[quote]Mufasa wrote:
[quote]loppar wrote:
Just a few observations from an European outsider:
GOP lost this election catastrophically.
If the incumbent needs a former president to feature prominently on his campaign trail (and subconsciously refer to the good old days of the 90ies) then something is obviously wrong.
Add to that the poor economic trends and Obama’s lackluster showings in the debates (which were present even in 2008, but then nobody noticed), the GOP candidate should have easily won. Of course, if the republican primary process didn’t rule this out by catering to their core constituency which is becoming increasingly separated from the majority of the population.
Your “moderate” candidate failed to bring out Obama’s lack of substance, instead focusing on his only strength - foreign policy, claiming that he failed there miserably. Compared to GWB, he’s a brilliant commander in chief.
How can you guys allow clowns like Donald Trump to even be associated with your party? Verbal idiocies from moronic congressmen about rape being “God’s will” also should have been dealt with swiftly and publicly.
One has to adapt to new social trends, and the people’s attitude towards them. You cannot Bible thump all you want, but you cannot win over the moderates and independents which were ripe for picking this year by claiming supreme moral authority or even tolerating all that birth certificate / Muslim nonsense.
If the electorate changes, you have to adapt, not insult the electorate. “We lost because the people were lazy, stupid or not good / smart enough to realize our brilliance”. Trust me, European history has taught us that this usually leads to slow and inevitable drift towards extremism where first you have to “protect” the people from themselves, then “take back” the “real” country. Shifting demographics and new social norms are the “real” America not some imaginary crap form political ads with picket fences in small towns that warms the hearts of increasingly old (and white) supporters.
Both these narratives, as far I have seen, were worryingly present in the early republican discourse.
Just one final question: What was wrong with that Jon Huntsman guy? Anything I’ve seen, read or heard from him told me that he could have easily beat Obama if given the chance.
But as I understand he was quickly sidelined in the primaries as being a “lefty”? Instead you had an ignorant pizza tycoon as a serious candidate.
Why is it hard for republicans to realize that Reagan’s success was an aberration, a result of unique economic, social and political factors and focus on an actually centric candidate - not someone that shifts his opinions and is rebuilt from scratch after the primaries.
[/quote]
This is an excellent post, loppar; and this point needs to be emphasized:
“…We lost because the people were lazy, stupid or not good / smart enough to realize our brilliance…”
(and one could add Muslim-Loving Communist Whore-Mongers who will burn for eternity in Hell, taking America with them…)
I realize that when people spit out this kind of vitriol they feel that they are just “telling people what they need to hear, not what they want to hear” in what for many people is the absolute height of arrogance and hubris.
Those that feel this way need to not do some party soul-searching…but look within.
Mufasa
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Mufasa,
You were spot on when you said something along the lines of this election ‘being a fight for the soul of the Republican party’ (from memory so may be wrong, but I think that was the jist of it)
I didn’t see it at the time , probably because this being the only site I read and post about these issues on clouded my perception.
But the result of the election against what was a seriously under fire, vilified and on the ropes sitting president tells the story. It really wasn’t close at all, no amount of spin doctoring will convince me of that. The moderate vote, which decides these things really went against Romney.
If they don’t adapt their message they look like being reduced to the role of spoilers rather than the originators of policy for quite a while to come.