Over at left-of-center Mother Jones magazine, Jonathan Stein and Nick Baumann argue that Stein and Baumann continue:
The Republican Party has moved dramatically rightward in the age of Obama, and allowed people like Newt Gingrich, Dick Cheney, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, and Sarah Palin to become its most vocal representatives. Not only did this alienate the moderate Specter (and cause him to fear for his future in the GOP); it created space for a right-wing purist like Toomey to run and win in a primary… With today’s GOP jeering its moderates and pushing away sympathetic independents, Toomey has a winning profile.
NextGenGOP contributor Abel Delgado makes a similar argument, stating that:
I fear disaffection with the Obama Administration and Democratic policies will push Republican primary voters to choose hard-line, far-right candidates since they are on the opposite end of the American political spectrum. But this would be counter-productive. Far-right candidates would have little chance, if any, of winning general elections in states where the electorate has tilted towards the left as of late.
Delgado suggests that a moderate such as former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge could give Specter a run for his money and that Delaware Rep. Michael Castle could likewise make a legitimate run at winning what was Vice President Biden’s seat in the Senate. On the other hand, Delgado argues, candidates like Pat Toomey will likely be decimated in the general election.
The arguments raised by Stein, Baumann, and Delgado relate nicely to a response I’ve been meaning to offer to our liberal counterpart Future Majority’s blog post entitled The post cites a which, among other things, takes note of the following:
By a 59 to 14 percent margin, young people prefer the Democrats when it comes to “paying attention to issues that affect younger people,” a six point gain since 2007.
I have previously written about my feelings as to how the GOP can win back young voters, but I felt this ongoing discussion about the impact of the far-right deserved to be looked at from the perspective of how it affects young voter support of the Republican Party. In other words, have far-right issues pushed the Republican Party into even deeper irrelevancy among young voters? Certainly, most young voters do not think that gay marriage or family values “affect younger people.” But will more moderate candidates like Ridge and Castle help bring back young voters to the Republican Party?
One final word. I ask this to all folks who consider themselves to be right-of-center: are you comfortable remaining in a filibuster-proof minority for the forseeable future if it means that only the most conservative (and thus in many cases, unelectable) candidates go on to the general elections? I’ll go on the record as answering a resounding no to that question.
Last 5 posts by Aaron Marks
- Onward and Upward: Building a Sustainable Majority - January 22nd, 2010
- Dear Young Voters: This Is What You Get When You Don't Vote - December 1st, 2009
- The Youth Vote and the 2009 Elections - November 6th, 2009
- The Best of the Post-2009 Election Spin - November 5th, 2009
- Introducing NextGenGOP Executive Director James Kane - October 20th, 2009
The republican party is no longer conservative and that is the real downfall since the majority of the people in this country identify themselves as conservatives vs liberal. Toomey is a fiscal conservative. WTF is wrong with that? Do we need more of the Compassionate Conservative crap that GWB gave us that helped to increase the deficit? Or instead do we need more free markets (and that means no government interference, mandates or policy decisions that create asset bubbles) and private sector solutions to what ail us?
I will agree that the social cons get waaaay too much attention but then again, look at the voter splits in CA for gay marriage. Mormons got the blame but Blacks and Hispanics went against it in big numbers while still voting Obama who is against it too. More people in the country are against abortion now as well. The media does a great job of carrying water for the left in this country. Look at how much time they spent on Sarah Palin instead of Obama for crying out loud.
The Republican party needs to return to a platform of “less is more” government and that will attract more people to join who don’t want government in their lives, bedroooms or wallets.
the gop has not moved “far right” its moved left with fiscal responsibility and lots of other issues. i am not comfortable being a filibuster proof minority, but would it be great if the candiates for US senate were actually conservatives?? on the question of Ridge, he lives in Maryland so why would any voter from PA vote for someone who doesnt live in that state? in the ny 20 election, our candiate did not even live in the district! does that make sense i think not. the gop needs take the principles of conservatism and transmit them for the 21st century and for young people, it can be done, just waiting for the gop to start on it.
The party cannot continue to rely on “false dilemmas” or Hobbesian Choices as a platform. Goldwater’s “A Choice not an Echo” was the lazy thinker’s guide to becoming politically active without having to think through the underlying consequences.
The Wall Street Journal editorial page is a sad example in that it is obvious to anyone that a good offense doesn’t cover for past mistakes. It continues to dwell in this hinterland confusion of logic.
It appeals to the Black/White thinkers who the Cultural Wars to be a collection of black and white choices. In C.S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity, he offered other choices to Christians who don’t like the choices offered by politicians.
Brittney hit the nail on the head. The GOP has not moved to the right over the last 20 years – it has taken a hard turn to the left. The fiscal treason perpetrated upon the people by President Bush and the Republican Congress from 2000-2006 was something straight from the leftist/Keynesian playbook. The vast expansion of government in Washington during that time period (No Child Left Behind, creation of the Dept. of Homeland Security, new Medicare entitlements) is certainly not something that historically would have been championed by the right. Even the interventionist foreign policy and globalist agenda championed by Bush (and continued under Obama I might add) has its roots in leftist political thought.
In the grass roots, too many people in our party now equate “advocacy of conservative principles” with “the use of government to advocate conservative principles.” There is a big difference between the two. Many Republicans have accepted the leftist notion of government control and regulation of our lives – so long as they can have “conservatives” calling the shots.
Right now both parties are pushing socialism, utilitarianism, policing of the world, an adversarial foreign policy, and expansive government. Until the Republican Party begins advocating limited, Constitutional government, strict protection of private property rights, a humble foreign policy and federalism, we will remain in the political minority.
You are absolutely correct, the GOP has not moved to the right over the last 20 years, it has drifted to the left in an attempt to gather “mainstream” support and to try to steal voters from the moderate and Democrat camps.
How many times have you thought or heard “there is no real difference between the candidates?” How often is it sadly true?
The Republican party has attempted to attract voters who have traditionally been Independents or conservative Democrats (yes, they do exist) and has failed miserably at it.
Why? Because given the opportunity to vote for someone who holds strong positions and opinions on issues- even if they do not agree with all of them- and someone who is sort of middle of the road, wishy-washy and not a strong advocate of a position one way or another, voters will pick the candidate who has a strong base, a firm foundation to their beliefs and a strong position in their politics.
Something the “new” Republicans do not have.
When given a choice between Democrat and Democrat-lite, Democrats will vote for Democrats while Republicans (or more specifically, conservatives) will not vote.
Why should Republicans (conservatives) vote for (although we have) someone like the traitor Arlen Specter when he consistently betrays his base of support? He has only stayed in office this long because he has been seen as “the lesser of two evils.”
This is no longer an acceptable option to the conservative base of the Republican party. The RNC can no longer assume that registered Republican voters will automatically be in their camp, can no longer assume their votes will be going to their candidates.
There is a new movement within the Republican ranks. A movement to return the party to its traditional foundation and base of The Constitution.
Get rid of the RINO’s, return to the conservative base, get candidates who will take a conservative stand, make the party a fiscal and Constitutional bastion of conservatism.
Social issues are not part of Federal jurisdiction, they should not be political stances for national candidates. Social issues fall under the 10th amendment- not specified in The Constitution as a responsibility of the Federal government and reserved to The States or The People.
If the Republican party expects to survive it should not attempt to become more like the Democrats, for that will drive its base even farther away, but become the party they were, a conservative party, a party that will stand for smaller government, lower taxes, defending the border (at home and abroad) and personal freedom and responsibility.