Hi BlackElk.
Establishments come and go. If the Tea Party took over the GOP, it would have its own establishment that would become static and attempt to hold on to power at all costs. There is no avoiding that. Being against the "establishment" isn't going to matter if we don't have some new movement that really unifies the right and can take over and become the new "establishment".
The big problem on the right at the moment is how fractured conservatives are. There is a big schism forming between conservatives who don't want to give up the social issues, and the younger generations of conservatives who are far more libertine and don't care about stuff like gay marriage and don't support social order laws. Younger people have always tended to be more liberal, but right now the Republican party is perceived as so out of touch they won't even consider it. Minorities too see the Republican party as something that they have nothing in common with.
I think the future of the GOP is probably more in the libertarian(ish) direction. I don't like Wrong Paul, but I think his "liberty" movement is something to pay attention to. I think you saw people like Sarah Palin repeatedly compliment Paul and say conservatives need to take him seriously and think about what he is saying. On foreign policy and defense, Paul is woefully naive in my view. He also attracts the nutty conspiracy types since he won't disown those people, and that makes him pretty unacceptable as well. Saying that though, his domestic/economic message is good solid conservative/libertarian stuff that paired with opposition to the drug war and some of his other themes might really resonate.
I think traditional movement conservatives and new and growing generations of libertarianish conservatives are going to have to find a way to unite. I suspect that means less focus on social issues, drop the libertarian isolationist stuff, and really unite on the rest of the domestic policy where we already agree. If we do that we can actually stand for something big, exciting and different enough to break the mold Republicans find themselves cast in.
All these stooges care about is $$$ and sucking up to the nameless, faceless megadonors who finance the existence of the spineless and unprincipled at the top of the national party. Personally, I hope that Muffy loses her trust fund almighty and has to wait tables at the local diner. At least that will give her SOMETHING useful to do with her previously privileged life. If she is really lucky, she will be expelled from the Junior League for practicing manual labor.
I am and will continue to be uber PO'd at the current House "leadership" who arranged for a carpetbagger and Combiner from Chicagoland to be forced onto our rural Northwestern Illinois and verrrrry GOP district. They raised $600,000 in corrupt $$$$ from Texas construction contractors to defeat the best public official I have ever had or will ever have: Don Manzullo (IL-16) after 22 years of solid conservative service to this district and ITS PEOPLE and not for the corrupt K Street crowd. Manzullo's crime against the spineless stooges in "leadership" was to send Weepy John (sniffle, sniffle) a letter asking him to call Congress into session in December, 2012, simply to pass a resolution saying no more debt limit increases for Obozo. Well, the GOP-E were having none of that kind of attitude which might interfere with business as usual.
The carpetbagger is Adam Kinzinger, originally elected as a Tea Party Congressman from a district south of Chicago (over near Indiana but much more corrupt), Kinzinger promptly reported for duty and donned his kneepads to relate to the GOP "Leaders." Like them, he is nothing but a whore and he will never be anything but a whore. Hopefully he will be primaried out of his nomination. If that does not work, then he should have a third party conservative castrate him politically even if it means a temporary Demonrat Congressthing from one of the most Republican districts in the country. A Demonrat had the seat for 2 years in the last 50.
Alas, I am no longer young but I once was. I was a state officer of a Libertarian Party when I was in law school. I thought I favored abortion being legal (but would not resort to it personally) until I actually read Roe vs. Wade as soon as it was decided. If that was the best argument that Herod Blackmun could muster for legalizing abortion, then there simply was NO argument worth hearing in favor of abortion. I resigned from Libertarian Party office when many Libertarians were reluctant to oppose abortion. They have as little influence today as they did forty years ago. Drugs, abortion and antiwar nonsense are simply not a viable platform. Young people also grow up and become more socially conservative.
In the next election, I was the GOP Congressional nominee. Along the way, I chaired College Republicans, Young Republicans, Young Americans for Freedom and Ronald Reagan's challenge to Gerald Ford in 1976, all in my then home state and served on the YR and CR national committees.
I was libertarian then and so were most of my recruits. Almost none favored abortion once they were properly introduced to the horrific rationale of Roe vs. Wade for baby-killing.
I disagree with many people here on outreach to minority voters. To the best of my knowledge, my English, Irish, German and Scottish/Scots Irish (by way of Canada) ancestors entered this country without "papers" or permission from any poobah. I am a Catholic and I have every confidence that Mexican and other Latino voters can and should be successfully approached on social issues. Social issues are the part of the GOP platform that finds ready acceptance among Latinos. If the brand name "Republican" were not soooooo damaged among blacks due to the usual ham-fisted stupidity and absolute tin ear of the GOP-E, many blacks also agree with us on social issues. Both groups are amenable to free enterprise and economic freedom so long as they don't think of Republicans as seeing minorities only as potential prisoners.
Young people will always be more libertarian but will grow out of it as they age, as they have children of their own, etc. The GOP-E passionately support abortion a) as a means of cutting down population growth among minorities who might want to tax them and b) as a reserved opportunity for Muffy not to disgrace the Pecksniffian family name.
The GOP would also do well to attack the Demonrats on Social Security for draining the mountain of money paid in SS taxes to fund each and every corrupt Demonrat special interest. Hold their feet to the fire. Make them explain to the young how Social Security can possibly be there for them when they retire given its financial condition and the absolute refusal of the Obozos, the Reeds, the Pelosis, et al. to even admit there is a problem. Will it be necessary to raise FICA taxes to 20% for employer and another 20% per employee to save the SS system? Will the libs take general revenues and pour them into SS? Ditto Medicare.
Does this nation need a military second to none and well equipped to crush any threat to our country? Yes, it does whatever El Run Paulie may hallucinate. Blunderbusses, rowboats and three-cornered hats with plastic propellers on top won't cut it. Nor will a perversion ridden rank and file in the military. Give the "gays" a pass on military service and let the actual men do the fighting when necessary.
The GOP needs to make a career out of outreach to Catholics. The GOP seldom gets a majority of the Catholic vote as it did under Nixon and Reagan. Why would any Catholics worthy of the name want to vote GOP when they would not be caught dead at any social event where Bush the Elder would be comfortable or Mitt Romney for that matter. When Obozo and Sebelius and Pelosi were cramming abortion and birth control funding down the throat of the Roman Catholic Church and other churches of similar views in Obozocare, did we hear a peep out of Bush the Elder, out of James Baker, out of Howard Baker, out of Nancy Landon Kassebaum Baker, out of almost any of the GOP-E???? Of course not, the issue meant nothing to the trust fund and investment portfolio set whom they worship.
Don't be so sure that "we" are in agreement on domestic issues other than social issues. Or that any agreement that may exist has much excitement to offer. At my age, I am livid at Obozo for the miserable COLAs that we SS recipients have suffered lately. 1.7% (less increases in Medicare premiums and Supplemental insurance). In 2013, I am $15 per month lighter than in 2012. Gasoline? Food? Insurance? State and local taxes? 1.7% less increased Medicare premiums???? Really???
It is often a good idea to coalesce around a candidate rather than to seek some united front on issues. Nixon was a whore but worth voting for against McGovern. Reagan was a general delight. Let the issue groups recruit and build movements. "Republicans" for babykilling will get about as far as "Republicans" for gun control.
We know what many (most?) Republicans believe as to issues and it is not a bad mix. We need more issue promotion 24/7/365 by the issue groups. We need an attack machine to exceed that of the Demonrats (as Andrew Breitbart was building). We need to send our candidates into the ghetto and barrio and everywhere else in this country to LISTEN and to persuade and to socialize with ordinary folks. We need to foster a renaissance of employment for ordinary folks. We need GOP candidates at factory gates (if any are left in business). We need to stimulate patriotism and nationalism and respect for the military and their job. We need to gather together the religious conservatives of this country of whatever denomination and mount a full-scale assault on secular humanism. We need to be the party that will force colleges and universities to live within the means of ordinary folks and to be accountable as to curriculum.
Can we break the stranglehold of public skewels and teachers' unions over primary and secondary edumakashun and its pathetic results? Break the chokehold of colleges and universities in credentialing folks for future employment? Dissolve the maze of often useless regulations and exorbitant fees that prevents entry into many lines of work without paying tribute and $50 grand a year to leftist "higher ed" teachers and schools? I could write a book as many her could but you get the idea.
I have no use whatsoever for Ron Paul but so far his son Senator Rand Paul has proven a far savvier leader and a far more credible potential POTUS candidate. I would not blame him for his father's sins against sanity. Marco Rubio may make a great candidate for POTUS. He has a great biography and appeal beyond narrow party confines. Ted Cruz ditto. Look hard at Tim Scott, South Carolina's new senator. Nikki Haley and Susan Martinez as well. Maybe if we nominate people like these instead if unprincipled and boring old business farts like Mittler with no principles and no fire, just maybe, we could do a lot better with the voters.
Want something really exciting??? How about the GOP getting 75% of the Catholic vote when Catholics are convinced against instinct that Republicans just may be the real deal, may care whether they live or die, really care about helping poor people to achieve (by their own hard work) the American Dream, care about babies, marriage, guns, and religious freedom. Then we can agree on getting rid of an awful lot of expensive wasteful gummint and stupefying regulations. Muffy's trust fund may have to be put on hold as a priority for a while but it will be well worth it.