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In comments almost certain to rankle Republicans on Capital Hill, Sen. John McCain’s 2008 campaign manager Steve Schmidt accused the GOP on Friday of having no comprehensive alternative to Democratic health care reform.
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Earlier in his speech, the McCain strategist ruffled feathers when he predicted that if former VP candidate Sarah Palin — whom he helped pick as McCain’s running mate — were to be the Republican presidential candidate in 2012, it would be "catastrophic" for the party.
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"One of the things that hurt us very badly [during the campaign] and I think that this was not John McCain’s fault… was that the conservative agenda — largely enacted — I think exhausted itself," he added. "There were no new ideas. And we would have policy meetings in the campaign and there would be a lowest common denominator product that would emerge; no innovative thinking, no new ideas, and I would joke around at the time and say ‘Well, I guess we will continue to run on our platform of tax cuts for the wealthy and endless war.’ It was a little gallows humor inside the campaign. But it underlined a serious point."
A lot of people tell me that this "moderate" strain of Republicanism is still well-represented within the party, and that it will take over. I don’t see it, at least not until they lose another Presidential election. After all, it took the Democrats two losses to really change their policy, politics, and rhetoric.
What do you think?
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Head exploding, seeing those teabaggers applauding because Chicago did not win the Olympics. But I have a problem with “catastrophic”. That reminds me of PNAC wishin’ and hopin’ for a catastrophic and catalizin’ event, something that would give neo-cons a reason to live.
So I am thinking we need some Rollin Stones! A Bigger Bang!
As long as the GOP presidential primaries come in the same order — Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Florida — there’s hardly any hope for a “moderate” to be nominated. Unless he has a really old friend lots of folks know from teevee who has a hot wife and a red pickup truck. Then, that fellow can siphon votes from the preacher-man while Underwear Boy tanks.
And that’s the strategy for nominating a GOP “moderate.”
Oh, wait….
People like Steve Schmidt talk about the need for new policy prescription, then make gallows humor jokes about tax cuts for the rich and endless war. Don’t they understand that the GOP has no new policies? I mean, that really is the problem, all joking aside.
I don’t see moderate GOPers nominating a presidential candidate anytime soon. After all, McCain, Lindsay, Grassley, Pawlenty, and Romney, aren’t really “moderates.” They’re all as far right as Goldwater was. The last real moderates still left in Congress are Snowe, Collins, Voinovich, and Lugar. Voinovich is retiring, and the others are all viewed with disdain by the current mainstream of the Party. Also, since the Party needs to hold on to its crazy sectional base, it needs to present an image that isn’t “moderate.” This is part of what troubled McCain in the last election.
I wonder if the Republicans in the North and Midwest wouldn’t be best off forming a third corporate party. That’s what the “moderate” Republicans have always been about anyway. Then the Southern and Western Republicans could emphasize the evangelical, know-nothing, teabagger orientation they love so much. If that happened the Dems might themselves split into corporates and progressives, giving us four parties or perhaps three if the corporatists merged into a single party
They did?
Right now it’s looking like it’s going to take at least another loss.
I do agree that the notion of a silent majority of Republican moderates is a myth (and a typical Brooksian gambit).
That gallows humor avoids looking with realism at the basic problem of the right wing, which is that it rejects the public interest to seek its permanent place at the public trough. Even with intense propaganda, the public, a.k.a. the voters, will feel their pockets being picked. When enough eyes are opened by betrayal of their well-being, that public the right detests, that is the basic foundation of the country, will ditch the robber barons and all their henchmen.
You mean Sarah Palin didn’t have an idea, either? I’m shocked.
The idea in Palin’s mind (for want of a better term) seems to look like: $$$$$$$$$$$$
The Republicans have no new ideas. However, years ago, in Michigan a very popular Republican governor presided. He was Governor Milliken. He was the states first “GREEN” Repuplican. And he helped make our parks some of the best in the country and he enacted some very popular recycling ideas, such as Michigan’s bottle recycling act.
If the Repugs could embrace an idea, a progressive one, say maybe like climate change and REALLY run with it…..they could really get some support behind them. And really make an impact too..
I think Schmidt seems to get that there are no new ideas in his camp, he just doesn’t have the leadership to change that state of affairs.
I’ve been wondering about the business wing myself. They find the social conservatives useful most of the time, but it seems like they might be getting a bit nervous with the Glenn Becks of the world. Not sure where they’ll go…
The Republican Party’s declining poll numbers should serve as warning that a continuous barrage of negativity and outright fabrications is not working all that well for them. Unfortunately, when you have a base that’s hooked on Limbaugh lies and Beckian fantasies, it’s damn hard to win back the voters who’ve left in disgust.
Were I a rich corporation with money to burn, I’d forget about the Republican Party and start grooming “sleeper” candidates to run on the Democratic ticket. But wait– that’s aready been done.
Damn. And I thought I was onto something there.
It’s not new, but they have a fundamental policy view which pretty much limits them to having no new policies. It’s that they think government is bad. Once you believe that it’s hard to propose policies for government to exercise.
Their only real policies are to repeal, unwind, eliminate government…except of course all the military spending they feed on.