Posted on 05/02/2013 3:32:23 AM PDT by iowamark
The Politico is reporting (read: let’s wait for a second source to confirm it) that the RNC, well, “[t]he Republican National Committee has chosen a Karl Rove-linked voter data project called Liberty Works to help it compete with Democrats in the digital arena. Liberty Works will team up with Data Trust, whose chairman of the board is former RNC Chairman Mike Duncan, committee spokeswoman Kirsten Kukowski confirmed to Politico.”
This is deeply troubling, if accurate, because I maintain the GOP must distance itself from the Bush administration players to start being successful again. Further, for all of Karl Rove’s fine attributes, he is also largely a direct mail guy who learned at the foot of Lee Atwater and never really learned anything after Atwater passed. I’m just not sure, after the 2012 race, that this is a wise investment. Direct mail guys believe the data is the value and what Team Obama discovered is that the tools to analyze the data are the value.
This concerns me. As a friend said on twitter yesterday, the GOP motto for fixing itself seems to be “incest is best.”
And this whole thing, excepting the incest crack, gets me to Rush Limbaugh.
I keep hearing people say Rush Limbaugh is a detriment to the Republican Party, holding it back, and if we cannot move beyond him we will never win again. Frank Luntz and S. E. Cupp both have taken after Limbaugh lately and they are not alone.
The way I see it, Rush Limbaugh is a fighter. The guys who have taken to actually fighting on values like Rush does, i.e. Ted Cruz, Mike Lee, and Rand Paul have been putting all the points on the board. They’re keeping the fight against Obamacare alive just as the GOP is trying to cave and public animosity for the law grows. But for those three, we’d have gun control legislation. On the House side, the Republican Fight Club of Congressmen Amash, Bridenstine, Broun, Gohmert, Huelskamp, Jones, Massie, Pearce, Salmon, and Yoho have been the only ones leading the fight to stop the Republicans from expanding government at a time distrust of government is a commonly held sentiment.
Limbaugh gives voice to them and those who listen to Limbaugh encourage them. The guys with the spine are the ones we should be supporting and they are the ones Rush Limbaugh supports. But there is something else, which goes full circle to Karl Rove controlling the data.
If you disagree with Rush Limbaugh, he may note that disagreement on the air. You might get some angry constituents calling your office. But that’s it. He’ll be right, you’ll be wrong, but life will go on.
If you disagree with the other side of the GOP, though, they’ll plant stories about you in the New York Times, make sure the editorial board of the Wall Street Journal attacks you, threaten donors and demand they withhold money from you, take away your committee positions, shut down all your legislative initiatives, etc. That’s why the GOP should not put data in Karl Rove’s hands.
The establishment has a worse track record on candidates that those who’d side with Rush Limbaugh. They have an even worse track record on policy (how’d steel tariffs in Pennsylvania work out?). And if you do not tow their line that often loses, they will punish you in ways Rush Limbaugh never would or even could.
But these guys would have you believe it is Rush Limbaugh on the outside, and Senators Cruz, Lee, and Paul and Congressmen Amash, Bridenstine, Broun, Gohmert, Huelskamp, Jones, Massie, Pearce, Salmon, and Yoho who are the ones holding us back. Only among Washington Republicans is that fantasy a reality.
I think the RNC is making a big mistake. The one hope is that conservative super PACs will respond in kind or Karl Rove and the RNC can make clear now that they will not treat the data and the tools to analyze the data as treasure, denying it to the rest of the Republican coalition they just happen to disagree with or cannot control.
What was clever about this was that it sounded like he was saying Romney would beat Obama but it also said he might lose.
If Romney won Rush would say ‘I told you the polls were rigged’
But when Romney lost he could say ‘I told you that they were suppressing GOP voter turnout’
After Romney lost he flipped 180 degrees ‘Romney lost because the country is taken over by moochers’
But he also says :”Conservative arguments (any opinion Rush has) always win when tried”
His messages always contradict each other then he always claims he was right
‘I told you folks...’
‘Have you ordered Lifelock yet...?”
It's true. Just ask President Goldwater.
A Rush-bot defense I have gotten here is :
‘Rush WAS right, Romney should have won. He cant do anything about stupid voters’
But he wasnt saying those voters were stupid when he told his listeners that Mitt and Mccain would win.
Obviously his claim is silly but my bigger point is he also tells his listeners the exactly opposite, that the GOP lost because the country is taken over by moochers.
So he is always right.
Would the average moocher (single Mom) agree with Rush to have her kid's food stamps and free schoool lunches cut while cutting Rush's taxes to make HER life better? There is little chance that they would like that idea no matter how many times Rush says he is right.
Rush's premise that 'his' arguments always win are self promoting, understand that and you understand Rush
“Limbaugh and Rubio are a perfect example. They’re friends, so Rush is loyal to a friend, America be damned.”
Oh, dear! Don’t bring up any thing about Rush/Rubio...some around here will lose their freakin’ minds and accuse you of all sorts of misdeads!
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3014220/posts?page=57#57
WE are NEVER going to solve the problems within the GOP...the blind REPUBLICAN loyalists at all costs won’t allow it! This kind, like Rush, is PART OF THE PROBLEM!
When Karl Rove is in the middle of something, it’s about MONEY and Grover Norquist isn’t far behind. They’re pretty much a packaged deal.
Grover Norquist: A Republican who acts like a Democrat?
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3013887/posts
Pssst...dear Auntie.
No reinforcements are needed.
I’m not the enemy.
The bill is the enemy.
Have a nice day.
If you are sick of libs, why do you use the totally lib mantra that Rush is, "just an entertainer?" I like Rush and do not expect him to be right all the time but he truly is a God send to us. No one else started the boom of conservative talk radio. Somehow I think it may be possible that you and the few who dismiss him are just trying to get your few threads of fame on FR.
Marco Rubio is my Senator and I am tatally disappointed in him for voting to confirm the treasonous John Kerry as SOS.
that's OK, I need a few laughs.
If they didnt do that I would feel irrelevent
:)
Because it allows me to show a number of examples that illustrate how Rush is just an entertainer, as above.
Let me guess: Rush says that it is a liberal mantra to characterize him as 'just an entertainer' so it must be so, because Rush says he is always right.
Got news for you, the libs don't call Rush an entertainer, they call him ‘spiritual leader of the GOP’ This is the quality of info Rush feeds you, completely wrong.
Rush's business only depends on listeners who are not as smart as he is. And there are obviously plenty of them as he is very successful $$$$.
Correction : Rush is a 'totally self serving' entertainer. Sorry Rush HA-HA!
The RNC seems to be looking for how best to become irrelevant. They have tin ears at best, or are totally DEAF! The only other explanation is that they want to stick their middle finger in our faces.
Rush was in the right place at the right time. There used to be something called the fairness doctrine that was eliminated in the late 80s'. Prior to that having a radio talk show like Rush has was not possible/practicable. So Rush came a long at the prefect time, right after the repeal of the fairness D. Plus he had no competition since the fairness doctrine had made talk radio impossible. Rush like Microsoft was created by federal government. Had there been no "Fairness Doctrine" Rush would not have been a big deal since talk radio would have been common place in the late 80's. Rush a man of modest talent and gigantic ego just got lucky.
Re Microsoft, when the federal government select the IBM PC as its' standard for desktop computers Bill Gates like Rush won the lotto. Their were better OSs around and better PC around but gov wanted (and needed) a standard so better or worst DOS and the IBM PC was it.
sickoflibs probably calls Rush an entertainer because Duh he is!
Since there are so few of you Rush haters on FR, I guess the rest of us are dumb. Thank God there is only a small number of you self-absorbed freaks.
” Limbaugh and Rubio are a perfect example. They’re friends, so Rush is loyal to a friend, America be damned.”
I started listening to Rush in the late 80’s, when he was a 50,000/yr local radio guy in Sacramento, CA. After 20+ years
I’m pretty much done.
” Rush has a trick he does to take both sides of certain arguments so he can later claim he was right.
He is against amnesty but for Rubio.”
Rubio finished it for me.
“Since there are so few of you Rush haters on FR, I guess the rest of us are dumb. Thank God there is only a small number of you self-absorbed freaks.”
More liberal tactics...the same response when any of us criticize Obama...’IT’S HATE!!’.
Don’t step on the GOP GAWDS! No criticism allowed!!!
Like I said, LIBERAL tactics!
pointing out Rush's flaws == self absorbed ???
Did Rush tell you that? Do you ever question stuff like this he says that makes no sense?
I know he says he's always right so he must be right.
Its funny that you perceive that we non-(Rush)-cultists are so few in number because we seems to be outnumbering you on this thread.
Funny how that works.
Did Rush tell you to say that?
Rush HATERS!
Palin HATERS!
Bush HATERS!
Ryan HATERS!
Rand HATERS!
Rubio HATERS!
So much hate....so little time : )
BDSers, PDSers, RDSers.......etc
Cultists are always entertaining, They hang onto their favorite public figure like a three year hangs onto Mom.
Sometimes dealing with these people who blindly follow political personalities regardless of the facts you throw at them reminds me of rock concerts with teen age girls throwing their panties on stage. It’s embarrassing! The only thing missing is a stadium full of pot smoke.
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