Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely
-Lord Acton
Is the GOP in decline? That is the question this weekend on Pundit Review Radio. This was a tough week for Republicans, from Bill Bennet’s comments to Tom Delay’s indictment to Bill Frist’s stock trading investigation. Not to mention President Bush’s 45% approval ratings.
While things may not look pretty right now, many conservatives see an opportunity to take the party back to its roots by focusing on fiscal responsiblity and limited government, two things that have been absent during the Bush administration.
Newt Gingrich sees reason to be hopeful,
This is the great crossroads for the Republican Party. In the next three months, they’ll either seize the opportunity to talk about real change or be left defending undisciplined spending and an incompetent disaster response system.
RedState is pissed off and looking for some bark out of the GOP
Take On the Racism Pimps! It’ll Pay Off!
Yes, that’s strong language. But, I think it’s time for the GOP and conservatives to push back against the Jesse Jacksons, Al Sharptons, David Brocks and others who quickly take any discussion with a tinge of race involved and scream “racism”. I think it would be daring but smart politics.
LA Times political writer Ron Brownstein had a good column recently in which he said,
In some respects, the GOP appears close to establishing a lasting political edge â?? not seen since the days of President McKinley more than a century ago â?? with interlocking advantages that create formidable barriers to a Democratic resurgence.
But approval ratings in polls for the GOP-controlled Congress and President Bush are similar to those for the Democratic-controlled Congress and President Clinton before the 1994 electoral landslide that put the GOP in charge of the House and the Senate.
True enough. But Brownstein goes on to point out the single biggest factor that may prevent a disaster for the GOP. Sometimes you can benefit more from the inepptitude of your opponent more than anything you do on your own.
Few analysts in either party believe the Democrats have generated enough public confidence to fully benefit from this discontent.
â??Democrats have a lot of issues they can work with,â? said Merle Black, a political scientist at Emory University in Atlanta. â??But right now, about the only thing the Republicans have going for them is distrust of the Democrats.â?Â
If you are a Republican, among the people you should be thanking tomorrow in in Church are the Domestic Insurgents like Ted Kennedy, Dick Turbin, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid. Their ineptitude is the only thing standing between the GOP and a world-class beating in the 2006 elections.
Join us tomorrow evening on Pundit Review Radio to discuss. You can stream the show live at 9pm est on WRKO and you can reach us toll free at 877-469-4322.