No strategy is worth a hill of beans unless it involves terraforming the mindset of the electorate to agree with conservative ideas. Changing the mind of the electorate is a long term project. The purist crowd doesn’t have the patience for it and should be ignored. They are a self righteous flash in the pan. Long term victory will require exceptional character and perseverance on the part of the conservative movement in America. The question is whether we are up to it. It will take true grit on our part.
the meme doesn’t work. you have yet to address why 80% is too pure. Because even us arch purists are great with Reagan’s 80% number. Until you do, you really shouldn’t be tossing about words you clearly do not understand.
the problem is your RINOs can’t approach it. So instead, you don’t want them to compromise with us, you want us to compromise DOWN even more.
Is that not true? Prove it.
Decades of experience have taught me that compromisers almost never change people's minds. The only weapon in their arsenal is a bludgeon. For unprincipled political hacks, "changing hearts and minds" is a ruse, an excuse for more compromise, always to be talked about, but never actually done.
The purist crowd doesn’t have the patience for it and should be ignored.
If you really believe that, why are you on this thread?
“No strategy is worth a hill of beans unless it involves terraforming the mindset of the electorate to agree with conservative ideas.”
I think almost everyone would agree with your starting premise. But it goes downhill from there.
Advocating the “Vote for mr. right now” position hardly gives you the moral ground to refer to purists as impatient. Asking for exceptional character is a mismatch with compromising principles. Your friendly fire on other conservatives doesn’t show much perseverance.
But returning to your premise. I think a strong case can be made that there are RINOs who hurt the long term case for conservativism. When Cochran refered to conservatives as racists in Mississippi, that was damage we took from one of our own. When Mitch McTurtle refers to the tea party as extrimists, that is our “leader” selling us out.
Those in the middle expect to hear that from democrats, but when someone with an R next to their name sells out the conservative cause, we take a step backwards with respect to “terraforming the mindset of the electorate to agree with conservative ideas”
I know it is difficult to focus on the long game when the temptation is there to vote for “mr/mrs right now”. In the past, I’ve been there. Many others have. But over time, we have noticed the pattern that by voting for liberals... we get more liberals. It isn’t working, it is time to regroup and try something else.
Ahh yes... the 'true grit' of compromise and appeasement. That's what Rooster Cogburn was noted for, fer sure.