Republicans Forecast GOP death by Gilded Age Ideologies

Brandyon · Nov 8, 2012

The thread title has been brought to you in the sensationalist styling of rtsy & basso for your reading pleasure.

http://thelibertarianrepublic.com/will-there-be-a-civil-war-in-the-gop/

In an appearance on a popular talk radio program Wednesday, Former Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain added fuel to the fire of “civil war” talk going on in the GOP. Although it’s clear that if there is a war, he’s claiming to be on the side of the rebels.

Cain states, “I never thought that I would say this, and this is the first time publicly that I’ve said it: We need a third party to save this country. Not Ron Paul and the Ron Paulites. No. We need a legitimate third party to challenge the current system that we have, because I don’t believe that the Republican Party … has the ability to rebrand itself,”.

Cain’s remarks are interesting in light of comments made by former campaign manager for the John McCain presidential run in 2008 Steve Schmidt who said, “People calling for revolution… you know? When I talk about a civil war in the Republican Party, what I mean is, it’s time for Republican elected leaders to stand up and to repudiate this nonsense [of the extreme right wing], and to repudiate it directly,”.

Schmidt is evidently referring to statements by candidates such as Richard Mourdock in Indiana and Todd Akin in Missouri. Both candidates made enormously unpopular statements concerning rape and abortion that appeared to be critical reasons for their failure to win seats to the US Senate. Social conservative radicalism took an enormous blow following the reelection of President Barack Obama. Democrats successfully baited candidates over the abortion issue and handed the media headline after headline of horrifying quotes that made every rational female in the electorate recoil in disgust after talk of “legitimate rape”. Former talk radio host Neal Boortz said that ‎”Religious conservatives are killing this country…they handed Obama four more years.” And former Republican representative and MSNBC talk show host Joe Scarborough stated that, “in many ways the country is becoming more libertarian. They’re saying stay out of my bedroom… stay out of my wallet… There are fiscally conservative gay men and women just waiting for an excuse to vote Republican.” With the fact that nearly every GOP candidate that made gaffes on the abortion issue failing to win their elections, it seems as if Boortz and Scarborough may be correct.

Conservatives such as Cain right be correct that a third party is needed, but they make a great error dismissing the intellectual/skeptical wing of the Republican Party. Even conservatives such as Sarah Palin, Senator Jim DeMint, and Senator Mike Lee have publicly stated that the Republican Party needs to reach out to young people, Ron Paul types and libertarians. One has to wonder if Cain is actually interested in building any sort of winning third party coalition with his continued belligerence. However one has to wonder; If the former Pizza Hut CEO, who resigned as a result of personal scandals were in charge of a third party, what would it look like? Would it be a social conservative party? Likely so. Would it be a party of unlimited intervention in foreign affairs and total commitment to military spending without audit or second guess? Absolutely. So, why not just stick with the GOP?

Some in the GOP might disagree with Steve Schmidt’s comments on repudiating “those calling for revolution” when he is a member of a party that proudly touts the “Reagan Revolution”. Also would he have hesitated to be have claimed a title in a “Romney Revolution” had there been one? No, it appears that Schmidt is rebuking the terminology of the conservative/libertarian coalitions who are demanding real reform and adherence to real fiscal conservatism. Those people in the GOP who want a real revolution of ideas seem to be gaining ground, demanding stronger adherence to limited government principles.

Even Vice Presidential candidate Paul Ryan was held in contempt by some budget hawks wary of his willingness to cave over issues like the auto bailout and his support of the highly unpopular Keynesian TARP programs. This alone seems to validate the idea that a purer, Austrian form of economics is becoming more fashionable amongst the right. Even Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann who barely squeaked by in her reelection campaign paid deference to Austrian economist Ludwig Von Mises stating that she brought his epic 1,128 page tome to the beach to read. Mises is the philosopher that President Ronald Reagan credited as an intellectual inspiration among others and was the most unyielding of the economists of the Austrian school alongside Friedrich Von Hayek, Milton Friedman and others
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JeopardE · Nov 8, 2012

The Republican Party is confused. The libertarians and the social conservatives can knock heads together all they want, they will all lose together. The problem is not a few crazy women's rights issues. The problem is extremism in all forms, whether social or fiscal.

If the Republican party thinks it will succeed by eschewing extreme social conservatism and instead embracing extreme fiscal conservatism, it is in for a shock. The Republicans need to step off the ledge and come back to meet the rest of the country near the center. Steadfast ideology over pragmatism is long-term poison.

Until they do that, they will continue to fade into electoral obscurity - 2016 will turn out to be THE worst electoral defeat the Republican party has seen in a century.

B-Bob · Nov 8, 2012

^ I don't know about that 2016 prediction. I do think they have to come together around a year, because they are all pulling in different directions.

1985? (McCain)
1925? (Boehner)
1895? (Ryan)
1705? (Santorum)
205? (Bachmann)

Jokes aside, these are really different visions for rolling back the federal government, and they need to figure one out. If they went for 1985, they would get a ton of support, I think (even though we were creating huge debt at the time, relative to other post-WWII times.)

Dave_78 · Nov 8, 2012

JeopardE said: ↑

The Republican Party is confused. The libertarians and the social conservatives can knock heads together all they want, they will all lose together. The problem is not a few crazy women's rights issues. The problem is extremism in all forms, whether social or fiscal.

If the Republican party thinks it will succeed by eschewing extreme social conservatism and instead embracing extreme fiscal conservatism, it is in for a shock. The Republicans need to step off the ledge and come back to meet the rest of the country near the center. Steadfast ideology over pragmatism is long-term poison.

Until they do that, they will continue to fade into electoral obscurity - 2016 will turn out to be THE worst electoral defeat the Republican party has seen in a century.
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I'm not so sure about all this. I think if the GOP slickly re-brands itself as a party that is less extreme about topics like abortion and immigration it can easily return to power and while keeping its agenda of fleecing the middle class and funneling wealth to the top.

Rocketman95 · Nov 8, 2012

Dave_78 said: ↑

I'm not so sure about all this. I think if the GOP slickly re-brands itself as a party that is less extreme about topics like abortion and immigration it can easily return to power and while keeping its agenda of fleecing the middle class and funneling wealth to the top.
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It'll have to be slick. They use those topics to distract poor people from realizing how terrible GOP economic policies are for them.

Buck Turgidson · Nov 8, 2012

Dave_78 said: ↑

I think if the GOP slickly re-brands itself as a party that is less extreme about topics like abortion and immigration
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You realize that those are 2 of the main linchpins of the GOP platform, right?

If only a pig's ass wasn't pork, or bears didn't **** in the woods, or the Pope wore an unfunny hat.

pgabriel · Nov 8, 2012

broken record

the tea party was the splintering, again, the fiscal conservatives (the establishment) used the crazies for votes. the crazies were cool until the gwb term whom proved to be a big spender only concerned about cutting taxes.

come financial meltdown late 08, gwb signs bank bailout, tea parties crazies split. for a while the establishment was able to harness tea party craze but their hold is tenuous. the GOP is split.

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Republicans Forecast GOP death by Gilded Age Ideologies

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