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What the hell are you talking about? The GOP caved in 1995 and paid for this with loses in 1996 and 1998. Had it stuck to its guns, that budget battle could have been easily won. The case of 1995 is a perfect example of what happens when you cave. What you are recommending? That the GOP continue to embrace socialism in baby steps rather than giant leaps. Thanks but no thanks. Such a strategy only leads to the same statist goal. Life is too important to take part in such scams.

The GOP caved in in 95 because of the withering attack directed at them from the Clinton slime machine and their friends in the media. They were deamonized non-Freeping stop and the polls showed it. As 95 progressed, the majority of the people in this country did not support the R's and their limited government plans and instead began to believe the slime machine.

Now you tell me why the *HELL* should any freeping politician care about Freeping limited government, when the majority of the voting population doesn't give a rats arse???

I'll wait here for your answer......

First, the budget battle was in 1995, not 1996. The election was a long way off. Had the GOP played hardball more effectively, it would have won in 1995, thus forcing budget concessions long before the election. Even Clinton could not have waited them out to 1996! By the time of the 1996 elections, the GOP alleged threat to "shut down" would been forgotten but its victory against the deficit *would* be a potent election tool.

Public opinion is fickle and easily manipulated. A constant of public opinion during that period, however, was opposition to the "deficit" (remember Perot's popularity?). This was the GOP's hidden strength but it frittered it away needlessly.

Had the GOP scored a victory on the deficit front, it would have been rewarded by the time the dust had settled in 1996. Unfortunatly, the end result of the cave in was that the GOP lost all around. It failed to force concessions from Clinton *and* it was perceived as obstructionist. As a result, it was aimless in 1996 and we are still paying the price today!

In short, had the GOP been willing to bear the short-term political costs in 1995, it would have reaped a longer term victory in 1996. It chose, however, to squander and wate its majority instead of using it.