What a load.
It’s the same thing I said during one of the Bush campaigns:
If the party goes right, it becomes Reagan and wins.
If the party goes left, it becomes Dole and loses.
Simple as that, and borne out by several recent presidential elections.
The party stopped being true to itself and started trying to emulate the Demonrats.
Solidify your base in the south. lest the party loses them to a 3rd party. Focus in on winning back the voters in Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Missouri.
The GOP is never going to win on the east or west coasts, so forget about them.
Conservatism is a key ingredient in upward-mobility, where accumulating wealth through the fruits of one's labors is the bedrock foundation.
Contrast that with the dems' redistributionist policies, which seek simply to tear down upscale citizens, and many Americans would see the light, to borrow a cliche.
Just my $.02, of course.
Republicans can argue that their policies will let you choose your future.
Having successfully purged most libertarian-minded politicians from the party, just how is the GOP going to find anyone who can credibly make such arguments? Ron Paul tried - that's why young voters flocked to him. Bush, Cheney, McCain, and Palin eagerly took the opposite side of the spectrum: "We're still Mom and Dad, and you kids (voters) are damn well going to do as you're told!" That sent a thrill of pleasure through moms and dads throughout the heartland and some massive-looking Sarah rallies...at the cost of perhaps ruining the GOP's chances for a generation among the young.
Yessss....by then the indoctrination is complete. Grade 1-12 than 1-4/5-6/ 7-8- 20 years in some cases. Those EDU. Camps Work!
Isn't that exactly what Reagan wanted?
The first irony: Republicans have typically avoided block-constituency politics, instead giving priority to the individual. They have both won and lost that way. Here, Barone is assuming the former in his premise.
The second irony: Abondoning basic foundational tenets of a healthy society (marriage, children) only removes what little braking power we have against total economic and cultural collapse. Need to look at dying nations in Europe to see the consequences.
bttt