The reshaping of the GOP
The most fertile ground for Republicans is the growing ranks of independents. And efforts to rebrand the party from the inside are prompting a stir within a new generation of young politicians.
By Linda Feldmann | Staff writer/ August 18, 2009 edition
Washington
There’s a slight spring in the step of Republicans these days. President Obama is stumbling on health reform and his job approval rating is sinking. Suddenly, life in the wilderness doesn’t look so bleak to a GOP that got trounced in the last two elections and was, to some, staring possible extinction in the face.
The party could well take two key governorships – New Jersey and Virginia – away from the Democrats in November.
Recruiting for next year’s House, Senate, and gubernatorial races has gotten easier, in anticipation of midterm elections that historically favor the out-of-power party.
Already, top Republicans are cautioning against overconfidence.
“We are doing better,” says House minority leader John Boehner. “But let’s be honest, we’ve got a long way to go.”
Mr. Boehner wants Americans to judge politicians on what they do, not what they say. But these days, words are just about all Republicans in Washington have. With the Democrats running the show, it’s hard to get anyone to pay attention to GOP policy ideas. And it’s not as if they’re coming out with anything markedly different from before: The latest House GOP proposal for health reform centers on the use of tax credits to help modest-income Americans buy insurance.
But a Big Idea doesn’t have to precede a political comeback. Newt Gingrich’s Contract With America, the 10-point policy agenda released before the historic GOP takeover of Congress in 1994, was not widely known among the public. It was the congressional Democrats’ deep unpopularity, topped off by President Clinton’s mistakes, that swept the Republicans into power on Capitol Hill for the first time in 40 years.
Today, Democrats have a lot of goodwill to burn before they see the lows that the GOP has faced of late. And even if Republicans pick up seats in Congress next year, the chances of retaking either house are virtually nil. In fact, analysts say, the danger is that the Republicans pick up seats in 2010, feel better, and decide that they don’t need to change after all.
Searching for the next Ronald Reagan or a Republican Obama is also not the answer.
“Parties go for decades without Obamas and Reagans,” says Dan Schnur, a former Republican strategist in California.
The most fertile terrain for Republicans is the burgeoning ranks of independents – politically unaligned voters who are, essentially, up for grabs. GOP efforts to “rebrand” the party have started fitfully. One initiative, launched by House Republican whip Eric Cantor, often touted as one of the party’s rising stars, is on hold. On May 2, his National Council for a New America held its first – and so far only – stop on a “listening tour” at a pizza parlor in northern Virginia, aimed at hearing voters’ concerns and talking solutions. The session, joined by 2008 presidential candidate Mitt Romney and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, was panned by social conservatives, who complained that no leaders of the “values wing” of the party were included.
The irony is that the leaders who did appear all subscribe to the conservative social agenda, but are not seen as being “of” that movement – and thus have the potential to attract a larger constituency. Still, alienating social conservatives, like 2008 candidate Mike Huckabee, who criticized the “listening tour” idea, is risky business for the GOP.
The challenge at the heart of the party’s rebuilding effort is to preserve its existing coalition – economic and social conservatives – while convincing ordinary Americans in the middle that the party is addressing their concerns, not captured by rigid ideology. The loud voices on conservative cable TV and radio have made that challenge all the more difficult.
It all goes back to the big tent. And Reagan’s model still applies, says Princeton political historian Julian Zelizer. “Reagan certainly did a lot of things social conservatives did not like,” says Mr. Zelizer. “Abortion was not the centerpiece of his administration.”
Ted Cruz, a candidate for attorney general of Texas who has captured national GOP attention, says that in recent years, the party has had the worst of two worlds: “They have gotten away from core conservative principles of limited government and individual opportunity and responsibility, but at the same time, have employed rhetoric and framed the argument in a way that has driven people away.”
Reagan didn’t boast about how conservative he was. “What he said was, ‘Look, I’m standing up for common-sense values that every small town in America and every small business and family has understood for centuries. This is who we are,” says Mr. Cruz.
Still, the GOP faces a tall task in reengaging large swaths of the population it has alienated – moderates, moderate women in particular, minorities, gays. Judy Singleton, cofounder of an Indiana program that trains Republican women for political leadership, wishes the party would go back to its traditional focus on national security and fiscal conservatism and stay silent on social issues. “Some of these people act like abortion and [opposition to] gay marriage are what define you as a Republican, and women are saying no,” Ms. Singleton says.
If the view from Washington has looked bleak for Republicans until recently, outside the Beltway the party has some reasons for cheer. A new generation of young Republicans is aiming high in politics. In St. Petersburg, Fla., two-term mayor Rick Baker shows that a Republican can govern successfully in a Democratic city. Meet, too, Colorado’s Josh Penry, former Attorney General Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, and Ted Cruz of Texas, aspiring state attorney general and son of a Cuban immigrant.
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Comments
2. Ron In Charlotte | 08.25.09
Lee, I believe you don’t really understand Democratic Party Politics. The Republicans are more closely tied to lower wealth. That is small business owners. Wall St. and mega corporations, like GE, donate strictly to Democrats. Biden was on MBNA’as Board. Geithner is Goldman Sachs and Federal Reserve and a tax cheat. And Obama’s Cabinet and Advisors are almost either Chicago Elitists and Wall St. Tycoons. Most respectfully, you really ought to consider doing a study on the political landscape. It is frightening.
3. Lee | 08.26.09
One must keep in mind that the Repulicans were the abolitionists, not the democrats. And the Republicans have been trying more to infuse societal improvements for the underpriviledged - until, that is - FDR, because of whom the dems flipped and the republicans became the conservative oposition.
If proper statistics can be achieved, they will show the democrats to be the wealthier, more ellite branch, in complete denial and ridden with guilt, which drives them to take such socialist position. The outcome will be that the free enterprize system which served them so well will become less effective and everyone will be worse off for it. What boggles my mind is how the main stream media keeps supporting a most destructive agenda without realizing that its own future is tied up in it as well. Do the reporters and editors of the New York Times, for instance, realise that if the public option makes it through, they themselves will end up on it, because the NYT will cut its costs in order to become financially more stable? It’s like standing before an abyss without seeing the other side and pushing for jumping accross inspite of it. It’s illogical. Every system can be improved, regardless of how good it is. Why not do things gradually? We’re not Canada, England, France or Japan. We’re a significantly larger and far more complex society. It will take time to figure out how to best improve things, which I’m all for, but I can’t justufy the use of “the think system” you know (from The Music Man, for those unfamiliar with the notion.)
4. G. Singer | 08.26.09
“Wall St. and mega corporations, like GE, donate strictly to Democrats.”
That’s about as wrong as a statement can get. It’s so wrong I think you must be joking. Here’s the truth:
“Overall, Democrats garnered 57 percent of the contributions from the securities and investment industry. If that trend continued through November, it would mark the first time since 1994 that they have drawn more Wall Street cash than Republicans in a presidential election year, according to the data complied by the Center for Responsive Politics.” http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKNOA53525520080605
Only very, very recently has Wall Street slightly favored Dems (57%) with contributions, and then only because the GOP practically destroyed the economy.
The GOP it not tied to small business at all. Under Ronald Reagan, self-employment tax went up dramatically - hurting small businesses terribly. The GOP is in it for the wealthy only. To deny that is futile, because it is truth.
6. the dewd | 08.26.09
“and then only because the GOP practically destroyed the economy.”
Hardly, more like because they knew who would be in power and they are lobbying them.
I am still mystified at the esprit de corps that both sides have in thier ethos…get over your own self righteousness long enough to see that your emperor is naked too.
7. Laski | 08.26.09
Ron from Charlotte: I think G. Singer has it right. Plus, point taken on Geitner, but since you call out Biden for being on a corporate board, are you seriously trying to suggest that Bush, Cheney, Paulson (he of Goldman Sachs too), etc. are tied to lower wealth? That is a joke.
8. Harvey | 08.27.09
What i don’t think you understand is that socialism isn’t necessarily bad. The idea of a unified and central healthcare system is actually the best way to make everyone benefit from the country’s great medical care. That is how countries like Sweden or Norway achieve such high standards of living (although taxes are ridiculously high over there). What the government is trying to do is a mix of both this and our current system to minimize tax increase. We all agree healthcare needs a change and i think that’s the best.
PS: there is no “party of the people” as every politician is an elitist no matter what, even public figures like Rush Limbaugh. And every party is going to get money from people who are rich because … well, they can afford to give.
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1. Lee Brewer | 08.21.09
I voted for President Obama in the primaries and the final election. I have voted for lots of Democrat candidates in the last few years yet I am basically a conservative voter. I was a Republican until the late 80’s. The Republican Party problem is that they are so tied to the wealthier layers our of country that they can not even develop a vision that meets needs of the American middle and lower income population class. I will vote for Republican Candidate Christie for NJ governor, but only because Gov. Corzine has really failed to correct the mess of the State and did not even start on reducing State government payroll. I hope that instead of criticizing every act of the Obama administration, that they get and communicate a vision we can believe in. But in the meantime, my vote for Christie should not be interpreted as the revival of the G.O.P. - that would be a big mistake.