Republicans lost because they took the pious wimp approach to politics. The GOP played politics by Marquess of Queensbury rules of civility, while the Democrats used guerrilla tactics.
George Bush is a good man, but he and the GOP were willing to get beat up every news cycle without even a whimper, and that is scandalous.
Ronald Reagan was willing to ridicule Democrats and Communists at every opportunity. Bush, like his dear Dad, just wanted to give them a hug.
We need FREEPER-approved GOP Candidates without exception.
-ping-
Bush43's LIBERAL conservatism is dead...I hope!
I think you're right. This is certainly a factor in what cost the GOP the election. They allowed the MSM to frame everything and didn't even make a fist to counter.
Your post 2 is excellent.
AMEN BUMP! Back to the future with another CONSERVATIVE contract with America.
Sad. But, so true.
Yes, I think you are correct.
Once, just once, I wish Bush would go on TV with a stack of Iraqi documents and clearly and methodically explain to the American people exactly what Iraq was all about.
As I posted in another thread.
Iraq is the main reason the GOP lost, along with their fear of fighting the media. Until Republicans realize that Iraq is not popular with most Americans, including Republicans we will continue to lose.
If things in Iraq are the same today as they are two years from now, kiss the White House goodbye.
Well I agree with you on so many points.
Except I have one question...if conservatism always wins (as common sense would dictate it SHOULD), two losses last night sort of belie this dictum.
Rick Santorum remained close to his principles and he's such a nice guy. Yet he lost. And what about Bob Ehrlich in Merryland? Here's a guy doing a fantastic job in a solidly blue state yet he was essentially FIRED against an avid airhead, Baltimore Mayor O'Malley. O'Malley accomplished exactly nothing during his tenure as mayor yet the guy gets elected as Governor over a nice guy like Ehrlich.
I'll not pretend, at least for now, to not be severely bummed out this morning. As for my hero Rush Limbaugh, he's got some splaining to do. He always says conservative principles win yet THEY DID NOT!
Things will look up soon enough, or at least that optimistic part of me whispers in my mind. If God is in his heaven, guys like Ehrlich, Santorum, and Steele will step up to the podium and throw out that entrenched Republican leadership and start infusing some new blood.
The way things stand now, the path is paved for a President McCain in 2008. Somehow this depresses me even more.
As for Bush, yea the man never sat down in that mighty Oval Office, looked the American people in the eye, and told it like it is on this War on Terror. He let the Dems have that mighty talking point about Saddam's NO weapons of mass destruction. He waffled over the Valerie Plame joke. He gave Kennedy that "no child left behind" joke and he pushed through a Medicare prescription plan that almost no one likes. Bush is no communicator and he had so much power to lay it on the line. Ah well, he'll be gone in two years.
Then we'll have President McCain.
Oh joy.
"COMPASSIONATE CONSERVATISM IS DEAD" I agree. Reagan republicans UNITE.
Your views and mine are exactly the same.
The Bush's did not make bad Presidents, but they allowed themselves to be ridiculed and this is what both of them got for it. Sometimes you have to defend yourself.
We lost because a third of House Republicans are either under indictment or sending love emails to pages.
I agree. You just can't play nice with democrats.
The biggest problem I saw is that the republicans let the democrats shape the debate.
We had a great economy to use as a platform, but they hardly spoke one word about it.
We need to get back to the basics of conservatism and push back hard. In my opinion, it'll take a few elections to take the house back.
What was the final tally for house seats?
Bush and the Republican party were always on the defense and they should have been more on the offense!
The Republicans lost because they abandonned the conservative principles espoused by Ronald Reagan and acted like 'moderate' democrats instead.
Thank God.
Since he took office PresBush has moved the GOP moved away from conservatism and ALL Republicans paid a dear price at the polls yesterday. Now we have at least two years of social liberalism to look forward to, if not longer. Lets see if PresBush is better with the veto pen when his party isn't in power. And of course the WOT and the battle for Iraq will probably suffer serious consequences. All in all, not a good day for America.