If it was the party of Lincoln, that party instituted an income tax, a tariff, gave RRs subsidies, and established public colleges. I love Lincoln, for a lot of reasons, but these ain't them. There is no such thing as the "Constitutional Republian" party you claim to remember.
The two most "constitutional" presidents of the last 100 years are Grover Cleveland and Calvin Coolidge.
Now, as to the main thread, I wish it were true, but I think it hopelessly optimistic to think that incumbents will lose more than 5% of the races---that is the historical trend.
The GOP now is a merely dim reflection of the democrats - and its cowardly knack for compromising on EVERY principle has shown me that it is just a slower road to hell.
Yup. It will get even worse if Bush signs the Incumbent Protection Bill.