From the embers sprang fire

Oh, the times are a-changin’.

Only two years after political pundits and leaders within the Democratic Party proclaimed the death of the Republican Party, the GOP is poised to shatter political records this fall.

And for good reason. During the past four years, Democrats in Congress, aided and abetted by President Barack Obama and a misguided lame-duck President George W. Bush, have voted clearly and consistently against the will of the American people.

We all remember the political upheaval incited by an impending health care bill, dubbed by many of its opponents as the “socialization” or “Europeanization” of our health care system.

At the time of its passage, 54 percent of the American people opposed its passage, and 50 percent stated that they were less likely to elect a representative that cast a vote in favor of the bill. Issue after issue, from the stimulus packages to the Wall Street bailouts, from the national “cap-and-tax” energy policy to closing the Guantanamo Bay prison facility, Democrats have found themselves at odds with their constituents.

THE NINTH
Especially in districts such as Indiana’s “Fighting Ninth.” The ninth has long been trumpeted as one of the most competitive districts in the nation, but in recent years, the district has trended overwhelmingly for the Democratic candidate, who captured nearly 58 percent of the vote in the 2008 election.

However, after Congressman Baron Hill was pressured to make a series of unpopular votes by Democratic leaders in Congress and in the White House, his constituents are angry, and they are organized.

These votes include voting for the aforementioned “cap-and-tax,” which is estimated to cost nearly $600 million in lost productivity in Indiana’s 9th District alone during the next 25 years,

Recent polling in the ninth is remarkable — mirroring similar trends in other toss-up districts around the country.

Although Congressman Hill defeated his opponent by nearly 20 percent only two years ago, his 2010 challenger, Republican Todd Young, a brilliant former Marine intelligence officer with an MBA from the University of Chicago and an IU law degree, has persuaded thousands of Hoosiers that the Hill-Nancy Pelosi-Obama policies are risking our generation’s future prosperity.

Nearly every major voter research organization has called Indiana’s ninth a “toss-up,” meaning that only two years after Hill trounced his opponent, Young has a very real opportunity to win.

NATIONAL TRENDS
And this trend is not unique to our humble abode. On the “generic ballot” question on the venerated Gallup Tracking Poll — the question that, in essence, asks respondents whether they are more likely to vote for a Democrat or Republican for Congress — Republicans have seen unprecedented gains. In the most recent poll, Republicans have a 10-point lead over Democrats, 51 to 41.

The public is again beginning to trust the Republican Party. On the four issues that matter most to voters according to the Gallup tracking poll —  the economy, jobs, corruption in government and federal spending — voters believe that Republicans are better equipped to combat our nation’s problems.

Also, by a mere one-point margin over Republicans, voters favor Democrats to handle our health care woes — a question that is generally always dominated by the social-welfare Democrats.

For a conservative movement that is often admonished for being the “obstructionists of progress,” the voters clearly favor Republican strategies for improving our economy through tax cuts instead of Democratic tax increases, winning the War on Terror rather than surrendering to those who would cause us harm, reining in federal spending and creating jobs in the private sector.

JOBS, JOBS, JOBS
Republican officeholders and soon-to-be officeholders understand the public’s frustration, and they are staying on message, something that our “Great Communicator” president hardly understands how to do.

Instead of following President Obama and Speaker Pelosi as they allow small controversies to overtake their messaging strategies (such as the mosque controversy and the Sherrod affair), Republicans are hitting the campaign trail talking about three issues: jobs, jobs and jobs.

And that message is finding a receptive audience among the American electorate.
Pelosi had better start measuring the drapes in the House Minority Leader’s office. Her days as Speaker seem to be numbered.


E-mail: jkingsol@indiana.edu