Posted on 12/25/2012 8:01:29 AM PST by Seizethecarp
WHEN thinking about the state of the Republican Party, I defer to a point that the Democratic consultant James Carville made the other day: “When I hear people talking about the troubled state of today’s Republican Party, it calls to mind something Lester Maddox said one time back when he was governor of Georgia. He said the problem with Georgia prisons was ‘the quality of the inmates.’ The problem with the Republican Party is the quality of the people who vote in their primaries and caucuses. Everybody says they need a better candidate, or they need a better message but — in my opinion — the Republicans have an inmate problem.” The political obsessions of the Republican base — from denying global warming to defending assault weapons to opposing any tax increases under any conditions, to resisting any immigration reform — are making it impossible to be a Republican moderate, said Carville.
Republican politicians today have a choice: either change your base by educating and leading G.O.P. voters back to the center-right from the far right, or start a new party that is more inclusive, focused on smaller but smarter government and market-based, fact-based solutions to our biggest problems.
Because they control the House, this radical Republican base is now holding us all back.
The G.O.P. today needs its own D.L.C. The Democratic Leadership Council was founded by a group of Democratic governors and activists, led by Bill Clinton, in 1985 to lead the party back to the center from a failing leftward course that had resulted in it being repeatedly shut out of the presidency, except after Watergate.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
But, the Dems KILLED the DLC for as being insufficiently Marxist by co-opting popular GOP issues from the Contract with America! It cost Hillary the nomination, IMO, because the Kennedy-Pelosi wing were still p*ssed at the Clintons in 2008 for GATT, NAFTA, welfare reform and "the end of big government."
If you want to see CLOWNS, Tom Friedman, look at all of the Democratic candidates in 2008 and how they have all been shown to be unworthy of the office of president starting with Barry and Hillary who both slept through the 3:00 AM phone call from Benghazi.
Thank God for the Radical, Republican base that is holding us all back...
And for the Radical Republican base from way back that ended slavery.
That's a great quote. I agree we have the same problem.
But the inmates I'm referring to are the total voting public that elected an unqualified and probably ineligible candidate to the most important office in our country.
twice, for God's sake.
the problem with Georgia prisons was ‘the quality of the inmates.’
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I think the first thing that should be done NOW is start putting an end to the ‘open primaries’.
This BS of the ‘other party’ openly having a hand in who they are running against should be discontinued.
Or at least modified to the point that if you vote one way in the Primary you (or your proxy(HA HA)) should have to vote that way in the General - I know there is no way to control that so.....
Also, though I know it works both ways, Only constituents should be allowed to ‘donate’ to your candidacy.
Wasn’t that supposed to be part of the reasoning for the companies to have ‘offices’ in each state - to ‘spread the wealth’?
“...starting with Barry and Hillary who both slept through the 3:00 AM phone call from Benghazi.”
That was George Bush’s fault.
/s/
IMHO
“Send in the clowns!”
Speak for yourself, Tom. . . .
Oh, sorry. He did.
He speaks like these are the only alternatives. They are not. The problem is that the GOP sends a mixed message that varies from week-to-week. To me, the main message is: "I know how to spend my money better than the gov't does." Charles Beard in his classic work points out that the gov't, according to the Constitution, has two obligations: 1) The policing of property rights (e.g., legal system, standing military), and 2) providing social overhead capital (i.e., those things that the private sector won't provide--public highways). Compare that with today's gov't and you might begin to see why I think the gov't has far overstepped its bounds.
Raising taxes on anyone right now is stupid on two levels. First, it takes money from the private sector and dilutes its impact (e.g., the gov't multiplier is always one less than the private sector multiplier). Second, the public sector seems to place money, not where it's needed, but where it buys votes (e.g., free cell phones).
Next, this BS about the rich paying their fair share is another place where the GOP is plain stupid. The top 10% of the income earners foot 71% of the income taxes burden, but the GOP does nothing to educate the public about this or that it is the rich who hire people and make this economic engine run. How about a flat 17% tax so everyone has something in the game? Either way, the GOP has failed miserably in telling the voting public that poor people don't do the hiring in this economy.
Finally, Obozo stumps the land talking about the tax breaks the rich have and how we need to get rid of them. Really? You and your cronies wrote the tax code, you idiot, and you wrote it to provide you with ways to fund your reelection.
I fear for this Republic because people are either too stupid or too lazy to understand the issues at hand. Man...I wish I was this country's dictator...
impossible to be a Republican moderate
Damn right, might as well be a stinking democrat.
We may take his advice though, and start our own party
if we can’t make the GopE see reason and represent us.
>>I think the first thing that should be done NOW is start putting an end to the ‘open primaries’.
This should be a high priority for conservatives. I would suggest that states that went red in the last election have primaries first, then blue states, then states with open primaries. We need to end the insanity of letting so-called independents in Iowa and NH knock half of the field out before any real conservatives even get to vote.
We need to end the insanity of letting so-called independents in Iowa and NH knock half of the field out before any real conservatives even get to vote.
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I know it doesn’t help, but not sure it is the ‘problem’.
One of the reasons these elections are so expensive is having to jump through the hoops...
Can’t say there should be one ‘guide line’ because states have the right to do it the way they wanted to.
I still can’t figure out what ‘the boyz’ were doing not getting themselves registered in VA but that, to me is poor planning. If YOU are running you should know the rules and abide by them. If you are not prepared or willing to do that, shame on you.
Another thing ‘bothering’ me, going back to ‘08 primary when it looked like HRC was a shoo in R Limbaugh started his anti Hillary campaign (Operation Chaos), I believe that RL, as well as many, many, many other pundits figured Hillary could win, but in the long run, a Black Man, much less a Black Man with a ‘foreign sounding’ name wouldn’t stand a chance in the US - whereas HRC could and probably would have won.
I believe that as a result (not entirely) of Op Chaos, HRC lost popularity, and BO, with his juggernaut campaign and endless promises came along and swept to victory -
Yes, the campaign, - same as some of Bill Clintons, took on a look of Germany in 32 with the chants, cheering crowds and desperation of the masses, a shaky last term by Bush and a shaky candidate, John McCain but mention the Germany 32 angle, anything - no matter how slight, perceived to be anti-Black, was promoted by the sympathetic press as racist, or if nothing else, using ‘code words’ to take down.
Think about it (again) here you have a Black pResident, an idiot Vice pResident, a Black AG, a female SofS, a female head of ‘Homeland Security(how 30’s Germany is that) and these fools are allowed to get on a podium and rant and rave that THIS COUNTRY is no place for Blacks, Idiots, or Women as they will never get ahead.... AND THE SHEEPLE ‘bought it’. TWICE and probably a third time if it were ‘possible’.
THE BIGGEST problem of ‘08 is that the R’s (all of them) learned absolutely NOTHING. They went about ‘12 more with their heads up places where the sun don’t shine, pushed another weak, RINO (maybe yes, a nice guy, a caring guy, BUT with the term OUT OF TOUCH, RICH WHITE REPUBLICAN firmly tattooed on his forehead) it wasn’t pretty.
Friedman is an assclown.
The Republican party hasn’t moved to the right - - rather, the nation has been handed over to hordes of invading locusts who have naturally joined the Democrat party’s reliable moocher base. The Democrat party is essentially communist today even if most rats remain bashful about the label. The DLC accomplished nothing permanent and is now basically a non-entity. The Democrat party also remains the party of lies and deceit.
By the way, Friedman, the Republicans control the House, most state legislatures and governor mansions, and close to 50% of voters wanted to flush the African communist Ubama down the toilet like a foul turd. Those facts hardly portend a dying political party.
(adjusting my asbestos undies)To a point, Carville is right. We complain bitterly about the RINOs and moderates in the party but, like dutiful subjects, we line up to re-elect the same RINOs and moderates to public office. IOW, the problem IS us!!
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. What are WE doing every election that doesn't make that definition apply to us?? If we want better elected reps; people who aren't the typical gutless, linguini-spined, "don't-hurt-me! Republicans to represent us, we have to ELECT better people. That means getting someone like Chuck Norris, or Dr. Sowell, or Dr. Williams to run for elected office, NOT the John McCains!! It means that we have to have a bigger presence and bigger say in the "leadership" of the party! Dumping the Bawlin' Boehners and getting more John Towers or Tom DeLays.
If good candidates aren't running, WE have to seek them out and convince them that America needs them MORE than it needs a Lindsey Graham.
If Republicans behave like Democrats, why do we need two parties?
I am here because the company I keep understands human nature. Those here are more logical and reasonable (more times than not) than the ‘Progressives’ who ride herd on the issues. We are RIGHT.
Carville, just another hypocrite SOB who claims he’s a Catholic, but he believes in murdering unborn children and letting Dick and Bruce get “married”. How in the world Mary
Matalin can stand to be near this hypocritical, martian looking clown is beyond me.
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