Posted on 01/24/2009 2:39:29 PM PST by CincyRichieRich
Limbaugh Responds to Obama [Byron York]
According to an account in the New York Post, President Barack Obama yesterday told Republican leaders, "You can't just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done." With George W. Bush now off the stage, it may be that Obama and some of his fellow Democrats view Limbaugh, and not John Boehner, Mitch McConnell, or any other elected official, as the true leader of the Republican opposition. This morning I asked Rush for his thoughts...
(Excerpt) Read more at corner.nationalreview.com ...
We talk a lot on FR...we postulate, we propose...our current House and Senate leaders are fakes and cannot be used in such an effort...perhaps a couple or three are real...the others are just part of their fiefdoms. Am I nuts or can anyone translate my logic and explain the current landscape better than I?
Please don't reply with sarcasm or unhelpful comments...let's have an intelligent conversation.
Starting in 2000, the Democrats have been building a massive grassroots and fundraising network, aided by a cadre of left-wing billionaires and activists. They formed numerous organizations like Democracy Alliance, ACT, Change to Win, etc etc and worked in concert with unions, left-wing bloggers, ACORN, Moveon.org, etc etc.
The GOP once had an edge in grassroots organizing and GOTV, but I think our model is outdated. It’s going to take a lot of hard work, some good ideas, some good leaders, and a lot of money to catch up with the left.
Yes, grassroots organizations are forming right now, and not all are Republican but include Democrats alienated by the corruption within their own party. There is intense interest at forming a PAC.
See the following site:
http://texasdarlin.wordpress.com/2009/01/23/congratulations-senator-gillibrand/#comments
It’s not that our grass-roots Orgs are innefective, it’s that Dem GRO’s have decided to disregard EVERY campaign law on the books, and do so without fear of EVER being prosecuted for it.
$200 Million+ in illegal overseas contributions should be just the BEGINNING of the investigations, but that will never happen now. We have been delivered Fascism on a dark horse, paid for by the Soros network.
I’m going to put my flame-retardant suit on as I throw in my 2 cents:
In the short-term, Repubs need to understand that Obama is riding a huge wave of popular support from the media and the public. Even intelligent arguments against his plans will be interpreted as partisan bickering. So, I think the kissing up the Obama is a necessary evil.
Secondly, Congress has a low approval rating. Repubs need to exploit this. Obama wants to divide and conquer the Repubs. The Repubs need to play the same game. They can play nice with Obama, credit Obama with wisdom, and, at the same time, demonize Pelosi and Reid. Point out the arrogance of their leadership and their pork-barrel positions. Try to court the blue-dog Democrats and make sure they have a friend in the Repubs. I’m sure the blue-dogs are just as uncomfortable with Reid and Pelosi as the Repubs are.
Next, go after Obama’s cabinet after the administration stumbles. They can always say that they voted for their confirmation on good faith and then when they start slipping, point out Clinton’s conflict of interests, Geitners tax recklessness... After all, Repubs can say, how can Obama succeed when he is surrounded by corrupt idiots?
On any crucial issues (like health care), Repubs should do their best to credit Obama, but tie things up by demonizing Reid and Pelosi for any of their contributions.
All this is contigent that the Repubs, conservaties and RINOs can work together and stop the infighting. That, of course, is a huge, and perhaps faulty assumption.
Hannity and Limbaugh should continue doing what they do best and go straight after Obama. They aren’t politicians and if Obama tries to silence them, it may be interpreted as overreaching.
As far as a leader goes, it will need to be someone from the outside, simply that the aforementioned infighting that will occur will force Senators and Congressment to take both sides of the issues at times, siding with Obama but siding against the Legislators. The leader will have to be able to be a vocal critic of socialist ideas, but more importantly, communicate the conservative message with clarity. They will have to speak the truth.
As much as I like Palin, I don’t think she yet has the credibility that most of America (especially in purplish states) can accept. People I’ve talked to think she’s dumb, or scary. I think it’s a shame what the media has done to her, but unless she can find a way to counter that perception, it will continue to stick.
I think, hold your breath, Mitt Romney has the finances, can claim outsider status, some name recognition, and the gravitas to communicate the public on economic and conservative matters clearly. As Freepers often point out, he does have to be very careful to be consistent, which is certainly not his forte. He has to complete his transformation into a true conservative and find a way to appeal to Southern voters, or else he will continue to be unelectable.
For all his faults, I just don’t see anybody else right now that can fit the bill. Newt is popular in conservative circles, but he’s very negatively thought of in centrist and liberal circles.
This is going to be a rough ride regardless filled with puke-worthy ass-kissing. It will also involve a lot of compromising of principles. Fortunately, puke-worthy ass-kissing compromising is one thing that all of our legislators are good at.
My personal prediction is that the Repubs will not be able to unite well enough to counter the Dems and will have, as Dick Morris says, France. There will be no difference between a Repub and a Dem in 12 years. :(
Great info...I wonder who on FR or other has great grant-writing skills or even Professional Project Management skills/Business Analyst skills who can approach some Conservative millionaire/billionaire folks with requests for “grants”/donations. If a 5013c is formed or other, such funds can go a long way...folks like Carl Linder and others are fairly conservative and wealthy. Just some thoughts...
Any Freepers out there with such skillsets?
And the current “stimulus package” has BILLION$ for groups like ACORN who will help the ‘Rats cheat their way into power.
Yes, Rush has now taken the place of GW Bush as far as the Libs are concerned.
I agree with your synopsis 100%. Man, as conservatives we need to start our grassroots effort NOW! Start small, with any neutral or reasonable friends, relatives, neighbors, etc. and let them know as things go down why they are wrong & why they won't work. You will be proven right in the long term and our view will then hold more credence at election time.
I myself, am feeling a little sense of desperation right now. I look at my young children and wonder what kind of path we're laying out for them, but then I take heart at what happened during the Carter years. The GOP brand was stained, the libs took temporary control with Carter and the end result was Ronald Reagan.
It's our challenge to make history repeat itself. God willing, our leaders will emerge. Its up to us to start laying the groundwork for them.
THe repubs could try to praise obama/demonize Pelosi co., but it will not work because the press will not give them cover. They will ask Obama/Pelosi about it, and they will just start talking about how hypocritical the pubs are, trying to divide and conquer the dems and play politics. And the MSM will give them the means to talk about and bash the pubs.
It only works if the media spins it that way, and doesn’t give the other side time to debunk it. Since the MSM are the democrat media arm, it won’t work the way you’d like, it’ll backfire and be turned into a pub slam.
Super reply...no flame retardant needed.
The only thing I’d add is Newt is a great magnet and can be used as a decoy if his ego would allow it.
Again, I thought and may still, think Ralph Reed was a sharp tack.
Rush and Hannity are great, but talking to the fence riders who really decide the elections, is the hard nut.
To do this, we have to INVENT something to go over the heads of the media, and that, is the next either invention, or rather said, “rule-breaker” media or other invention. Examples that break the mold are Flicker, Youtube, Linkedin, etc. These plus a ton of cash plus organization are what’s needed. One issue is the Silicon Valley folks who invent this stuff are usually the paper billionaires who are commies that of course, still love their money and want to spend ours to fullfil their dreams. Find a rich conservative start-up techie to fund it...so, how do we go over the media’s heads to talk to the people?
Right you are...they know it, the media knows it, and still we need to go over the media’s heads to talk to and educate the people in a sound byte fashion.
To do this, a new, rule-breaking, disruptive technology is needed that the left does not have access to ...I haven’t the answer, but perhaps Savage, Rush, Hannity and many other conservatives can pool some 5013c monies to fund such a plan...their egos would be needed to come together...unfortunately, that is hard (not impossible).
we need a rich techie or company who can put their brains to use in this. I’m more convinced of this than ever. Stuff like pop-up messages on cell phones with educational info (quick info, not paragraphs like I’m writing). Links to proven facts to educate.
I don’t think I’m crazy.
Right you are...they know it, the media knows it, and still we need to go over the media’s heads to talk to and educate the people in a sound byte fashion.
To do this, a new, rule-breaking, disruptive technology is needed that the left does not have access to ...I haven’t the answer, but perhaps Savage, Rush, Hannity and many other conservatives can pool some 5013c monies to fund such a plan...their egos would be needed to come together...unfortunately, that is hard (not impossible).
we need a rich techie or company who can put their brains to use in this. I’m more convinced of this than ever. Stuff like pop-up messages on cell phones with educational info (quick info, not paragraphs like I’m writing). Links to proven facts to educate.
I don’t think I’m crazy.
It’s a shame that people rely on the media to tell them what to think of a person, that is the scariest thing of all. Sarah does need more experience, yes you are correct on that, and I have no idea who these people are who have told you that Sarah is “Dumb” show them her state of the state address and ask them the same question again and let me know if they still feel the same way. I am not saying that she still needs to get her feet wet and gain more experience because she does, but she is definitely on her way to having a great future and perhaps in 2012, or 2016 she will run for President, will she win, it all depends on the state of the Republican party. Look at this party, they are all jumping ship and going to the Democratic side saying “We all must join together” I don’t remember Dems saying after Bush won in 2000 that they have to join together, they were too busy crying how Bush stole the election. I want to see all the RINOS come out so that we can throw them overboard, who needs them. Obama will crash and burn, it’s already started with the laws he is implementing, they are destructive to this country, once enough people open up their damn eyes and see him for what he is we will have our chance to win. Some idiots unfortunately you will never convince, such as the sub-humans who post on the adn, Alaska had an earthquake today, which had NOTHING at all to do with Sarah Palin, they are blaming her for the earthquake, yes these are the people we are all dealing with in this New America under Obama, it’s sick
It’s up to the GOP, grassroots conservative activists, and the conservative media to shine light on these travestys.
You could be right, but I think that a single-digit approval rating for Congress shows that it is possible to demonize a Dem-majority Congress. If something is going wrong with the country, the media will look for someone to blame. It won't be Obama, and it's hard to blame Repubs when they are the super-minority. They will sooner blame Pelosi and Reid before Obamessiah.
“Please don’t reply with sarcasm or unhelpful comments...let’s have an intelligent conversation.”
- I’m hardly the most serious guy around this forum (actually, I hardly even have committed myself to serious studies of the English language).
But, in case any, Obama is a joke as far as I’m concerned.
America is not.
Neither is Europe, although I suspect many Americans today, more or less rightfully, believe it to be.
The most common name in America isn’t Obama.
Over here in Europe, it isn’t Chirac.
I saw in one of the blogs they posted a video of Romney asking Neil Boortz about the possibility of purchasing a newspaper on the most recent NRO cruise. Boortz had an interesting reply saying essentially that the newspapers are a dying breed. Instead you go after the internet because that's where all the interest is in. Romney also mentioned some "tricks" he did in order to get positive media coverage during his time in Massachusetts that I thought were interesting, such as weekly publicity stunts involving his digging asphalt with construction workers, etc.
Personally, I think media is only a small part of the problem. The bigger part is that our culture has changed radically from the entreprenerial mindset that made this country great to the "win the lottery, or sue your neighbor" victim mentality mindset. Repubs have completely lost the "cool" factor. Our education system and popular culture is to blame. There needs to be celebrity involvement to re-emphasize independence and self-responsibility. I've always thought that heavy metal had a very liberterian streak to it back in the 70s and 80s, so, at least liberterian ideology is something is not impossible to catch the imagination of young folks.
WesternCulture - you’re input and opinions are highly valued...thanks!
I think we “non-Koolaid-drinking” Americans see your point and appreciate the real hope in your message.
We can talk all day about Sarah Palin, but that really won’t accomplish much. We need to focus on how to get the infrastructure around her to make it happen...if there isn’t any infrastructure to insulate and protect her, then she’ll be picked off like what is going on now...that’s likely happening with whomever is available to take Chirac’s place in the conservatives in France.
Is that such a bad thing? Rush is ready, willing, and able to promote conservatism to the public. He is a vastly more formidable opponent of the left than Bush ever was.
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