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Does the Republican Party Need to be a Big-Tent Party Again?
Self | 10/4/08 | Self

Posted on 11/04/2008 10:20:52 PM PST by paudio

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To: CaribouCrossing

Listen, noob, McCain was the big tent nominee. That didn’t work so well. Without Palin, he would have lost by even greater numbers. On the other hand, someone to McCain’s right, President Bush, managed to win two times, the second victory being especially important because half the country hated his guts.


41 posted on 11/04/2008 10:36:02 PM PST by NinoFan
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To: wardaddy

Which is even more of a reason we need to get over this idea of GOP “black outreach” it’s a joke.


42 posted on 11/04/2008 10:36:05 PM PST by Def Conservative (Run and hide 08)
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To: tcrlaf

Yes, we need solid conservative ideas and effective communicators to articulate them. We also need leaders that will actually IMPLEMENT those ideas (or at least fight hard for them) when elected. That is part of what has damaged our brand.

We know that, when polled, around 60% of Americans consistently say they are either very or somewhat conservative. No, we don’t need wishy-washy, go along to get along moderates. Those types can vote with us if they want, but their watering down ideas are NOT welcome in our conservative movement.


43 posted on 11/04/2008 10:36:30 PM PST by lquist1
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To: CaribouCrossing

Um, no. The conservative base came out. It was the wishy-washy, good for nothing elitist moderates who bolted for Obama. Elitists like Chris Buckley, Douglas Kmiec, and similar creeps because Obama comes off as one of them and not the common man.


44 posted on 11/04/2008 10:37:09 PM PST by NinoFan
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To: paudio

The Republican Party doesn’t need to betray it’s principles, it just needs to live by them.


45 posted on 11/04/2008 10:37:29 PM PST by exist
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To: paudio

a Big-Tent Party Again?

what the heck has it claimed to be and worked for the last few cycles and for what? alienating a sizeable base, for starters. moderates aren’t worth the spit from a camel’s mouth, imo.

You know where you can stick the big-tent poles, eh? ;-)


46 posted on 11/04/2008 10:37:51 PM PST by NormsRevenge (Semper Fi ... Godspeed)
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To: paudio

You’re a RINO and I hope you burn with the tent that’s going to burn to the ground!

The Big Tent is what destroyed the Republican Party!


47 posted on 11/04/2008 10:39:01 PM PST by dalereed
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To: paudio

We starting a carnival?


48 posted on 11/04/2008 10:39:27 PM PST by Stentor (b. July 4, 1776 - d. January 20, 2009 sorely missed.)
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To: NinoFan
Yes, I agree 100% that without Palin, McCain perhaps would have lost by 30pts. But my point is this: Republican needs to be a 'big tent' where different kind of conservatives can be united again. There are two possibilities to unite them: conservative idea that encompasses various factions, or strong leader who can bring people together despite their various views of conservatism.

The trend that concerns me is that various faction really started to point finger to each others, and accuse the other one of being 'impure'.

49 posted on 11/04/2008 10:39:44 PM PST by paudio (Nobody cried racism when Ken Blackwell, Lynn Swann, and Michael Steele lost to White guys...)
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To: paudio

I think if you want a big tent, the party with the biggest big tent just got elected, and there is probably still room for you underneath. Their big tent is big enough to cover their entire island of misfit toys. Be sure to bring your earplugs, as the bleating of the assembled sheep will be deafening.


50 posted on 11/04/2008 10:39:55 PM PST by Hat-Trick (Do you trust a government that cannot trust you with guns?)
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To: paudio

I agree with you to large extent. Palin excites social conservatives, but not every conservative is a social AND fiscal conservative. As I mentioned in a different post, I know a bunch of conservatives who are fiscal conservatives and were turned off by McCain AND very much by Palin who represented to them a kind of ignorant, Bible-thumping brand of American they can’t relate to.

Are these kinds of conservatives “RINO”s? I don’t know. They consider themselves serious political junkies and take elections seriously. We lost them at “bailout” with McCain and also with his choice of Palin rather than someone they would consider more serious and knowledgeable.

I know Palin got a bum rap and is intelligent and knows a lot about many issues. But let’s be honest - she would not win the presidency.

Bottom line is that we need to start communicating with our own people - call and do surveys about what the most impt issues are to people who consider themselves “conservative” and see what they don’t like to see/hear. We need to find the common denominator of conservatives and find a candidate who is YOUNG (a lot of the loss is due to McCain’s age) and presidential and represents a strong stance on these issues.

If you really look through these exit poll data (7 pages)http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/results/polls/#USP00p1 you will see we lost in virtuallyevery category except 1) old people; 2) white males; 3) white protestnts; 4) weekly or more oten church goers; 5)gun owners. To me, this says we got the repub base all out to vote. But, are we really just white people clinging to guns and bibles? why did we lose EVERY OTHER category? Why did we lose these categories at the same time things like Prop 8 are winning? In some way Obamas comments came true as the McCain supporters were mainly gun and bible toting white people. Now - I’m one of these people, so believe me I’m not putting them down - it’s just disheartening to see this statistic.

We are losing every ethnicity except white. What is going on here? Losing Asians??? Hispanics?? We need to to get our ideas in order and find venues for them that are not talk radio and blogs. As much as the old media is dying, it actually still has influence and we are no where to be found. Esp. with the death of fox news conservativism.


51 posted on 11/04/2008 10:40:13 PM PST by Spera
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To: paudio

Goodbye America, Welcome the New World Order.

Those who pushed this are Bush Sr. and his son. Goodbye Bush, and hope to never hear your name again.


52 posted on 11/04/2008 10:42:05 PM PST by freekitty (Give me back my conservative vote.)
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To: paudio

Lousy Idea!

Your guy who was to prove the point that we needed to reach across the aisle got his head handed to him tonight.

Go back to GOP and conservative principles no more compromising our values so we can get the mythical intelligent middle-of-the road voter.


53 posted on 11/04/2008 10:42:09 PM PST by SoConPubbie (GOP: If you reward bad behavior all you get is more bad behavior.)
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To: paudio

This isn’t the time to discuss any of the that. This is the time to step back and reflect.


54 posted on 11/04/2008 10:42:29 PM PST by nickcarraway
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To: paudio
I think that in the first place you cannot draw any lesson for conservatives from either Bush or McCain since neither one was any kind of authentic conservative.

You can however assume that there are defense conservatives, social conservatives, and fiscal conservatives, who can be drawn together by an effective leader, because they all share a common ground of traditional American values; respect for American exceptionalism; and devotion to freedom rather than whorehouse vanities such as "Fairness" and "inclusiveness."

I dont recall President Reagan ever talking about a "big tent." But he did all right didn't he.

55 posted on 11/04/2008 10:42:42 PM PST by hinckley buzzard
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To: paudio

Big Tent: Lincoln Chaffee, Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Chuck Hegel, Arlen Spector, Peggy Noonan, Christopher Buckley. Tear it down.


56 posted on 11/04/2008 10:42:51 PM PST by PzLdr ("The Emperor is not as forgiving as I am" - Darth Vader)
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To: paudio
While we watch the 'wonders' of unchecked, unleashed Liberalism,...

Conservatism now waits to be re-discovered.

57 posted on 11/04/2008 10:43:18 PM PST by 24-7Freeper
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To: paudio
President Obama will fail as a socialist. Socialism does not work. It has been a proven failure everywhere it has been tried. The next four years will be a disaster for this country. If a conservative party emerges to offer an alternative to the coming economic disaster, we might glimpse some hope.

This election is not just an embarrassment, it is a ruthless rejection of fundamental liberty and capitalism, the foundation of our American success story.

This is no longer the country of "work hard and achieve success." This is NOW the country where the harder you work, the more you will be punished and the fruits of your labor will taken and given to others who are sitting around doing nothing.

58 posted on 11/04/2008 10:44:29 PM PST by NoControllingLegalAuthority
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To: Def Conservative

go to any 2012 thread and you will find folks screamin Jindahl

now he is a fine fellow as much as I know about him but you will never convince me that much of his allure here with a forum that is probably 95% plus white is that Jindahl is percieved as non white.

everybody has been brainwashed into this trap

which is largely why Obama won

I can tell ya that here in nashville, professional upper middle class white liberals would seel their daughters to Obama’s harem

whites in America today have lost any sense of identity of how they got here and who wants their power

i have never seen anything like this

most blacks, liberal or the rare conservative are hardly so naive...ditto latinos


59 posted on 11/04/2008 10:44:55 PM PST by wardaddy (I'm as enthusiastic about Obama as my kinfolks were about Reconstruction)
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To: Sir_Humphrey
This will be difficult but I think the RINOs need to be weeded out of the party. The GOP, IMHO, should stand for small government. I am not sure if RINOs actually believe that.

This is why I wrote this vanity. You believe 'small government' is the essence of GOP. What if we have a small government conservative candidate but is okay with Roe vs Wade? I'm quite sure there would be other 'conservatives' that are against him/her. The 'small government' used to be the mantra, but it's not enough any longer. Some social conservatives would prefer a moderately small government, but with the leader really fights agains abortion.

60 posted on 11/04/2008 10:46:11 PM PST by paudio (Nobody cried racism when Ken Blackwell, Lynn Swann, and Michael Steele lost to White guys...)
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