How does the Republican Party rebuild itself?

[tony]

Just curious what you guys think will put Republicans back on the map. I respect George Bush but I think he's done a lot of damage to the image of the party, furthermore I think a lot of people within the party are far behind current state of this country.

Progressive needs to become the theme of the party.. not the status quo.

[blacknightteg]

i honestly think that they are going to have to find someone like the democratic party found in obama. some one that will completely change the image of the party for the better. i know that there is i believe the governor of Louisiana that is supposed to have been a really good idea for a presidential candidate. But, they will really need to focus on re-establishing themselves a major party. If not, I can honestly see a third party start to rise to the mainstream. just my two cents.

[BanginJimmy]

i honestly think that they are going to have to find someone like the democratic party found in obama. some one that will completely change the image of the party for the better.


I agree. A simple conservative would fit the bill perfectly. This country is still basicly conservative in its beliefs, you dont have to look further than Cali to see that, but right now there is no respect for the republican party. There is absolutely no leadership within the party. There is no one like Gingrich was back in the 90's that wasnt afraid to call out both republicans and dems alike if they got too partisan. The republicans need someone that will come out and return the repubs to the Reagan years philosophy. Low taxes, low spending, with a strong emphesis on national security.

On a side note, the dems need to make sure they dont fall into the same trap the republicans did during the first 6 years of Bush's term. They cannot sit back on their laurels and ignore their sentiments of the public. They have done it once with the bailout, but that will be blamed on Bush and forgotten. If they continue to push for policies that the public does not want, in 4 years they will find themselves in the same situation that the republicans are in now. No confidance from the public and losing seats in both houses. The dems will still have an advantage as the media will help them every chance they get, but I seriously dont think it will be enough to keep the tide from changing.

As far as a third party goes. I see one coming up in the near future. We may already have it in the Libertarians, but before they get any real support they need to temper a few of their policies and really put a couple of significant canidates in the national public's eye. This party will need to be conservative to the point of mimicking the republicans of the 60's and 70's. Over the last decade the republicans have become very centric and allowed the dems to move to the very far left without the public even noticing. We need a counterweight on the right to really balance our govt.

[redrumracer]

I agree. A simple conservative would fit the bill perfectly. This country is still basicly conservative in its beliefs, you dont have to look further than Cali to see that, but right now there is no respect for the republican party. There is absolutely no leadership within the party. There is no one like Gingrich was back in the 90's that wasnt afraid to call out both republicans and dems alike if they got too partisan. The republicans need someone that will come out and return the repubs to the Reagan years philosophy. Low taxes, low spending, with a strong emphesis on national security.

On a side note, the dems need to make sure they dont fall into the same trap the republicans did during the first 6 years of Bush's term. They cannot sit back on their laurels and ignore their sentiments of the public. They have done it once with the bailout, but that will be blamed on Bush and forgotten. If they continue to push for policies that the public does not want, in 4 years they will find themselves in the same situation that the republicans are in now. No confidance from the public and losing seats in both houses. The dems will still have an advantage as the media will help them every chance they get, but I seriously dont think it will be enough to keep the tide from changing.

As far as a third party goes. I see one coming up in the near future. We may already have it in the Libertarians, but before they get any real support they need to temper a few of their policies and really put a couple of significant canidates in the national public's eye. This party will need to be conservative to the point of mimicking the republicans of the 60's and 70's. Over the last decade the republicans have become very centric and allowed the dems to move to the very far left without the public even noticing. We need a counterweight on the right to really balance our govt.
x2

[DrivenMind]

They embrace Ron Paul.

[alpine_aw11]

Republicans need to stray away from social conservatism, and come back to fiscal conservatism. There are very few real republicans anymore in regards to the economic basis of being a republican.

[Vteckidd]

They embrace Ron Paul.
Like i said before Paul has got some pretty whack policies and beliefs too.

I wonder whatever happened to JC Watts? i really liked him and high hopes then he just dissappeared

[BanginJimmy]

Republicans need to stray away from social conservatism, and come back to fiscal conservatism. There are very few real republicans anymore in regards to the economic basis of being a republican.

Actually if you want to look at some of the state constitutional items that were on the ballots across the contry you will see that even heavily blue states also vote socially conservative.

Cali and someplace else voted down the bill to legalize gay marriage. I also heard of a couple more socially liberal bills hat failed nationwide. I think the only problem with republicans right now is a lack of confidance in the aprty and it lack of leadership. Get that fixed and you will see a very drastic run back towards the party.

[Vteckidd]

i think the future is Watts, Huckabee, and perhaps Romney. I dont see Romney in a presidential race because of the mormon religion. But he could do great things for the party IMO.

Id also like to see Dennis Miller run soon, i just like him alot and i think we need a person like him a straight shooter that isnt afraid to speak his mind

[DrivenMind]

Like i said before Paul has got some pretty whack policies and beliefs too.

I wonder whatever happened to JC Watts? i really liked him and high hopes then he just dissappeared

Which of Ron Paul's policies and beliefs are whack?

[Vteckidd]

hes VERY PRO-LIFE when i think alot of this nation is PRO-CHOICE. Hes way more PRO-LIFE than Palin is and you remember the flack Palin got.

Hes a constitutionalist, meaning he thinks the constitution was written 300 years ago and should be strictly enforced according to its original content.

He is against ANY GOVT spending increases and most govt agencies.

IMO the constitution is a living an evolving thing. The founding fathers could not comprehend todays world and technologies. It needs to be adapted to fit in relation to the present time. Its principles are sound, its ideology is great. But i think our founding fathers would want it to be used much like the Bible is today, a guideline, not a strict interpretation.

While i advocate smaller govt, i do think there are necessary govt programs that really do work and do well. To be against ALL AGENCIES i think is bad .

He is almost for no govt at all, which, IMO, govt is needed in a certain capacity.

[DrivenMind]

Yea the pro-life thing is a bit weird, but wasn't Bush Pro-life too? Not that, that is what I agree with, but it doesn't seem like to many people (mostly men) really have an issue with it.

And I don't think he's against all government agencies, just the ones that don't work, and abuse their power on a regular. Like the CIA, and IRS.

I think of the constitution as guidelines, for what American government should be about. But there is a certain aspects of it that makes it timeless.

[Julio]

Simple..

Just keep a close eye on what the DEM are going to do in the next 4 years...

Take it from there...

[alpine_aw11]

Yea the pro-life thing is a bit weird, but wasn't Bush Pro-life too? Not that, that is what I agree with, but it doesn't seem like to many people (mostly men) really have an issue with it.

And I don't think he's against all government agencies, just the ones that don't work, and abuse their power on a regular. Like the CIA, and IRS.

I think of the constitution as guidelines, for what American government should be about. But there is a certain aspects of it that makes it timeless.

Paul is very strongly pro-life, but believes it to be a states rights issue. I'm pro-choice, but definitely agree with the states rights aspect.

Paul takes it too far with a few of his ideas, but imo with him in office and congress to keep him in moderation we would see an economic recovery. Government is just too damn wasteful and has its hands in the pockets of corporate America, which he does not. We need a president that doesn't give a shit about Washington's interests, just the people's interests. That's why I wrote him in.

[man]

I think a lot of people within the party are far behind current state of this country

While I do agree that conservatives do have a lot of work ahead, especially on the societal side of things, I would say the liberals are far from being the pinnacle of social evolution. Many liberals are just as quick to judge as conservatives.

The two party system sucks, period.

[4dmin]

Needs YOUNG fresh faces... Palin would of been great if she wasn't such a moron. Also the softening their ideas will help. You can't preach against big gov't yet practice such, you can't preach freedom and look to take it away, these are hard lining issues that suburban American is in stark difference w/ places like Wassila, AL.

[BanginJimmy]

As I said earlier in this thread, Republicans need to become conservatives again. They have spent most of the last 15 years moving towards the center and it has been costing them votes since 2004. All the while, dems have been moving futher left at the same rate as repubs have moved to the center. This trend will continue until republicans get their identity back. If you look at policies,todays republican party more closly resembles the democratic party of the 60's while the repubs of the 60's would be considered extremist by todays standards.

1 phrase you will never hear a democrat say today is one that was originally said by a democrat. "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country". Today's democrats would say "ask not what you can do for your country, but what your country can do for you".

[Maniacc]

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