From the Ashes
By Adam Graham (11/13/06)
Democrats are to be congratulated on a hard-fought win. Certainly, we should pray that the new Majority acts with wisdom and intelligence. While I have reservations about how the new Congress will act, I certainly hope I’m wrong.
Certainly, losing candidates should be consoled. J.D. Hayworth, Jim Ryun, John Hostettler, and Rick Santorum, in my opinion didn’t deserve the fate meted out to them by voters. Of course, I didn’t have a say in the matter, only their voters did.
But at the end of the day, we have to move on. We have to look at why we got here. The fact is, this has been a long-time coming. Washington has been over-spending since at least the late ‘90s. The GOP created the largest entitlement since the Great Society, using tactics reminiscent of LBJ to get the job done.
We’ve had fiscal drift in the White House. In 6 years, George W. Bush has yet to issue a single veto of a spending bill. Worse yet, we’ve ceased to communicate conservative values and beliefs. The much-vaunted GOP Get Out the Vote campaign relies entirely on getting GOP voters to the poll, not persuading new ones of the importance of Conservative ideas.
What was once the province of leaders such as Newt Gingrich and Ronald Reagan has become the domain of those few bloggers and writers who talk about the issues of the day rather than merely regurgitating the latest talking points.
The question is whether we’ll learn the right lesson from 2006’s disastrous midterms. We won in 1994 because we were truly about ideas, we lost in 2006 because we became merely about winning. We came in following the Democratic House Scandals of the 1990s and were defeated as a result of our own scandals in 2006.
What’s needed now in Washington is a return to conservative reform ideals. The first place to start is with the leadership of the House. The stupidest thing Democrats did after 1994 is to keep Dick Gephardt as Minority Leader for 8 years. To keep the same leaders who got you into the mess is foolish and the suicidal. It’s time for Conservative leadership. Rep. Mike Pence (R-In.) is running for Minority Leader and John Shadegg (R-Az.) for Minority Whip and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN.) for Caucus Chair and they should be elected if their colleagues have any common sense in their heads.
The second thing we’ve got to see more of is true fiscal conservatism and we should work with Blue Dog Democrats to do it. In the 1990s, Republicans worked with Blue Dog Democrats on a budget cutting measure sponsored by Rep. Tim Penny (R-Mn.) and John Kasich (R-Oh.) The measures, even in narrowly failing, showed a seriousness and a dedication to reform.
Third, there has to be a commitment to pro-life and pro-family issues that goes beyond election tactics. The issues of life and family must be on the radar screen and on the agenda. If there is to be a second Contract with America, it must include items for values voters and they have to be priorities not merely election talking points.
Fourth, term limits and other reasonable government reforms must be on the agenda. For years, I thought term limits was an idea that merely limited the choice of voters. However eight-term Representatives Duke Cunningham (R-Ca.) and William Jefferson (D-La.), along with six-term Representatives Mark Foley and Bob Ney (R-Oh.) have convinced me that there’s such a thing as too much time in Washington and I think most voters will agree.
Fifth, we must choose a correct Presidential candidate. If Americans are concerned about ethics why would we choose Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) who was reprimanded, or Rudy Giulini, who’s days in Gracie Mansion included adulterous relationships more fit for Europe or the Clinton White House than for the Republican leadership?
If Americans want change, why vote for any of the politicians whose big selling point is their ability is to appeal to a demographic? We need a leader who will stand firm and present conservative principles.
Sixth, we must educate the American voters. We must teach, practice, and vote conservatism consistently. It’s only then that the American people will take us seriously.
As I look at the wreckage of the election that was, I don’t see any reason to despair. America has not moved left, the Republican Party did. Where some may see only defeat, I see opportunity. Our Republic does not depend on a single political party winning. Our future depends on average Americans. With the defeat of Washington insiders and pork barrel politicians, the future of conservatism is in our hands. Let us seize the day.
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