Posted on 08/22/2002 1:02:12 AM PDT by kattracks
Edited on 05/26/2004 5:08:13 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
August 22, 2002 -- IT WAS supposed to be the summer of stockholder discontent with Democrats crowing about a sharp political shift in their favor - but instead, Republicans are now heaving a big sigh of relief.
The stock market has been edging up. Greedy CEO fraudsters are getting perp-walked. The first charges just hit Enron. President Bush's economic "forum" got panned by the pundits but was a hit in the heartland.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
Work together for the well being of the country and quit being assholes. Stop treating us like we are stupid.
"People are tired of controversy. It's cute when it's on TV and called ‘Survivor.' It's not cute when it's your member of Congress," says a Republican strategist."
Well, I'm no expert in particular, but I DO know more than a little about strategy.........and this "Republican strategist" is an idiot.
Barr lost for a simple reason. When redistricting occurred in Georgia, he and Linder wound up fighting it out......in a district that previously had been heavily Linder country. Linder was, in effect, the "incumbent" in that race. It had NOTHING to do with Barr's "confrontational" style, at least not in the way this guy is saying.
Barr is a great American and WILL be back in office, double quick. Just watch..........
The even better news is that most Democrat voters who voted on the "generic" ballot voted for "Printed on Recycled Paper".
People don't want to hear about blame, they want the economy to get better and the Democrats don't have a positive economic message - they just want to blame Bush."
I think this is the key. In the past, the Dems could win elections by spreading fear and gloom and doom. This approach still generally works among seniors (no offense to the many enlightened seasoned citizens on FR!), but it's not selling with the broad electorate.
With McAuliffe at the helm (who knows no other approach), the Dems could be facing MAJOR losses. This is not to say the Republicans in Congress have much to be proud of these days, but they may get a gift if they can cast themselves as problem-solvers and hitch their wagons to the President...
I don't know about that, but this I do know: over the short term, whatever you want the market to do, it will do the opposite.
When they based their November strategy on what the market was doing in July, they were betting on the short-term market.
(steely)
Because they are absolutely ignorant of economics. Great politicians (ie, getting support from constituencies by screwing with our liberty), but simply awful economists.
Their is just one factor to be determined. The question a political strategist must ask is "Are things going well for the nation right now?"
If the answer is yes, then the swing voters (the people who decide all elections)will want zero change. This reaction surprises both the left and the right. When things are going well the center wants zero change. In those situations the party in power has a problem. The party base wants change. It wants its agenda proposed, promoted and passed. The center wants nothing changed. Just keep an even keel and keep the good times rolling is the centers desire. The base always wants to use the good time popularity to change things.
Thus in good times it is good strategy for an out of power party to oppose all that the in power party proposes. Gridlock is super popular with the oppostion and the center in good times. It also frustrates the party in power. Its base will become unhappy if little is done to make changes.
When the answer to the question is no... when things are not going well, there is a much different strategy that must be employed. Then the center wants change. It wants plans to fix things and it wants both parties to work together to fix them. When times are not good nearly everone wants change. The question is will the center want the left to change things or the right to change things. The party that only opposes or offers no change is toast. See George Bush circa 1992.
When times are dangerous or bad, an out of party power must propose fixes on most issues. The out of power party must demand that the in power party leaders work "WITH THEM" to fix things. That is what it takes to win if you are out of power in less than good times.
But if the IN POWER PARTY propose fixes and the out of power party only opposes them, the center will vote for the in power party. When only one wing proposes fixes it is no contest. The center always goes for the side that wants to fix. That gives the fixing party total control.
In the 1930's FDR kept his popularity by proposing fixes. His fixes did not work. But his fixes were the only fixes offered. It was proof that when the choice is no fix against a failed fix... the failed fix wins. That is what less than good times brings. The Republicans of the 1930s played into FDR's hands by trashing his plans and offering none of his own.
An interesting thing in 1948 was Truman and the Republicans were both proposing fixes. Truman agreed to adopt the proposed Republican fixes. In September of 1948 Thruman called the Congress back into session to adopt the Republican fixes. The stupid Republicans under Bob Taft refused to pass the proposals. They proved they were still about opposing and Truman proved he was about working togther and fixing.
It cost the Republicans a president Dewey.
This time the parties have reversed the strategies employed 50 or 60 years ago. Bush is proposing and the Democrats are opposing. They Democrats saw how well gridlock worked for Repubicans in the booming 1990s. The Democrats don't understant that what worked in the booming 90's is 180 degrees wrong for the downturned and dangerous 2,000s.
Fixes and cooperation are back in as they always are in bad or dangerous times. Just as it was in the 30s and 40's. It is the Democrats that don't have a clue.
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