Posted on 02/02/2015 6:17:07 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
It’s hard to overestimate the importance of this Slate article, “Divide and Conquer,” by Jamelle Bouie. He has done the GOP a favor by revealing the Democratic party’s strategic plan for defeating Scott Walker in 2016: smearing him as a “divisive” candidate who will send dog whistles to his white supporters and seek to run the table with the still-majority white voters to win the White House.
This article is the 2015 equivalent to the Zimmerman Telegram, and the GOP deserves to lose the White House if it ignores it. Governor Walker and the RNC will repeat Mitt Romney’s fatal mistake if they let this become the national narrative. Romney failed to respond to Obama’s early attacks on his wealth, and was painted into a corner as an out-of-touch plutocrat who tied his dog to the roof of his car. Romney never recovered from the populist suspicion.
Now, after eight years of what objective observers must describe as the most divisive presidency in American history — a presidency marked by IRS targeting of conservatives, by explicit appeals to minority groups, by a chief executive telling those who oppose law enforcement that he is “their” president, by the tarring of financiers as “fat cats,” by the smearing of religious folk as “bitter clingers” — the Democrats seek to pull an act of political legerdemain and paint Scott Walker as the divisive danger to America’s future.
And they will win, if Republicans and Walker don’t fight back.
(Excerpt) Read more at nationalreview.com ...
I am WITH you naps on this one, we NEED to get this candidate over the finish line!!!!!!!
He has been there, done that AND SUCCEEDED!!!!!!
Except last week Rush was giddy about Walker and Walkers speech and telling listeners that if conservatives want someone who can beat Dems at issues, then Walker is the man.
He was calling Walker a ‘conservative hero’ last week. Said Walker is passionate and successful because he believes in conservatism.
This is a trap that many talk radio fans fall into, repeating them using the term ‘conservatism’ causally and vaguely making it a meaningless joke like the Star Wars 'Force', now many of those who quote Rush are finding him using the term in a way that they disagree with.(well DUHHH')
‘The Force is in you Luke, use the Force’
They’ll go after him in the same way they always go after GOP rising stars - low intelligence radical nut job. For as long as there’s been a GOP, that has been the ‘Rat attack strategy.
i don’t agree. We need the best possible conservative candidates, regardless of race or sex. The progressives always harp on having a bigger tent. We have the biggest tent already, following the word of G-d. Let’s elect someone who follows His teachings, regardless of what their worldly attraction is.
It is sad, but identity politics works. Unless the GOP wins 70 percent of the white vote, they cannot win a national election.
Well a college degree didn’t help Obama...it actually made him worse.
The problem is that candidates and campaigns that are focused on winning primaries (the “right now”) tend to overlook the attacks Dems use to define them for the general election (the “down the road”). Result: the GOP nominee will have the nomination, and backing of the party voters, but then has to wage an uphill fight against the preconceived notions the Dems have already created about them with General Election voters.
The RNC really needs to step up this cycle and run an active defense for the GOP slate of candidates when the get attacked like that. Even defending attacks targeted at individual candidates, under the principle that defending Walker or Cruz or any of the others against specific attempts to define them also serves to innoculate the whole spread of candidates from such attacks.
” A female and/or minority VP nominee would help that.”
Not a chance. Politics trumps everything.
Both Jindal and Martinez ARE qualified Conservatives; I’m not advising we put someone in there to meet a PC quota.
Someone else already addressed your immigration libel.
Gov. Scott Walker calls for Legislature to repeal Common Core standards
If he were a liberal whiz-bang with no degree then
the Al Hunts would be drooling all over themselves,
lauding his intelligence, C.Ed.
Hey, by the way , WTF? is brilliant! It does bring
back the old, old days of driving around Sacto listening
to Limbaugh before he went national. Thanks so much!
I looked at the replies to your excellent post and see all of them generally agree with your comments. Unfortunately, most around FR these days will not agree and they will shout you down mightily given the opportunity. I firmly believe most of those are serial posters whose (most likely paid) function is to discourage and derail sound conservative thinking.
Nevertheless, the fact that many of the responses gave your post a good review cheers me up that among the rabble here in FR there are still many serious conservatives willing to put the success of the Republic before their own selfish desires.
How many of the pro-amnesty folks like McCain, Graham, Bush, et al have ever said they were “pro-amnesty”? I’ll guarantee you they would have the same answer as Walker.
He may not call it amnesty, but he wants to give illegals the opportunity to stay and become citizens. That’s amnesty....even if the good Governor doesn’t want to admit it.
I like Cruz, but none are perfect. Several have positions that are deal breakers....soft on illegals is one.
Put your faith in the ideas, never in the man. The man will always disappoint you.
Re: the article. Sounds like he’s been a scrapper from way back. He just has one semester to finish his degree, did a bad experience from way back make him not want to finish I wonder.
I've said that too, the purists just want all conservatives to stay home on election day. It makes me wonder about their motives.
By the way, take a look at his position on securing the border via a wall....he’s opposed to it. Read his quotes.
“You hear some people talk about border security and a wall and all that, to me, I don’t think you need any of that if you have a better, saner way to let people into the country in the first place.”
“People want to come here and work hard and benefit, I don’t care whether they come from Mexico or Ireland or Germany or Canada or South Africa or anywhere else, I want them here.”
On a pathway to citizenship for illegals....”I think long term that’s going to be a part of it but I think there are too many people here in Washington who are leapfrogging over everything else and trying to get to that right away. “
He’s also soft on Common Core. Other than kicking out the unions, I’m not sure of infatuation. I have nothing against the guy. He’s ok...but he has several positions I just can’t stomach. I just think folks should see his quotes to understand what they are supporting.
True that does not look good. Where did you get that info?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.