Posted on 09/30/2015 11:32:09 AM PDT by jazusamo
The impending departure of Speaker of the House John Boehner gives the House Republicans a real opportunity to accomplish something. But an opportunity is not a guarantee. It is a little like a football team being first down and goal at the ten-yard line.
You have a good chance of scoring a touchdown from there -- if you can get your act together. But you could also find yourself having to settle for a field goal. Or for a missed field goal.
And of course you can also fumble the ball and have the other team grab it -- and run it all the way back across the field to score a touchdown against you. With Republicans, it would be chancy to make a bet as to which of these scenarios is most likely.
Speaker Boehner had a tough hand to play, given the internal splits among House Republicans. But Boehner's biggest problem was Boehner. And it is a recurring Republican problem.
Nothing epitomized Boehner's wrong-headedness like an occasion when he emerged from the White House, after a conference with President Obama and others, to face a vast battery of microphones and television cameras.
Here was a golden opportunity for Speaker Boehner to make his case directly to the American people, unfiltered by the media. Instead, he just walked over to the microphones and cameras, briefly expressed his disgust with the conference he had just come from, and then walked on away.
Surely Boehner knew, going into this White House conference, that it could fail. And, surely, he knew that there would be an opportunity immediately afterwards to present his case to the public. But, like so many Republican leaders over the years, he seemed to have no sense of the importance of doing so -- or for the time and efforts needed to prepare for such an opportunity beforehand.
Whoever the next Speaker of the House is, someone should have a plaque made up to put on his desk -- a plaque reading: TALK, DAMMIT!
If the political situation in Washington is such that many of the expectations of Republican voters cannot be met, then at least take the time and trouble to spell that out in plain language to the public.
Maybe the smug consultants in Washington don't think the public can understand. But Ronald Reagan won two landslide elections by doing what subsequent Republican leaders disdained to do.
In between, he accomplished what was called "the Reagan revolution" without ever having a majority in both Houses of Congress. He could go over the heads of Congressional Democrats and explain to the public why certain legislation was needed -- and once he won over the voters, Democrats in Congress were not about to jeopardize their reelection chances by going against them.
One of the secrets of Reagan's political success was a segment of the population that was called "Reagan Democrats." These were voters who traditionally voted for Democrats but who had been won over to Reagan's agenda.
Contrary to the thinking -- or lack of thinking -- among today's Republican leaders, Reagan did not go to these Democratic voters and pander to them by offering them a watered-down version of what the Democrats were offering. He took his case to them and talked -- yes, TALKED -- to let them know what his own agenda offered to them and to the country.
Today's Republicans who proclaim a need to "reach out" to a wider constituency almost invariably mean pandering to those groups' current beliefs, not showing them how your agenda and your principles -- if you have any -- apply to their situation and to the good of the country.
You won't swing a whole constituency of Democrats your way, and neither did Ronald Reagan. But he swung enough of them to win elections and to force Congressional Democrats to respect the "Reagan Democrats" he had won over.
There are issues on which Republicans can appeal to blacks -- school choice being just one obvious and important issue. And it is unlikely that all Hispanic voters want open borders, through which criminals can come in and settle in their communities.
But unspoken words will never tap these sources of votes, nor perhaps even convince Congressional Republicans. And if the quarterback is unsure what to do, being first and goal on the ten-yard line may not mean much.
The foregoing will be completely lost on RINOs.
This is exactly why Boehner and McConnell and the rest of the GOP establishment suck at their jobs. They have power but have no clue how to use it. The reason: No spine. They are so friggin' stuck on being PC that they cannot get the message across. Well, guys, grow a pair. If you piss off some groups, so be it. But if you don't start doing something for conservatives in the areas of immigration, big gov't, and tax relief, you're going to be out of a job...and it can't come fast enough in my opinion.
It's a WHOLE LOT like that...
I think we all should appreciate our role in this.
Many feel the way we do. Few express it. A few talk radio shows, a few websites, but no real way to be heard.
However, we were relentless, and possibly influenced Donald Trump, Carson, Fiorina and Cruz.
Brit Hume and BOR were discussing “us” Monday night. Hume went through all the dissatisfaction items for Boehner. BOR basically said, “what’s the use”, because the senate can block votes. But there are always wobbly senators who can be swayed by a strong leader. Obama vetoing laws regarding infanticide, sanctuary cities and illegal immigration will be a record of his legacy.
Well said, totally agree.
The difference being the current pod of crooks in Washington want to be bought by special interests, approved of by the Press and loved by whining gaggles of different minorities. It’s all about them.
Reagan had Principles he used to drive his agenda. You heard it every time he spoke on an issue. He wanted and fought for a Better America. He told people what they needed to hear, not what they wanted.
Even the working Rats understand a honest days work for an honest days pay. Those voters are listening to Trump because they know he doesn’t care about the politics. They are just a tired of the Gay Agenda, the PC Crap, Globull Warming, Invasion of Illegals, Social Handouts to anyone that wants them and a Party that sold out their kids future to a Mullah who chants death to America.
Absolutely agree...
bump
They have the power, and they use it. They use it to ensure the dhims don't oppose them so they can keep their golden tickets! Seriously why would the so called opposition run a serious campaign against ....pick yer rino.... when they already have the seat?
Time for a refund from this ridiculous punch and judy political puppet theatre!
>>> It is a little like a football team being first down and goal at the ten-yard line.
Um, no. The metaphor missed mentioning our team does not have a quarterback at this point, and Mitch the turtle (backup quarterback) still plays for the other team.
Sowell: Good Riddance!
__________________
In my grandmother’s time there was a second part to that saying:
Good Riddance!
To Bad Rubbish!
Yep, in my time too. :-)
Not only is it worth our time, it should be viewed at least twice by each and every American, regardless of party.
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