The biggest mistake that I have see conservatives makes, over the years, is to think we can win solely from the top down. That is to say, thinking all we have to do is elect a conservative president or Congress and we have won the ideological argument and conservatism will “trickle downâ€. Liberals on the other hand are masters at winning from the bottom up, the “community organizing†the packing of colleges, school boards, civic groups, the media and local governments with other liberals. This forms an effective “firewall†for when conservatives do elect a candidate to a high position, their attempts at reform of stymied by the liberal bureaucracy.
This is very true. . and I have seen the frustration as Tea Party agendas seem to gravitate toward lobbying efforts, twisting arms of politicians or helping the campaigns of Tea Party friendly candidates. . .only to be confronted again and again with the reality that once someone is elected they seem to taper off in their Tea Party enthusiasm.
The nature of the problem is this. . .elected officials are not our "leaders," they are "representatives" of the people. Look at how many elected officials are winning their race by a slim percentage. However, slim margins only effect those that see themselves as "representatives of the people." Therefore, they do not effect Democrats. . who only see themselves as experts over the helpless masses. Also, look how many Americans simply are not even interested enough to go vote. This is our problem. . .we the people. . .are divided between those who seek representatives and those who want experts (and those who could care less either way).
In the 2012 Presidential election, I worked the local polls on election day. I spent nearly a whole day next to Democrat Party grassroots supporters. I can't tell you how, on the one hand, they were so nice. . and, on the other, they were so stunningly sick in the head and uninformed. This is the problem. . .good and noble people are being completely duped by evil ideologues who seek nothing less than the destruction of our founding principles. . which are essential for liberty.
We need to reach these people. . we need to swing a percentage toward conservatism. . we need to send representatives to Washington that are empowered by 60% of the voting public who will stand firm behind their representative, even in the face of a condescending media and popular culture. THEN, things will change.
We have to reach out beyond the choir. We have to inspire the human heart with the living ideals that stand at the root of our nation's birth. We have to expose and eradicate all the tenticles of Progressive ideology and its detrimental effects on our free society. It means we have to take the truth and go into the enemy camp and change hearts and minds. I've experienced it being done and I know it works, but I've also seen how people feel reluctant or not confident to step into that arena. It is easier to pretend we are doing something by inviting a Trevor Loudon to come speak at the next Tea Party meeting about "The Enemy Within".. that is, to tell us what we already know or could learn by perusing freerepublic.com for 5 minutes.