A US Senator represents a whole state. A conservative Senator must vote in line with his constituency or he will be replaced next election. That is not a strategy, it's the truth. You want a strategy? Convince a majority of voters to your point of view, and they will elect a Senator or President of your liking. Finding the right candidate to make your unpopular views palatable is not a strategy that will win often.
rats and moderates outnumber conservatives. A conservative candidate must appeal to enough moderates to get a majority of voters. The rats are harder to persuade than moderates. The moderate voters have already rejected conservative ideology. If they agreed with conservatives, they would be conservatives, not moderates. Moderates are motivated by greed and fear among other things. Moderates desire liberal handouts, but they fear rat military surrender and economic incompetence. Each moderate vote picked up by the GOP is worth 2 conservative votes. A DINO will often become a RINO (+1 GOP vote -1 rat vote=net+2). Fighting for a conservative vote will often cost a few RINO votes when the GOP is forced to vote on a constitutional amendment to ban flag burning, instead of fixing a pressing problem in the eyes of the voters.
I am to the right of a majority of voters. I supported B1 Bob Dornan and Alan Keyes in 96 and shook both their hand at the 95 GOP state convention in '95, but I've moderated my views over the years of conservative election failures. I'm assuming you are to the right of 95% of the voters, you may even admit it...lots of Freepers proudly proclaim it. From your perspective, I am a ProLife ProGun ProGod ProSoldier ProBusiness RINO for Palin...meaning liberal. From my perspective(If you would let Obama be re-elected) the GOP is wasting its time courting your vote.
Thanx for your reply and an opportunity clarify my opinion.
You assume too much.
Yes, I might be to the right of 95% of the voters.
But I would never accuse a Palin supporter of being a RINO.
Moreover, I actually voted for McCain. Hated doing it. But did it, nonetheless. And I would vote for Romney -- if he were the GOP nominee. Would hate it. But do it, nonetheless. Because, as with McCain, he would be the better option.
I voted for Perot in '92. Learned my lesson. A "protest vote" doesn't accomplish squat.
Plus, I'm all in favor of incrementalism -- edging to the right whenever you can. If that's all you can do...
But what about "stealing a march"...when you can?
'Rats and moderates may outnumber Republicans. But I'd contend they don't outnumber conservatives. In fact, a majority of people self-identify as conservatives. Only about 20% self-identify as liberals. Reagan's success effectively confirms this construction.
As a political philosophy, conservatism is actually constrained by its association with the Republican Party. The party itself has to be dragged kicking and screaming toward a conservative candidacy. Don't misunderstand. I'm not arguing third party. Instead, I'm arguing a conservative ascendancy in the GOP -- a goal we've been working toward since '64.
You want a strategy? Convince a majority of voters to your point of view, and they will elect a Senator or President of your liking. Finding the right candidate to make your unpopular views palatable is not a strategy that will win often.
Oh my, yes. Couldn't agree more. It's essential that we convince a majority of voters to "our" point of view. And, based on their own self-identification, they represent a fertile field.
What about the MSM? Yes, they've been a problem -- a major problem in propagating conservatism. But their influence on public opinion shrivels daily. The time may now be ripe for a conservative candidate to actually run against the media -- to use them as a foil.
A winning conservative has to be charismatic to attract moderates, without sin to meet conservative voter standards, and politically savvy to navigate the MSM minefields. A rare combination.
And, at long last, we have such a candidate in hand. For the first time in over thirty years.
Let's take advantage of the opportunity...and steal a march.