The GOP is fortunate in one aspect. There is enough time between now and the election for other issues to overtake the Foley Scandal in the minds of most Americans. But if the GOP does lose control of the House, it will be based on the unforgiving outrage of enough social conservatives deciding to vent their anger at Republicans and staying home on election day.
You are absolutely right, RM. A close look at the polls indicates no increase in strength for the Dems, but a decrease in strength for the pubbies.
I might also add that the Bush '43 team has done a bad a job of using the bully pulpit as did the Bush '41 team--and I never thought I would see a worse performance than Bush '41.
Our supporters are disheartened. The words Dien Bien Phu keep coming to mind--a place where the weapons were there, but the morale had disappeared and the leadership dithered and feared.
McVey
And then those same (now nose-less) self-proclaimed 'Voices of social conservatism' will be stunned and unable to fathom why the GOP shifts to attracting moderates and nominates a Giuliani. If the fickle few always threaten to torpedo the party if they don't get 100% their way and in fact do cost them this election, why on earth would the GOP continue to rely on them?
Four weeks in politics is like eternity and by November Foley will be ancient history. It's beginning to look like wishful thinking on the part of the news media.
"But if the GOP does lose control of the House, it will be based on the unforgiving outrage of enough social conservatives deciding to vent their anger at Republicans and staying home on election day."
Fiscal conservatives are tired also...tired of the bs...
It'll be based on the unforgiving fiscal conservatives who are upset that the Pubbies under Bush have been bigger spenders than even past DemonRAT congresses. Many have not forgiven Bush for his "No Child Left Undrugged" initiative and big expansion of the Dept of Education as well. I know that I'm tired of having to pay private school tuition as well as taxes for public schools while even in Utah the Pubbies don't have the guts to take on the filthy teacher's union.
If the Republicans want the conservatives to vote for them then they have been acting in a very peculiar manner. The old "But Democrats are worse" excuse is cutting less mustard.
I'm gonna vote for them and hold my nose once more. But I know plenty of conservatives who are staying home in disgust. And Foley has nothing to do with that. There are so many ways that the Pubes have alienated their basic constituency that you couldn't begin to list them. Too many conservatives are moving to the opinion that there really is little difference between the two parties. The Pubes seem to think that they can just throw a couple of bones at election time again and the conservatives will line up for them. A lot of conservatives here also believe that after the election the border fence law will simply die on the vine and no money will be allocated for the fence. It wouldn't be the first time the Pubes have betrayed the base.
A lot of conservatives are sick of the high handed and arrogant way the National Republicans treat them. If they stay home the Pubbies are screwed.
What the stupid MSM and Dems forget is that we don't go to the polls for just ONE person. On the ballot are many local judges and they have sure shown us the difference that a bad Judge can make in the whole society.
So let's say that I'm mad about Foley and I'm not going to vote for my US congressman....... I'm sure going to the polls to vote for all the Judges down the ballot.
For example when lawmakers in Austin TX (the seat of the government) goes crazy then we depend on the 3rd court of appeals to STOP the insanity. It gets all of the cases before they get to the Texas Supreme court and those are very few that go on.
So understand that Republicans can't stay home because of ONE person or they don't vote for the others that are important on the ballot.
I know the DEMS would love to have that happen but we are smarter than that!
Yes, blame it all on conservatives that have one the last three elections for Bush. No one else did anything stupid, it's all conservatives fault. Even though there is no evidence of that, it's the best things to do. Never acknowledge any mistakes, just blame it on the base.