Why Did the GOP Lose?
8 November 2006The general wisdom is that Iraq has cost the Republican Party control of the House and perhaps the Senate. I don’t buy it. Sorry but the pundits are simply wrong. While Iraq is part of the equation, it is not the reason for this loss and Republicans will be in deep trouble come ’08 if they think it is.
My contention is that the problem was that Republicans abandoned their conservative principles and their conservative base. Yes, they move somewhat back to conservatism as we got closer to the election but it wasn’t enough.
I am a Republican because I am a conservative, not the other way around. I have often felt abandoned by my party. On a whole host of issues, the GOP has not represented conservative voters or conservative principles. From No Child Left Behind to Medicare drug benefits to amnesty for illegal aliens (not undocumented workers!) to a plethora of rampant spending projects and general pork barrel spending. In many ways Republicans became what they replaced. Then, of course, there were the corruption scandals. Randy “Duke” Cunningham is in prison and he is just one of several who thought they could game the system.
The Republican Party left us. They tried to come back but it was too little, too late. If they had stood for conservative principles, if they had “danced with the one that brought them” then Iraq would not be the losing issue it’s become. Yes, it would still be an issue but it would not. by itself, cause this kind of crushing defeat. No, the Republican Party abandoned conservative principles and conservative voters and now they’ve paid the price.
So what lesson should Republicans learn from all this? Just that running on conservative principles isn’t enough. You cannot run on one set of principles and then, once elected, govern on a completely different set of principles. Conservatism is the backbone of the Republican Party and until Republicans wake up to that fact, they will not regain control.
Of course, credit must be given the the Democrats. They saw how the country was leaning and they took advantage of it. They ran conservative candidates and that turned out to be a winning strategy. How that will ultimately impact the Democrat Party remains to be seen but it is difficult to image the infusion of conservatives into the party won’t have a moderating effect. Either way, Nancy Pelosi and Rahm Emanuel crafted a winning strategy and won big. They worked hard and they won and they deserve full credit for that accomplishment.
So now it’s time for Republicans across the country to take stock of themselves and their party. Will they return to the principles that brought them to power in 1994 or will they seek refuge in self deception? Early responses seem to indicate they will return to principle but it is just too early to tell.
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