Memo to the Republican Party of 2012

Republican leaders of 2012:

Well, it’s looking more and more like this thing’s wrapped up.

With eight days until the election, the chances of our claiming a third consecutive term are steadily going down the tube.

I suppose it’s no surprise. Despite our greatest efforts, we knew that isolating ourselves from a president with a 25 percent approval rating would be no easy feat.  

Now even the most iconic members of our conservative ranks are beginning to turn away – Chris Buckley, Kathleen Parker, Colin Powell. Not to mention the latest one of those pesky Gallup polls that gives Barack Obama a sturdy nine-point lead.

Hindsight, they say, is 20/20. Although I’m certain you will have parsed the stacks of this season’s political speeches and reconsidered the prudence of our current strategy as you go about shaping our approach in 2012, allow me to offer two observations from the midst of this chaos.

First, we must place a higher premium on seriousness and the value of intellectual deliberation.

As our own sometimes-faithful New York Times columnist David Brooks has written on conservatism, “What had been a disdain for liberal intellectuals slipped into a disdain for the educated class as a whole. ... If Democratic leaders prized deliberation and self-examination, then Republicans would govern from the gut.”
Forgive me for stating the obvious, but this approach has proven a disastrous failure, not only in administrative practice, but now through its projection in the campaign as well.

There is a certain gravitas the current state of affairs should demand. The folksy, down-home style of governance appealed to many after the excesses of the Clinton years. But Americans grow just as weary of contrived folksiness and shallow intellect as they do of perceived liberal elitism.

When Gwen Ifill asked Sarah Palin if Bush policies toward Israel had been an “abject failure,” as Sen. Biden suggested, she responded, “No ... but I’m so encouraged to know that we both love Israel.”

Her cheeky response made her sound more like the ditzy high school blonde who sat next to me in government class than a future world leader. 

Secondly, let’s not be afraid to challenge our traditional base.

If McCain wanted to pick former Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge or Sen. Joe Lieberman as his VP candidate, why not let him? Abortion is, and will continue to be, an important and sensitive political issue. But if this single issue dismissed qualified, tested candidates like Ridge and Lieberman, as is almost certain, then let us consider the extent to which we have become a one-issue ticket. 

Next time, pick a candidate with the expertise and experience to navigate our country through the treacherous waters of global terrorism, economic distress and energy dependence.

Choose a leader with the competence and seriousness to address our domestic and international challenges, even if he or she is unwilling to bow down to the traditional base.

Oh and by the way, good luck challenging Obama to a second term. Let’s hope it goes better the next time around.