The Pink Flamingo :: Run Conservative for the Nomination, Then Go Moderate to Win

The Reagan Mythological Makers like to wax poetic about how Ronald Reagan won as a conservative, wooing conservative Democrats to his side. Fact is, it didn’t happen that way. He won over Democrats for two reasons. First, Jimmy Carter, his opponent was the most incompetent and worst President in US history. The other reason – he waged one of the most positive campaigns in modern history.

Do you see the word “conservative” in these ads? It isn’t needed. Reagan offered something positive. He did not offer change. He was himself, much the same way John McCain is himself. If we are to defeat Barack Obama we need to let John McCain be John McCain. Give him a break. Use your head. It is a known fact that you moderate to win a general election. Let him win. Barack Obama is a disaster.

All it takes is for conservatives to grow up, shut up, and use their heads for something other than listening to Rush Limbaugh all day!

Alex Knepper at Race 42008 has amazing clarity for a “conservative” (it’s a joke, don’t get your undies in a wad). He wrote the following scathing commentary.

“…So what’s a winning strategy? Well, it’s not to beef up the ticket with the Most Beloved By the Base superlative winners, because, whether The Base wants to admit it or not (it doesn’t, and won’t — wait for a few people in the comments section to tell me that Real Conservatives always win when we actually nominate them [they don’t] and that center-right candidates perform poorly [they don’t]), it is not America and America is not The Base. John McCain doesn’t need the base. He’ll have the base. Obama, to paraphrase Dick Morris’ observation (I promise that I will never borrow from that man again), is chairing John McCain’s get-out-the-vote operation. What John McCain needs is a message of reform and competence, tied to issues of energy, national security, health care, and the economy, bolstered by a co-headliner with a record that shows that the team is serious about changing its path, in order to attract independents, moderates, and Hillary supporters, all of whom would like ‘change’ but are wary of Obama’s hard-left leanings, over-reliance on lofty rhetoric, and inexperience. Count me on the list of those that would be more than satisfied with a Palin vice-presidential nomination (and don’t you worry about her ‘lack of experience’ — McCain attacking Obama’s lack of experience is an ineffective path to go down in the first place, and anyone voting on experience is already voting against Obama, anyway), for that reason…”

Matthew Miller wrote (Race 42008) “God Bless Hillary Clinton”.

“…And here’s the real salient point; the point that conservatives, and moderates, and patriotic Americans of all regions and all religions ought to be thanking her for; Hillary Clinton has revealed Barack Obama. Four months ago, Barack Obama was an insurpassable public figure. He was The One We’ve Been Waiting For… She’s woken up millions of Democrats, who in a general election would have dismissed Wright and Ayers in a “rally around the nominee” spirit, to the woeful inadequacy of this man who would be president. .. They’ve, at every step, thoroughly misread the public mood, utterly failed to control the narrative, and stumbled in their embarrassing apologia for the most unqualified nominee in decades. But, they’ve failed only because, for once, their demoguery, their shameless promotion of a candidate, hurt a well-liked Democrat…. Hillary Clinton’s brutal treatment has taken the blinders off a large portion of the Democratic Party. They could not have been moved by us alone. We’re Republicans, and this is 2008, and the incumbent has a 28% approval rating, and this is their year. Never mind the fact that we’ve nominated a frequent and well-known critic of that unpopular incumbent. Never mind the fact that we’ve nominated a man who only votes with his party 60% of the time. Never mind the fact that our nominee opposes torture, and supports amnesty, and opposes a marriage amendment, and attacks corporations, and promotes campaign finance reform, and almost became the Democratic Vice Presidential nominee in 2004. He’s still a Republican, and this is 2008, and all Democrats and moderates are required to fall behind the Democratic nominee. To restore hope and all that jazz. But, they’ve attacked Hillary Clinton, and she’s a good Democrat, and she cares about working class Americans, and she’s a strong and proud woman, and that’s not ok. Millions of Democrats and moderates and independents now see Barack Obama for the radical he is. She’s accomplished what John McCain couldn’t have dreamed of accomplishing. Not this year. Not with this media. Not in this country. Not with this president shackled to his ankle. And for that I say, God bless her, and for all my many differences with her politically, I’m sad to see her go. You, madam, would have made a much better president then Senator Obama….”

Today in USA Jonah Goldberg proves my point about GOP hating conservatives. He almost celebrates the fact that he thinks the GOP is DOA.

“…That's good advice for conservatives these days. Things are grim, particularly for the GOP. The share of Americans who describe themselves as Republicans is plummeting so quickly, pretty soon more voters will call themselves Hobbits than Republicans….”

Like other blind conservatives, he doesn’t quite grasp the fact that he and other far right conservatives are the reason we are in such trouble. The only reason we’ve lost the past three special House races is because the GOP ran such extreme right candidates no one could stand voting for them. We could have the same problem here in NM’s 2nd District. I’ll know tonight. Plus, the only smart thing the Dems have done in ages is figure out how to beat us by running Dems who would once be considered “GOP” they are so normally conservative.

“…People need to remember that there's a difference between "conservatives" and "Republicans." One reason the Republican "brand" has been so badly tarnished is that Republicans lost credibility as conservatives. They spent money like a pimp with a week to live. They got comfortable with power and the perks that come with it, and they tolerated cronyism and incompetence. And while the GOP is the more conservative of the two parties — and hence the natural home for the American right — it needs to be remembered that Republican failures are not synonymous with conservative ones. Also, the strength of the conservative establishment shouldn't be discounted. In 1964, Goldwater was almost alone, relying on a couple of magazines to champion his cause. Today, there is an enormous conservative intellectual infrastructure, largely independent of the Republican Party. From proliferating state-level think tanks to massive organizations based in Washington, D.C., such as the Heritage Foundation and American Enterprise Institute, the causes of limited government, defending life and promoting free markets are hardly without champions. And thanks to talk radio, Fox News and a general acceptance of conservatism as a legitimate viewpoint, it has never been easier for conservatives to get their arguments to the public…”

Something finally dawned on me. These guys like Goldberg, Bozell, Limbaugh, Ingraham, Malkin, etc have a little conservative club. They really don’t exist in the real world. They don’t know what it all about. They sit around pontificating, counting their millions as they worship a Ronald Reagan who never existed. I consider Mark Levin one of the problems not the solution. In the Corner Tuesday, he basically threatens John McCain.

“…Moreover, if McCain continues to follow the path suggested by some pundits, where he gives minimal lip service to the base and to Reagan Democrats (who are not part of La Raza, the global-warming set, etc.), he will lose and lose badly. McCain needs to secure the base, which he has not, go after the Reagan Democrats, which he has not, and rid himself of the politically naive and inexperienced reformers who are encouraging his worst instincts….”

WE UNDERSTAND
This rather humorous litany the Dems have latched upon, the McCain-Bush or Bush-McCain third term is going to get old, fast.
I think the Dems think they can keep John McCain off message by comparing him to GWB. The entire idea is ludicrous, and proves how intellectually impaired the Democrats are. They like to point to GWB’s pathetic approval ratings, but don’t like to mention the methodology, as in the most recent CBS poll where GWB has 25% approval rating. It is obviously designed not only to be hatchet job on GWB but also John McCain.

“..This poll was conducted among a random sample of 1,038 adults nationwide, including 930 registered voters, interviewed by telephone May 30-June 3, 2008….”

I read somewhere that Rush Limbaugh has already threatened John McCain, telling him not to “dis” GWB, a statement I find laughable considering the way Limbaugh has treated the President over the years. Also, over the years, Rush has constantly made the statement, that a Republican goes very conservative for the primaries, then moderate for the general election. Maybe he needs to go back and listen to his older broadcasts, when he was reasonable, entertaining, and not an arrogant demagogue.

Those of us who are reasonable Republicans understand what is going on here and are giving the man a break. If we thought the Clinton machine of the 1990’s was rough, the Obama machine is impossible. We need every bit of positive conservative, radio talking head publicity we can get. Obama has raised about $277 million to date. He has well over a million individual donors in his database. There is no way John McCain is going to be able to make up for this, so we need to go in other directions.

DEMOCRATS FOR MCCAIN
WELCOME HOME!

We need for conservatives to grow up and quit acting like the spoiled brats they have become. We need to start reaching out to the newly exiled. The problem though, is while these people are “Normal” Americans who were once Dems, they aren’t ideologically “pure”. They are a bit more liberal than you are. They are also the people you have made fun of for years. Right now, though, they are homeless. They are looking for a friend, and a kind word.

“…When I was just a Democrat, I was completely unsexy. But I have shed that old skin, sort of like dermal abrasion, and I’m brand sparkling new and beautiful and so much smarter than I was just a few minutes ago. And my mind is suddenly unburdened. Yeah! I’m no longer worried about Social Security because that was the *old coalition’s” problem. Or universal healthcare because shared responsibility means that I might actually have to acknowledge the working class. Or high gas prices, because if people are spending too much on gas to drive to work, they should just buy a house closer to each of their jobs. Duh!...”

Dear Riverdaughter, welcome to your new home away from home! While a few of our more conservative radio-heads are a bunch of spoiled brats determined to have their own way, you will find that a good 90% of us are reasonable thinking adults who are thrilled to welcome you with open arms!

Trackposted to , Democrat=Socialist, and The World According to Carl, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

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