If only more conservatives were nominated, such as Doug Hoffman in New York's 23rd Congressional District, the party might be pure enough to excite the base. Liberal Republicans who eventually endorse Democrats, such as Hoffman's opponent, should probably expect a conservative primary challenge. But this strategy is self-destructive when universalized. Would Republican appeal throughout the Northeast really be expanded by more ideological nominees? Though the Republican Party will remain the conservative party nationally, it is not possible for Republicans to win everywhere with an identical conservative message.The Republican candidates who won on Tuesday were generally conservative, but not angry. They were supported by the Republican base, but spent most of their time reaching toward the middle. It was a center-right victory in a center-right country....
...Now comes Obama's largest test, which will determine the ideological atmosphere for the 2010 election. If the president -- opposed by a majority of Americans, with almost no support from the other party -- imposes an ideologically divisive health reform, it will smack of radicalism, reinforce polarization, and may cede the ideological center to Republicans for years to come.
What the Moderate Republican Stands For
Republicans came to power as the party of big ideas, and without returning to that model they could be looking at a long winter. Additionally, those big ideas need to focus on Middle America. Three issues that could work are conservation, reform and localism.
Conservation- a return to the Teddy Roosevelt model of conservation. One doesn’t necessarily have to buy into global warming to appreciate the need to protect the natural resources we have.
Reform- the federal government is bigger than ever, and won’t be getting any smaller over the next four years. Republicans need to fashion themselves as national reformers. Much of Middle America wants the government as safety net, but bloated bureaucracies breed corruption that needs to be dealt with.
Localism- this is the lynchpin that brings it all together. If we bought our food locally, shopped locally, governed locally, many of the issue we now have to deal with would go away, or at the least become manageable.Below is a collection of writers who speak about the things that matter. Some are Right, some Left and some Center, but all intelligent and rational voices.
The Soap Box
Will Obama Lose The Center?
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3 comments:
Opposed by a majority of Americans? Health care reform, including the Public Option, is supported by a hefty majority of Americans. Barack Obama was elected by hefty margins. And he campaigned on a promise to fix health care. He is attempting to deliver on this.
If HCR goes thru, and it looks like it will in one form or another, it will be a win for Obama and the Democratic Party. The republican's attempt to paint HCR as another Great Ideological Battle (like gay marriage, guns, and god) has been and will be a failure. Why? HCR is a *pragmatic* issue for most americans and Democrats have been winning on the issue because they have been addressing it as such.
"Barack Obama was elected by hefty margins."
A) by what definition is 54% considered a "hefty" margin; and
B) the United States of America is not a Democracy. It is a republic. As such, we are not lead by some sort of mob or majority rule.
By "hefty margin" i mean that McCain was not even remotely close to winning the election. Not-even-close. That's what I mean. Did you see the map of which states when "blue" and which states went "red"? Case closed.
United States is not a democracy? Maybe you should move to Singapore or China. Those are perhaps the type of "republics" you might like better. With all hapless hoi polloi here making silly demands on the government and what not. And all their voting and stuff. Damn them and their "freedoms"!
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