I Won’t Be Rushed
” Over the weekend, I was quoted in a New York Times magazine feature on the future of the GOP, for a project I’m spearheading to revamp party messaging. I, along with my colleagues in the project, discussed the ways in which we need to take the party back from the old guard, which has failed to adapt to a changing political and technological landscape, allowed undisciplined candidates to define our message and maligned the very groups of voters we’re hoping to attract.
In the piece, we talked about an injurious primary system that pushes candidates to lunge to the far right, and, conversely, the misguided efforts by establishment types to purge tea party conservatives from the movement. From candidate training to policy polishing, adopting new technologies to embracing new demographic realities, we acknowledged the hard work ahead for the GOP. It is important work, nonetheless.
There wasn’t anything earth-shattering in what I said, though you wouldn’t know it from looking at my Twitter timeline, which exploded in apoplexy when news of one quote in particular spread across conservative media. I’d very much like to explain the quote, and respond to my critics who, I think, prove an interesting point.”
Related articles
- S.E. Cupp Doubles Down In War With Limbaugh: ‘There Will Be No Apology’ (mediaite.com)
- S.E. Cupp and Joe Scarborough take aim at conservative media (theblaze.com)
- S.E. Cupp’s Advice To GOP In NY Times: Don’t ‘Be Afraid To Call Out Rush Limbaugh’ (mediaite.com)
- Is the GOP’s Problem Message, Demographics, or Policy? Yes (usnews.com)
The Tea Party people have their own views.
What about Old School Reagan Conservatives like me?
The Republicans screwed themselves. If they would have gone with Huntsman, probably this mess with the Second Amendment would not be happening. Utah: 32 State CCW, remember?
The Republicans showed that they are no different from the Democrats and have earned the distrust of the voters, especially Old School voters like me. We need a nation worthy of handing down to our children and grandchildren, without the yoke of massive debt, massive unemployment, and a view that people in business, who are the real jobs creators, are something to be scorned and vilified as evil. Unless the government wants one big welfare dependent nation and no hope for the future.
Next sellout will be March 1st. Who is going to pay the bill for that? They just don’t get it or they simply do not care. Either way, in my book, that’s wrong.
The real mess will be with the outcome of the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty conference and vote March 18th through 28th, 2013, in NYC, because once that happens this current form of governance might end up as dead as the Roman Empire.
I generally like SE Cupp. I appreciate her criticism of Rush Limbaugh, who I consider to be arrogant. He was once an effective voice for conservatives, but I think his arrogance harms the movement these days.
I also appreciate SE Cupp’s ability to communicate and to see more than just her side of the issues. She’s an atheist, but also an outspoken advocate for religious freedom. I appreciate that.
She’s showing that in this critique. She recognizes that tea-partiers are the future of the GOP. We’re the middle class, the people who own businesses on Mainstreet, build the infrastructure everybody depends on, and pay our taxes. We sick of not being listened to, of being forced to pay everybody else’s bills. We want everybody to pay their fair share and we want the government (particularly the federal) to get out of our way so we can provide for ourselves.
On the other hand, I am a bit concerned about her comment about the primary process. The GOP old guard wants to purge the party of the tea party and they plan to “fix” the primary system so that no tea party type candidate can ever win again. Yet that is the only hope for the GOP. They can’t win without the 40% of the American electorate that self-describes as conservatives, but they’re determined to kick us out of their party and prevent us from influencing the elections.
That’s okay with me, because I’ll vote third-party, but it won’t be okay for the country unless a whole lot of other conservatives come with me. Either the GOP becomes a conservative party or it ceases to exist, but if it ceases to exist, the Democrats will probably be in control of the country for the next 30 years until a viable conservative party reconstitutes.
So, while I like SE Cupp and agree with her on some issues, I think the GOP primary system needs to opened up to allow conservatives to actually have a chance at election rather than being stuck with these moderate progressive candidates like Bush 1, Dole, McCain and Romney. If the GOP wants to know why they’ve lost the Presidency more often than they’ve won it … they need to look no further than the candidates they keep putting up and expecting conservatives to turn out and vote for them. Bush 2 wasn’t exactly a conservative, but at least he was closer than the others.