Red staters’ blues

It must be hard being a Republican these days.

After nearly three decades of ascendency, the Grand Old Party finds itself on the outside looking in and desperately in need of some soul-searching. If the events of the past week are any indication, however, Republicans have a long way to go in terms of reinventing themselves.

First there was House Minority Leader John Boehner on “Meet the Press” two Sundays ago, denouncing the proposed American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as little more than a list of liberal pork projects disguised as fiscal stimulus and plugging the Republicans’ version of the bill, comprised predominantly of tax cuts.

One particularly publicized (and false) statement – that “hundreds of millions of dollars” of the stimulus would be put toward contraceptives – became a hot topic on conservative talk radio. Other dubious attacks followed suit.

Then came the much-publicized war of words between right-wing radio pundit Rush Limbaugh and the Obama administration – an exchange that saw Limbaugh declare himself a more formidable opponent to Obama than even Boehner or Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

The sideshow culminated in an editorial in the Wall Street Journal Thursday, where Limbaugh reiterated the merits of supply-side economic theory and offered his own criticisms of the stimulus package.

Republicans fell in line behind Limbaugh and Boehner in dismissing the Democratic version of the stimulus bill. Regardless, it passed easily in the House without the support of any of the 177 Republican representatives.

Sobering words from McConnell were soon to follow at the Republican National Committee on Friday.

In his address to the delegation, he professed the need for the Republican Party to adapt to the changing times, lest they risk becoming a permanent minority party. Nonetheless, he was adamant in insisting that Republicans also stick to their fundamental principles.

McConnell is right – sort of.

On one hand, Republicans do need to adapt to the changing times, because as Thursday’s House vote on the stimulus package shows, they have already more or less become irrelevant.

However, McConnell missed the mark in insinuating that the Republicans must stick to their traditional conservative values. If taken as a referendum on the past eight years, the November election was by and large a repudiation of conservatism.
Republican principles are old hat to many voters.

While the Republicans’ desire not to become the “me-too” party is understandable, they have thus far picked the wrong battles.

Despite legitimate misgivings, support for the bailout measure in its current form is broad, as Americans recognize the necessity of a package such as the one the Democrats have proposed. Their refusal to sign off on the bill amounted not only to partisan hackery, but bad economics as well, and indicates why Republicans have been shown the door the last two election cycles.

What the Republicans need are some new ideas. Continuing to follow dated dogma and the marching orders of hard-liners such as Limbaugh and Boehner will only serve to marginalize the party even more.