Posted on 12/29/2021 5:42:55 AM PST by Kaslin
All things considered, 2021 was a good year for Republicans. In 2022 will the GOP build on its 2021 successes, or allow itself to be dragged back to 2020?
The answer is right in front of our eyes. This year has been a disaster for the Democrats largely because they refused to move forward, electing instead to remain mired in the past and fighting yesterday’s battles. If Republicans take the same course in 2022, they will likely reap the same disappointing harvest.
The events of last January 6 at the U.S. Capitol will predictably be a focal point for Democrat campaigns heading into 2022. They really have nothing positive from 2021 on which to campaign, so they will use 1/6 as a lure to drag Republicans down, too. The last thing Republicans need is to take that bait and fight on that playing field; doing so would be a sure way to turn off moderate Republicans, as well as independent voters who the GOP must reach in order to regain majorities in the House and Senate.
This, of course, is easier said than done. In addition to Democrats chumming the waters, some on the GOP’s own team refuse to move forward. They see 1/6 as a positive flashpoint and Biden’s heavy-handed response to it as a wedge issue to churn up anger on the Right. This would be a major strategic mistake
As right as these Republicans are about the federal government’s overzealous response to 1/6, it is not the winning message going forward. Voters, especially those not already committed to the GOP, yearn for a vision for the future rather than to be repeatedly enraged by the past.
The tone Republicans should strike is found in one of Ronald Reagan’s most famous speeches, where he defined America as a “shining city on a hill.” This was a clear and timeless reminder of the greatness America can reach if the principles of free markets and individual liberty are allowed to thrive.
For an America tired of fearing COVID, inflation, crime, and losing what little precious freedoms they still enjoy, Reagan’s truly is the message for the moment; but it needs to be delivered by leaders who can express it and who have the backbone to follow it through.
Fortunately, there have been several gubernatorial standouts for the GOP answering this call. When facing a social and economic nightmare created by federal incompetence these governors turned lemons into leadership, with undeniably positive results.
Democrat-led states continue to suffer from the Left’s hapless response to COVID, while Republican-led ones (in particular Georgia, Florida, and Texas) continue to show incredible resilience against a rudderless federal government listing wildly from side to side.
On top of their economic successes, Republican-led states and localities have maintained public safety without locking down citizens like criminals. These governors and mayors were the first to realize America must learn to deal with COVID rather than run from it, if a sense of normalcy is to return. Meanwhile, Democrats continue to pump doom and gloom, even as they admit they have no idea what they are doing.
Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin’s recent, incredible victory in Virginia presents Republicans with a roadmap for victory in 2022. Rather than relying on divisive rhetoric to motivate the GOP base, Youngkin presented a clear and consistent vision for restoring conservative governance that appealed to Republican and independent voters alike. Sure, he was aided in his effort by a Virginia Democrat Party that relied on worn-out messages delivered by tone-deaf messengers, but the win was delivered by Youngkin and those candidates on his ticket.
The GOP entered 2021 battered and bloody, but as the year ends the Party is poised to crush Democrats in 2022.
The question Republicans must ask themselves at this juncture, however, is do they want to be dragged back to November 2020 and January 2021, and risk suffering the same consequences that befell Democrats this year by doing just that? Or should they march forth with a vision for the future, keeping in mind what they actually have accomplished this year by not looking backward? The answer would seem to be a no-brainer.
To ignore the outrageous FRAUD is suicide.....
Someone, something MUST PAY FOR WHAT HAPPENED IN 2020.
Hopefully we will have some enthusiastic leaders who will fix this.
Sounds like this is directed at Trump.
No thanks, Bob. He's still my President.
Wait to fight? The right waited 25 years too long.
It’s much harder to steal a House district than statewide races. I expect the GOP will, undeservedly, take the House and maybe the Senate. At which point the GOP will happily fund the Democrats Marxist agenda.
Barr thinks we should ignore the unconstitutional “federal government’s overzealous response to 1/6” so that we don’t offend dems. I just can’t ignore it.
Oh yes..... rationalizing is also losing
Trump is a loser and no doubt, like you a rationalizer
He waited....... he lost his presidency
“Trump is a loser and no doubt, like you a rationalizer”
Was that a personal attack?
HEY Bob, our side has been squish ALWAYS we NEVER fight for a damn thing just like when you were in Congress don’t worry Bob I expect them ALL to sit on their hands as always!!
I think the issue should be Trust.
I suppose it’s true that some people found Trump “off-putting”. But was he a liar? Was he corrupt? Did you know where he stood on issues? I think all of that is good on our side.
Do people trust the media? Do they trust Fauci? Do they think Biden is really in charge of anything? Do they think Harris could take over? Are people confident that our elections are honest?
If Trust is made into a central issue, the Democrats look bad.
And then they can go ahead and cheat their way to victory (the GOP seems to have no problem with losing like that) but at the very least it will become more obvious to people.
My position is that we aren’t going to vote our way out of this. So I think we should at least help more and more people see the truth of the matter: we aren’t going to vote our way out of this.
They do it every time - but in 2022 they have to be firmly and finally exposed. We need 10,000 James O'Keefes out there gathering incontrovertible video and physical evidence.
I didn’t say that. I axed a question.
well said...I’ve been trying to convince an over-the-top- Trump-koolaid-drinking friend of mine of this....
Americans deserve to know if their elections are safe and real from manipulation.
If you don’t fix 2020, does it matter?
Why even have elections if it’s going to be decided outside of the voting booth by political hacks?
The democommies have blown it so badly, that anyone with an r next to their name is just about guaranteed to be elected. The old “He or She is not electable” debate goes right out the window.
Anyone who spouts the “ not electable” line is a republiCAN’T. Not a MAGA conservative.
Time to purge the party.
Amen to that. There is no way that election fraud will be properly investigated until the RINO traitors that facilitated it are removed in the 2022 primaries.
Never before have RINOs outed themselves to the extent that they did in the Steal of 2020.
If everyone with (R) after their name would enforce voter ID and be a fearless fighter for the Constitution, the republican party would be unstoppable.
Make it happen in 2022. It is literally our last chance.
Sadly the red wave coming is likely going to sadly bolster the GOPe/Uniparty/Globablist/RINOs in congress....
How about we do both, Rep Barr?
If we re-elect the same bunch of Assistant Democrats, that is what will happen.
I reluctantly will show up to vote in my state. Yes I believe it’s a show vote exercise. Noone did a darn thing to secure our elections and it gets worse and worse each cycle. This may be the last time I vote in this state. Dominion be damned. If we lose these seats to demoncrats I will sell my house and get out to either Texas or Florida.
The GOP, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory since 1992.
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