As the campaign season revs-up, it is prudent to assess how to choose among the many Republican candidates. Six years of utter frustration over the performance of the worst President in my lifetime has placed many of us on an emotional razor’s edge. Confronted with domestic stagnation and international disaster the urge to act has often outweighed the efficacy of action. Truth be told, we were largely powerless for most of the last six years. Threatening to shut down parts of the government and other grand rhetorical gestures proved to be counter-productive. Frustration energized needless infighting. Some emphatically pursued feel good tactics that were doomed to fail and characterized those who disagreed as RINOs (Republicans in name only). “RINOs” counterattacked with equal invective.
Lest we forget Ronald Reagan’s eleventh commandment, “The personal attacks against me during the primary finally became so heavy that the state Republican chairman, Gaylord Parkinson, postulated what he called the Eleventh Commandment: Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican. It’s a rule I followed during that campaign and have ever since.”
Reagan managed to win without questioning the authenticity of fellow Republicans. One of many examples is Orrin Hatch who was a very close associate of President Reagan. Today the far right labels him a RINO.
I beg those of you charged up by talk radio screamers like Mark Levin, who regularly violates the eleventh commandment, to reassess the value of that approach. Schisms on the right do not a victory make. Levin doesn’t merely disagree he bellows accusations of disloyalty. Democrats smile.
A rather egregious example is when the brilliant Mark Levin couched votes for or against Speaker Boehner in terms of patriotism and selflessness. He went on a rant declaring his side authentic and patriotic and the other purely political. Unless Paul Ryan, Duncan Hunter, Marsha Blackburn, Darrell Issa and an army of solid constitutional conservatives suddenly turned into spineless, unpatriotic, self-interested sell outs, Mr. Levin’s critique was, let us say, over wrought. When someone on our side sounds more like Ed Schultz than Ronald Reagan it’s time to stop listening. This is a real shame because Mr. Levin has written terrific books and is the reservoir of a great deal of knowledge. He writes like a conservative scholar but broadcasts like a hysteric. That kind of behavior only handicaps the conservative cause.
Disagreement on an issue or two need not translate into assertions of impurity. I am very wary of Rand Paul’s approach to foreign policy, but I’d never cast him as lacking in patriotism or a sellout. I am afraid that Rick Santorum’s emphasis on social issues and substantial senatorial defeat in Pennsylvania has rendered him unelectable, but he is a man of unassailable character. Dr. Ben Carson is a brilliant man with wonderful conservative instincts. But he has no experience. We have no clue how he would govern.
The Republican candidate needs to posses basic conservative credentials and be electable on a national not just a local or regional basis. One without the other is useless.
He or she must have proven through deeds, not just words, to have acted to shrink government, eliminate unnecessary regulation, promote tax reform (lower rates, eliminate deductions) and present specific plans to reform entitlements, immigration, replace the ACA and fight global Islamic terrorism.
Personal authenticity as perceivable by the general public is essential. That authenticity needs to radiate in debate and speech. Ideological purity is all well and good but meaningless if the candidate is un-electable. Most voters are not ideologically driven. We need a candidate with a track record of garnering the votes of young people, women and minorities in numbers necessary for victory in large turnout elections. These characteristics can’t be learned. Midterm victories do not portend general elections victories. This is where ideological voters often find themselves chasing after obvious losers. Sarah Palin is a perfect example. For many on the right she was the ideal candidate. She was conservative on both social and economic issues. However, anyone who objectively observed her impact on the public at large knew her limitations. Her inability to connect with more than a conservative minority was observable to all but those with tunnel vision.
I urge every conservative who wants to move the nation in a rightward direction to curb six years of pent up frustration. If we chose a candidate based exclusively on how he or she is perceived within the most conservative ranks, we will likely choose a loser.
The nation has been primed for a move to the right. Let’s see if we can exploit this moment effectively. Ironically, the Obama excesses that have driven us nuts have set the table for a conservative feast. Are we capable of securing the ingredients necessary to prepare and then enjoy that feast?