You already know what happened, and you've already heard dozens of pundits tell you why. From what I've read, the mainstream "conservative" pundits seem to think McCain/Palin didn't appeal enough to the "middle of the road" voters ... the supposed "centrists" and "independent" voters.
Many Republican "insiders" are blaming Sarah Palin, the woman who drew record attendance and television viewership. And in continuation of the "markets are dead" mantra, many in the mainstream media are excitedly proclaiming that conservatism is DEAD too.
They're wrong.
Now some straight talk ...
All across America and with great enthusiasm, conservatives are talking about rebuilding the party. It gives me hope as I listen and read the many ideas, and it should give you hope too. BUT ... it's not gonna be easy. And it may ... be next to impossible. Here's why:
Yes, the Democrats didn't get their complete stranglehold on government. They fell short of winning a super-majority. That's not going to stop them though. You're going to see (quickly) a number of rule changes in the Senate. For example, if they can't get a filibuster-proof majority of votes for one of their liberal bills, they'll simply pull the "nuclear" option.
Think for a moment about Obama's attempts to use the legal system to both eliminate his opponents and silence his critics. This guy has legions of attorneys at his beck and call. In fact, the entire DNC is chock full of lawyers! Obama won his first campaign by tying up his opponent in legal battles until she dropped out of the race. Think about that.
During the next election cycle, complaints of voter fraud will be met with charges of "voter suppression." Complain about the Department of Justice and you'll get hit with charges of "interfering" with an "investigation." Defend yourself stating you weren't interfering? Get slapped with a perjury suit.
And don't for a moment believe they aren't going to try and impose another "Fairness Doctrine." They can't wait!
Think I'm getting a little extreme?
Look what happened to "Joe the Plumber!" This guy asked candidate Obama a legitimate question, and the Democrat hounds dug up everything they could on the guy - a private citizen. Then "the One's" adoring lap-dog media dug in too, even spreading lies.
The "citizen service" Obama and the Democrats talk about isn't about everyone pitching in. It's about indoctrination. Do you know what kind of citizens do this kind of work? The unfortunate citizens of communist countries, that's who. They plan to make this a compulsory program for kids. Yes, you read that right! On July 2, 2008 Barack Obama promised that "this will be a central cause of my presidency."
To serve the State. Not church, not charity, not your family, neighbors or anyone else ... he wants you to serve the State. This is a battle like none we've seen since the Revolution.
And the "card check?" Why do you think that's so central to Obama and the Democrats? You can vote for the president (Obama) by secret ballot, but not for a union?
Because not only will unions gain unprecedented power over employers big and small, but because it will feed the Democratic Machine with huge sums of cash and of course, provide them with another huge block of guaranteed voters.
Churches will be hit with IRS "investigations" regarding arbitrary claims of violating their tax-exempt status, while Rube Goldberg environmental regulations will stifle business. And if you disagree with any of this? You'll be engaging in "hate speech" and/or "racism."
And it gets worse ...
All the rah-rah cheering about the Republican Party breaking the chains of Big Government and getting back to its roots ... don't count on it. The party had control for years! What did we get? Even Bigger government!
The prescription drug plan was the largest welfare program since FDR. Yes, bigger than anything passed by even Lyndon B. Johnson. We have a more intrusive government. We've already seen the Patriot Act used to violate private citizens. Executive powers have grown out of control. And the federal government has effectively taken control over the entire financial system!
Sure ... many of you were comfortable because it was a Republican in the White House, but guess what? Not anymore! We now have an Alinskyite in office, Barack Obama, who will have more authority than any president in our nation's history. And you can thank the Republican Party for that!
One more piece of bad news ... many of the Republicans in Washington are just like McCain, the guy who had to "suspend" his campaign to support throwing what will turn out to be more than $1,000,000,000,000 of your hard-earned dollars away. Thanks buddy! And these same Republicans, will continue to blame Palin, the "religious right," conservatism and free markets. So don't be fooled (again)! You can't trust them.
Great. Now what?
I have some ideas that I'll be sharing with you over the next week or so. There are also legions of others who have great ideas too. Somewhere, we'll find a way.
But the first thing ... the most important thing ... is each and every one of us is going to have to look ourselves in the mirror, and ask ourselves a very important question: "Is the philosophy, the movement ... most important to me? Or does the party come first?"
If the philosophy comes first, we've got a fighting chance ... But if the party comes first ... it's over.
Do I believe we can rebuild the Republican Party? Yes! Will it happen? Well ... that depends on you.
