BJ was the Dim party candidate. But I know what you mean. Goldwater "lost" miserably but "won" posthumously by sticking to his principles of limited government. As far as redefining the Party, it has to go back to LESS GOVERNMENT. Not anarchy like the Libertarians want. But LESS GOVERNMENT control over our lives. There are millions of right wingers I know who have no problem with religion, they think it's great like I do, but I long for the day when the Religious Right was just happy that Republicans left them alone. Now they want Sharia Law and Billions of dollars of Gubmint money. This is why the average Joe on the street thinks that Republicans are the party of Big Government and Dems are in favor of freedom.
Maybe Rudy is the answer??? I don't know. But any politician who believes in killing the enemy who is trying to blow us all up, letting us keep our money and otherwise leaving people the hell alone is a friend of mine.
I dont see how he won anything anytime. Johnson was a big Government Democrat, and Nixon continued big Government Republicanism, followed by the 1970s, a hey dey of big govt liberalism.
It was a long 16 years after Goldwater that Reagan became President and limited Govt took a shellacking the whole time.
"As far as redefining the Party, it has to go back to LESS GOVERNMENT." ... I agree. I have my doubts we will get that from Rudy, but we shall see.