Posted on 12/29/2004 9:07:14 PM PST by CHARLITE
Political operatives on both sides of the aisle are discussing the 2008 election as if it is only days away. But hardly a dismissal of the important issues facing President Bush in his second term, this talk of the next presidential race is representative of the pivotal changes in the political landscape that occurred last November.
Unfortunately, the forces of “moderation” are still at work within the GOP, threatening to undermine the tremendous gains made by conservatives in the elections. Arnold Schwarzenegger contends that the Republican Party should move “to the center” (which means to the left) on social issues.
Voices from within the RNC contemplate running a social “moderate” as the best means of countering a potential Hillary candidacy. And political strategist Dick Morris warned against GOP senators playing hardball in response to Democrat filibusters of judicial nominees.
But although the Republican Party cannot afford to become arrogant and heavy handed in the wake of its recent victories, neither should it be fixated on gaining the approval of its political rivals, or the avoidance of controversy.
Americans voted as they did in hopes of fending off the catastrophe of a Kerry Presidency, but also because they desire the restoration of conservative and traditionally pro-American/pro-Constitutional government in Washington. So far, signs have been mixed.
President Bush remains devoted to an immigration policy that, aside from minor window dressing, amounts to “open borders.” In the best of times, a plan of this nature can be detrimental to national cohesiveness. But, with America facing the ongoing threat of terrorist incursions, such an approach verges on the suicidal.
Fortunately the Congress, operating on a level that is much closer to the “grassroots,” is asserting itself against the President’s effort to further weaken barriers to illegal immigration. Though internal conflict isn’t good for the overall unity of the party, if Congressional Republicans remain steadfast, they will avert a situation that many conservatives would regard as nothing less than betrayal.
Second only to the War on Terror in the minds of conservatives is the looming menace of judicial activism. And on this front, the President appears to be rising to the fight. Having perhaps recognized the need to abandon his “new tone” of compromise and conciliation, he announced his intention to re-nominate twenty of his previous candidates for federal judgeships. This move constitutes a direct confrontation with filibustering Democrats.
Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the Democrats’ new Minority Leader, claimed to be “extremely disappointed,” and described the nominees as “extremist.” Other prominent Democrats have similarly excoriated the President. Nevertheless, if Senate Republicans remain true to principle and play their strategy correctly, the situation could prove to be a huge “win/win” for them.
A continuation of the Democrat filibusters, formerly spearheaded by then Minority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota, may well place Reid, a “red state Democrat” on the same track that led to Daschle’s early retirement from public office.
Furthermore the so-called “nuclear option,” being pondered by the Republicans as a counter to the power of the filibuster, would gradually lower the number of votes required to end debate and allow an “up or down” decision on nominees. This process could place an unwelcome spotlight on those Democrats who still choose to obstruct a simple majority vote as stipulated by the Constitution.
Democrats’ dismay, resulting from the country’s “red shift” during recent elections, has been made evident by some other phenomenal events of the post election period. According to a December 24 Los Angeles Times article, the Democrat Party is actually rethinking its historically radical pro-abortion philosophy.
Meanwhile Hillary, in an attempt to distance herself from the “Haight Ashbury” liberalism that was her trademark throughout her eight years as “co-president,” now sounds positively hawkish and on occasion, even “religious.”
Republicans ought to realize that phony posturing towards the center by Democrats only serves to blur the lines and make it easier for those on the left to masquerade as conservatives. Consequently, Republicans should respond with a bold, unabashedly conservative agenda. Aside from simply being the right thing to do, this tactic will make nearly impossible for Hillary, or any liberal Democrat, to deceive the electorate with a fraudulent conservative facade.
This is no time for Republicans to become detached from their conservative base. Any future political fortunes are critically dependant on their ability to recognize and take advantage of this chance for leadership that will otherwise remain only fleetingly in their grasp.
About the Writer: Christopher Adamo is a freelance writer from southeastern Wyoming, where he has been involved in grassroots political activites for several years. He maintains a website at
http://www.chrisadamo.com.
Christopher receives e-mail at adamo.chronwatch@lycos.com
when you find some conservatives let me know.
I'm with you. If the left wants to move to the right to try and decieve the voters, then let them. The more right they are, the farther we can push the whole country that way. It's time for the radical left "progressives" to be shown for who and what they are --- people who want to tell us what we can think and who we can think it about.
First, stop persecuting our kids for making fun of each other. We need to have bullies and stereotypes and politically incorrect jokes in our schools. Our kids need to learn how to handle a bully in life, not how to be tolerant of some mentally ill boy who wants to be a girl.
Contrary to what Doggy Dick and the rest of the blithering pundits say, the Republicans will lose if they DON'T show leadership and determination.
The American people, even those who *disagree* with the Republican position (other than the doctrinaire Left, who aren't worth worrying about since they're unreachable anyway), will respect the Republicans more for sticking to an *unpopular* position on *principle* and being willing to cause some disruption over it, than they will if we just waffle and compromise and let the Demonrats have their way with the judicial nominations, immigration, economic policy, ETC.
Moreover, if the Republicans run a middle-of-the-road mushball - somebody who's just "next in line", like Bob Dole - against Hitlary, he or she will get creamed, by the most vicious Demonrat attack machine anyone has seen yet. 2008 is going to make this last election look like a Sunday school picnic. If you think the Demonrats bet the farm on this last one, they're going to bet their *lives* on the next one - because they just *might* cease to exist as a party if they don't recover in 2008.
To take only some of your wish list--there are more examples--consider:
(1)Getting some conservative judges in the courts--to be fair, the judges Bush has appointed have, as far as we know, been conservative. But Gonazles is pro-abortion.
(2) illegal immigration--Bush is totally against you, me, and most of the American public on this. And he's not going to change.
(3)Education reforms--yeah, right. Reform it by the stupid "No child left behind" and having every child be psychiatrically evaluated. How Orwellian.
No, over the next few years, this forum will be replete with buyer remorse from the honest FReepers.
You are exactly right, and echo Reagan's dictum: Republicans (i.e., conservatives at that time) win by drawing distinctions, not by blurring them.
What conservatives? < / sarcastic chuckling >
I got a call from the RNC yesterday asking me to re-up since they had made all these tremendous gains in Congress, re-elected the President, yada, yada, yada. I told them that I was going to wait and see if Republicans were finally going to act like they were the majority party and that there were too many Republican senators straying off message (Specter, McCain, Hagel, etc.). I reminded her that we, the voters, had done our job and now it was up to the Republican Congress to do theirs.
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