I got an email from a friend that reflected despair as reflected by Charles Cooke in National Review. Now there is a lot that is right with his writing. But I choose to have a more optimistic view. This is what I wrote to her.
Much more to come as we get back up, dust ourselves off, and get ready to engage again!As for the future of the Republican Party, IMHO they need to think about three things. The first is the message. We know that a fiscally conservative message works. Arguments against rampant spending and mortgaging the future resonates. People can understand and embrace economic growth. That was the story of the first debate. Hell, that was the story of Reagan. Pounding home economic growth, widening the opportunity for success, increasing jobs..all that stuff works. What doesn't work with how the country has evolved demographically, educationally (we're not as smart as most people think) and socially is the way Republicans have communicated their message.And that leads to the second. The messenger. The messenger has to have the "right stuff", to coin a phrase. He or she has to be someone who is relatable. Someone who can take the message to the people who doesn't come across as extreme. Someone who can embrace fiscal conservatism while at the same time make people not feel they are voting for someone on the fringe. I really liked, respected and believed in Romney, but clearly the average person didn't because they didn't believe him, were scared of him, or believed something the Democrats said about him. Will some of the Republican social issues have to be moderated? I think yes if we want to win. Which ones and how is a whole other blog post, so keep checking my blog. :)But that leads to the third. The organization. The Democrats clearly were superior and won because of organization. Their get out the vote effort was mind boggling. Their record keeping, analysis, prioritization, you name it, was far superior. Maybe not everywhere, but in key places. And part of the organization issue reverts to the message. In another blog post I talked about being in Florida last week and being shocked at the ads demonizing Romney. The Obama team clearly embraced the famous quote from Sean Connery in the movie, The Untouchables..."You want to know how to beat the mob? I'll tell you. He brings a knife, you bring a gun. He puts one of yours in the hospital, you put one of his in the morgue. That's the Chicago way." The ads against Romney were bad but brilliant. I'm sad we've come to this but they seem to work. They lied, they distorted, they played to people's worst fears and sensitivities, but they worked. There is no other way to explain the war on women, the demonization of Bain, the fear of Mormons, etc, etc, etc. I hate to say it, but I hope we learned that lesson.So that's what I think. Those of us who care need to start now to turn the scoundrel out of the White House. But we have to be as smart as our enemy. "He whose ranks are united in purpose will be victorious" Sun Tzu, The Art of War
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There is overwhelming talk that we must level the playing field. What does this mean? To give everyone equal opportunity -- or to put everyone in the same situation financially (thus the need to redistribute wealth). The rhetoric would suggest that the majority is not focused on a system that ensures individual liberty and with that, equal opportunity, but rather equal outcome. That it's simply socially unjust that some are born into a world with more opportunities and privilege than others. That the anger projected at those who 'have', regardless of how they obtained their wealth is justified.
To this view, the path to one's success doesn't matter, regardless of their efforts and choices. But rather that those who have wealth are the enemy and they must be held accountable for the wrongdoings that have placed the majority in an unfair position. Whether through higher taxes, estate / death tax, or even outright confiscation (it happened in the '30's under FDR) -- until there is distribution from the haves to the have nots, this will always be an unresolved debate with many on the far left. The reality, you can't prosper by taking from those who have. You can't grow an economy and lift all tides by taking from those who contribute the most. You think the capital gains tax at 15% is too high? This is a tax on after tax monies that an individual has chosen to reinvest into industry in the hopes of growing his or her investment. Is that evil? But it goes back to whether it's fair this individual has money in the first place when so many don't even have the opportunity to invest. So what is one to do? This country is in a state of decline, and unfortunately, the mindset that is now apparently subscribed by the majority will only accelerate this precipitous fall.
I'm expecting my taxes to go up by 10K next year. This isn't money that I simply have to throw away. The argument from those that make less will argue that we make too much. I work hard. My wife has two jobs. Weve earned every penny through our investments in education, which we both earned through hard earned scholorships. But the argument will be that we were privileged in that we had good parents and weren't from inner city or a broken home. I guess we were lucky in that regard. But by 'leveling the playing field', I can no longer afford to take my family to theme parks, dinners, or donate to charities. My family will be fine. We have highly specialized jobs that we worked hard to earn. But those jobs that will struggle will be those at theme parks, the restaurant industry, retail, services, etc. Those are the jobs that will be impacted. It's a zero sum game and that is what's lost on so many.
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