will be displayed to friends.

4) The GOP should educate the citizenry as we oppose policy and legislation. There should be no opposition based upon party affiliation, but opposition when it strikes at our conservative beliefs. Conservatives should learn from the Obama campaign by repackaging conservatism, such as abandoning the call for personal responsibility, and present the same concepts as “personal empowerment” and explain how the concept can benefit the individual as well as the nation.

5) The GOP must present a solid, consistent vision of America supported by specifics such as occurred with the CWA. We must communicate this vision in all corners of the land, and not concede territory such as California simply because it is historically liberal.

6) The GOP should make inroads into the traditional Democrat minority strongholds. After all, it was the Democrat Party in control during Jim Crowe. The Democrats allowed Plessy v. Ferguson (163 U.S. 537, 16 S. Ct. 1138; 41 L. Ed. 256; 1896 U.S. LEXIS 3390) to remain in place for 60 years. I am heartened to see that Michael Steele, the primary contender for head of the Republican National Committee, as having this approach.

As we oppose that which is not in the best interest of the nation, the party must construct arguments that are communicated across the land as positive disagreement, not partisan trench warfare.


FINAL THOUGHTS:

The comments posted on this topic by readers appear to agree that there must be significant change in the Republican Party and that conservatives are most appropriate to do so. Because Republicans have typically been successful when they do present a conservative approach, a return to those principles is what is desired.

There are areas where the party in general can improve and educate. The party should present a unified, mature front and educate the public on conservative principles and show Americans where they can personally benefit from conservative government. The term I used in the post was "personal empowerment" and not personal responsibility, but in many ways the outcome is the same with different packaging.

In presenting the case for conservative government, it was pointed out that the GOP has not taken advantage of alternative methods of communication as well as the Democrats. Blogs, podcasts, and other high tech alternative should be pursued in the effort to get out the conservative message.

Finally, the general theme of many comments was best summed up by TAO, who suggested that instead of concentrating on the individual candidate, the GOP would be better served by a focus on the merits of our own positions, not so much on the downfalls of our opponents. I think this is a distinctly excellent suggestion, as over time the GOP has been relatively indistinguishable from the Democrat Party.

How Should Conservatives Approach The Obama Presidency?

Part I – Individual Perspectives On The Upcoming Presidency. Part II Will Discuss Party Approaches

Across the country the comments regarding personal approaches to the upcoming term of President Obama have ranged from apathy to refusal to acknowledge the outcome of the election. Obama’s message of intangible change has resonated throughout the world, and this represents a good opportunity to define how conservatives, both individually and collectively, should treat the new President.

First and foremost, we are Americans. We espouse the values and morality of democratic rule and the virtues of our representative republic. We cannot, therefore, abdicate those positions simply because our party did not win the election. The fact is that you win some and you lose some, and the hardest losses to take are the ones that result not from being defeated, but from defeating oneself as happened in this election. The emotional reaction might be one of simple disgust, but the emotional has little place in defining our role and responsibility during the next four years. We must take a step back and frame our mindset so that everything we do politically is a step in accomplishing our goal of a Reagan-esque policy emerging as a Phoenix! It can’t happen by itself, and it will take discipline and determination.

I submit in this post five things that we must do as individuals to confront the Obama presidency and prepare for not only the 2010 elections, but the Presidential race in 2012.

1. We must identify who we are and what we believe. We often berate liberals for lockstep voting for the democrat party. Are we as conservatives any different? I thought John McCain, as admirable as he is as an individual, was a very poor candidate to put before America as the next President and he was not my choice in the primary election. However, there was little else to choose from in the general election so of course he received my vote. Once he was the GOP candidate, he was in possession of my full support, if not agreement with his campaign/philosophy.

We must identify ourselves. To what segment of the GOP do you belong? Are you a Reagan conservative, believing in small government and individual responsibility? Are you a “right wing wacko” who only votes on the issue of abortion? Perhaps you are a social liberal but a conservative in things economic. I do not seek to pass judgment on anyone’s affiliation, only to qualify who we are and where we stand. Regardless of where you fall on the line, you must know before you engage where your own prejudice lies in relation to your political ideology.

2. We must refrain from being democrats. Over the past eight years, President Bush has stood before the nation and been castigated from all quarters. I do have my issues with his financial policies and I doubt his true conservative convictions, but no President in this nation should be so vilified that he cannot function and focus on the issues and concerns of the nation. No President deserves the blatant disrespect and hatred exhibited by almost half of our population.

We must act in a mature and responsible manner. We should respect the Office of the President regardless of who holds the office. As I tell my son all the time, just because someone did something “first” is no rationale for you to do it second. What matters to character is the actions you take, whether anyone is watching or not.

We must act responsibly and maturely. The madness of politics must stop at some point. We must assert statesmanship as the way of doing business. Again, as I tell my son, “There is no need to make _______ look like a jackass. Just let him be and he will take care of that himself.”

3. We must honestly evaluate programs and policies that are recommended and proposed. There are many areas in politics that should be free from partisanship. There are areas of budgeting allocation that can be agreed upon. There are programs which can easily be supported by both parties. The things with which we disagree should be fought. The things which damage our nation or our conservative principles should set loose the proverbial dogs of war! We should speak out against them, blog against them, contact talk radio in opposition to them, and stay informed of changes.

The political parties float “trial balloons” which are public release of information or intentional leaks that are used to gauge the reaction of the public. If the reaction is favorable, then it is then released as a policy matter. If it is readily and vigorously opposed, then they have the deniability that is was a policy recommendation and simply bad information on the part of the news media. We must be current on what is actually happening and not fall prey to those short soundbites that are often lacking contextual materials. We must react swiftly, and with loud voices.

Stay informed! Do more than just read right leaning blogs. Watch real news shows, read papers, visit left leaning blogs. In addition, not many people know of the Federal Register. It is a daily publication of proposed rule changes, executive orders, etc. It is also published on the web at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/

Most items are open for a period of public comment before it is implemented. Things that deal with national defense issues are not included.

4. We must get involved. It is not enough to sit back and simply blog. We must find new conservative voters. We need voter drives, people to place signs, people to write letters to your representatives in Congress and the party, and a thousand otheractivities to lend our support to conservative candidates.

5. We must confront our party and demand what we want. We must hold them to the fire until we get what we want. Our party is absolutely out of touch with the real base, but it is US who stands in line for two hours to pull a lever. If they expect us to support them when they act like democrats, we must tell them that we will not do it! This party is ours. We must assert ownership, or lose it.

Keep your eyes on the prize! Our nation will withstand anything that is put before us, and one man with one term cannot destroy that which God has blessed and for which millions have died. We did not succumb to the Great Depression, the New Deal, the Fair Deal, two world wars, Vietnam, the Great Society (yet), the Carter administration, and eight years of President Clinton. I predicted two years ago that Hillary would not win an election in this country, and I was wrong. She never even got the chance. We will endure, and with us all working together, we will overcome!