Making Lemonade: Four lessons Republicans should learn from losing in Colorado

National Review ^ | 4/13/10

[pabianice]

In 2004, Colorado Republicans controlled the governor’s mansion, both U.S. Senate seats, five of the state’s seven congressional seats, and both houses of the state legislature. Only 48 months later, the state’s Democrats found themselves in that very same position.

Experts on both sides of the aisle agree that what happened in Colorado from 2004 to 2008 (during which time registered Republicans outnumbered registered Democrats statewide) was about much more than the anti-Republican political environment. It was, in the words of former Clinton staffer Rob Stein, the result of a “more strategic, more focused, more disciplined, better financed” progressive movement at the grassroots level.

And if Stein has his way, Colorado is just the beginning. Under the auspices of a group of over 80 super-wealthy donors called the Democracy Alliance, progressives are spending $110 million to export their Colorado blueprint to over a dozen states in 2010, including Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Utah, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

Even with the Obamacare wind at their backs, Republicans across the country face some of the most sophisticated state-level organizations ever assembled. The degree of GOP success in November may depend on how well the party understands and adapts to this new reality.

Republicans should keep in mind four vital lessons from the Colorado experience:

1. The party is dead. In Colorado, campaign-finance reform reduced contributions to political parties — as McCain-Feingold did on the federal level. While Colorado Republicans struggled to fund get-out-the-vote efforts through the state GOP, Democrats scrapped the party altogether and replaced it with a network of independent nonprofit entities. Funded primarily by the “Gang of Four” — multimillionaires Rutt Bridges, Tim Gill, Jared Polis, and Pat Stryker — the shadow Democratic party became the most powerful political entity in the state.

[Buckeye McFrog]

5. Californians should be required to voluntarily relinquish their right to vote for a period of ten (10) years in exchange for being allowed to move to another state.

[kabar]

The author failed to mention the changing demographics in Colorado. From 1990 to 2000 the foreign born population increased from 139,890 to 380,841. The Mexican born population increased from 32,712 to 192,427 during that same timeframe.

As of 2008, the foreign born population is 489,187. The Hispanic population is 963,831 out of a total population of 4,844,568 or 19.9%. Demography is destiny.

[Haiku Guy]

You can’t beat something with nothing.

As long as Republicans are nothing more than “me-too” Democrats, they are doomed to electoral oblivion. The great domestic political question of the next fifty years is statism vs. freedom. If the Republicans do not stake out the “freedom” side of that argument, they deserve their failure.

The Republican Party is being given a great gift. They are being forced to abandon the Democrat agenda, which has just gotten too absurd to be supported. If they take this opportunity and stake out a conherent policy of reducing state influence and spending, they will become a legitimate political party again.

But they should be warned... This is their last chance. If they fumble this, and stab the voters in the back one more time, there is no saving them. The Democrats will come roaring back, and there will be no effective opposition to stop them.

[STONEWALLS]

Lesson #5
...Dems understand that the country has changed and know how to harness the votes of blacks/hispanics/unions/homeless/teachers/bureaucrats....meanwhile white conservatives fight among themselves and are afraid to fight back because they’ll be called racist.

[Cowman]

Californians should be required to voluntarily relinquish their right to vote for a period of ten (10) years in exchange for being allowed to move to another state.

Learn from northern New England. 50 years ago there was not a "D" to be found anywhere but in bars in the sleazy part of town. At the same time wealthy commielibs in places like New York and Boston were making their hometowns unlivable due to their horrendous policies. When the taxes and crime made where they were completely unbearable they moved in great numbers to places that were not screwed up. Then they began to implement the policies that screwed up where they came from. Now everyone is screwed.

DON'T LET THIS HAPPEN TO YOU.

Seal your state borders NOW

[Rio]

It was, in the words of former Clinton staffer Rob Stein, the result of a “more strategic, more focused, more disciplined, better financed” progressive movement at the grassroots level.

In other words, they got ACORNed.

[keepitreal]

Plus this group of four who financed all the Colorado progressives came up with the strategy of having all their candidates lie to the voters that they were “moderate”. Center-right Colorado was tricked.

[KateUTWS]

As an example of the stealth takeover of local races the city of Provo, Utah has a(now)former Democrat as it's newly elected mayor. He was supplied volunteers by the police and fire unions including the teacher union The turnout was suppressed for Conservatives who were angry with the Republicans. It was a well kept secret that he had run for office as a Democrat in the past, the press didn't mention it at all, some good detective work had to expose that fact though it was too late.
a “former” Democrat is an oxymoron.

[who_would_fardels_bear]

From the article (referring to current successful Democrat strategy):

“You approach it with a business mentality. You say, ‘Our goal is to establish a Democratic majority.’ What’s the best way to do that? Let’s not talk about issues. Let’s not talk about ego. They’re all off the table.”

There is an implied suggestion in the article that the Colorado Republicans need to adopt the same strategy, i.e. forget about the issues, just get people with (R) behind their names in office.

If the Republicans are successful by adopting these Machiavellian tactics then maybe they can call themselves ColoRINOs.