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2010 and Beyond - When To Get Ready For Mid-Terms

Submitted by FederalistBlogs on Wed, 03/11/2009 - 11:13

There is already talk of the Presidential election in 2012.  I have seen PACs formed for Sarah Palin and Mitt Romney advertised on various websites.  I felt the last election was just a tiny bit long at two years of constant campaigning, four will really be a bit overboard.  More importantly, we have 2010 to worry about.  If there is anything vital to the survival of Conservative politics and the health of our country it will be the 2010 mid-term elections.  I sincerely believe that that party needs to start looking at locations for battlegrounds to take seats away from Democrats now and begin selecting and grooming potential candidates.  Here are my top reasons why the political landscape will be ripe for change.

 

Economy

As James Carville once said “It is the economy stupid.”  Current optimistic projections say that the economy will continue to slide a while longer and finally skid to a stop at the bottom next year.  Once we hit bottom I do not see any of this administrations plans brining us screaming back out of the valley.  I see it far more likely that by the mid-term election we will be still sitting in an economic ditch.  As long as current Republicans show they have been working against the bad decisions they can hold their seats.  A new generation of Reagan Conservative Republicans can then swing in to bring about change and recovery.

 

War

Many people in the middle voted to get us out of Iraq.  People were tired of the war, and still are.  John McCain was honest about it taking time to get out, and it cost him.  Now President Obama essentially is saying the things that lost McCain the election.  We will still be in Iraq and Afghanistan in force come the next election.  That is a big promise to have broken for some people.

 

Leadership

The only leadership principle I have seen so far is blaming current problems on the last administrations leadership.  The current Administration was elected despite their total inexperience and lack of leadership background, and it shows.  A fresh batch of new faces with a clear set of goals and objectives like the Contract For America will be able to show the kind of leadership people will be craving.  I have been repeating over and over and over here my own desire for the GOP to establish a new list of Principles and Objectives for the future.

 

New Conservatives Will Not Have Baggage

To be honest, the Republican Party has had our hats handed to us the past few elections.  I do not believe that this has been a mandate against Conservatism, but rather against a lack there of.  During the Bush years many Republicans took up the spending and government expansion habits of Democrats.  I believe that the party paid the price for this reckless abandonment of its core values.  New candidatse will not have the baggage of past mistakes and can hang their hats on their desire for change.

 

I know where I am in South Florida the two Democrat congress people are underwhelming.  I do not think I have heard a comment our of my congresspersons mouth that does not involve “For the past 8 years.”  To make it happen, I believe that the party needs to get a running start now to be ready to make gains again soon.  Perhaps the blogs are a starting place to find the kind of charismatic, energized leaders needed .... I'm just sayin'. 

 

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Comments

Exactly right.

Submitted by T D Williams on Wed, 03/11/2009 - 12:56.

We need to focus on 2010 not 2012.  Massive federal overspending coupled with the drastic drop in middle class wealth due to IRAs, 401(k)s and pension plans going so far south so rapidly are clearing the air for conservative values.

What is your strategy for pinning the stock market decline

Submitted by NextRightNando on Wed, 03/11/2009 - 13:23.

on the Democrats? Perhaps more importantly, how do you convice people that those paper gains were ever grounded in reality? You don't hear people calling for the real estate bubble to be re-inflated. But you seem to think that people will respond to the argument that the stock market bubble should be pumped up again. Have you got anything, like P/E ratios or earnings forecasts to indicate that the stock market is currently undervalued??

Flipping the purple districts

Submitted by artigiano on Wed, 03/11/2009 - 18:49.

It's not too soon to be identifying attractive possible candidates for each House district. It would be unconscionable if the GOP let any Dem run unopposed in 2010.

I read on another site that the place to start is to identify the districts represented by a Dem that McCain carried, or represented by a Rep that Obama carried. The site I was on was lefty, so they only listed promising Democratic targets. But even though Obama won the election there are bound to opportunities on the map for Republicans to identify these conflicted districts.

I would start there and start right now because it is important not to dilute party strength by having a crowded primary. If one good candidate can emerge early as a front runner, it scares away challengers. That frees up donor and volunteer resources for the general election.

I would definately concentrate on the House races, as the structurals in the Senate do not favor the GOP for 2010. The GOP will have to work their asses off just to stem the losses in the Senate. In the House, they stand to make gains. But don't look for a new GOP Speaker. Fifty plus seats is a lot of ground to make up.

If it happens, the story writes itself. But, I would be trying to formulate a very positive story line that includes Pelosi and Reid maintaining control. It would be a real shame to work hard and improve on the piss poor performance of 2006 and 2008, but still be viewed as having "lost" because control of the chambers didn't shift parties.

If anyone has a list of "conflicted districts" I'd be really interested in studying that with you.