The Direction of the Republican party

[Applezz]

WIth President Obama spending like crazy its clear that he will run up huge deficits over the next few years, and that's a FACT. Its only the first week of Obama in office, and conservatives are universally against this new $800+ billion stimulus. More importantly, I've never seen Republicans talk soo much about the federal deficit. Is this the direction where the Republican party will go? Whether Obama gets us out of this recession or not, the deficit is what all the conservative elected officials and talk show hosts are talking about.

Now about the 2012 election: If we're still in this recession/depression, the Republican party could turn to Mitt Romney. Or how about Mark Sanford! Unlike Romney, he's consistant on the issues and he's one of the biggest deficit hawks in the Republican party. He can also unite the party among paleocons, neocons, and Ron Paul libertarians.

Thoughts?

[Nicodeme Depape]

The catalyst of this entire budgetary mess was caused by Reagan, worsened by Bush Senior, fixed by Clinton and then re messed up by Bush Junior. What Obama neeed's to do is roll back the Bush tax cuts, raise taxes on the rich by around 20% [ They pay HALF what the middle class pays ] and then stop the stupid policy of throwing tax cuts around.

Then we'll start weeding out loopholes in the corporate tax which in reality is one of the lowest on earth despite what it says on paper.

I'm not saying it will cure all our problems. Or most of them for that matter. But its a start.

Oh, and cut military by 40-60%.

[memphis]

The Republicans have zero credibility when it comes to deficits.

[Democratic Hawk]

The Republicans have zero credibility when it comes to deficits.

[Wall St. Wiz]

The Republicans have zero credibility when it comes to deficits.

That may be true right now but things change fast.  It was just a few years ago that everyone thought we were looking at decades of Republican rule.  Now that W is gone and the liberals control everything, the slate is essentially wiped clean for the GOP.  They hit bottom in the 08 elections.  They now get to "find their voice".  I really hate that expression but it fits here.

[Lief 🗽]

Nobody votes on deficits. That's just not a winning electoral argument.

[cinyc]

The catalyst of this entire budgetary mess was caused by Reagan, worsened by Bush Senior, fixed by Clinton and then re messed up by Bush Junior. What Obama neeed's to do is roll back the Bush tax cuts, raise taxes on the rich by around 20% [ They pay HALF what the middle class pays ] and then stop the stupid policy of throwing tax cuts around.

Then we'll start weeding out loopholes in the corporate tax which in reality is one of the lowest on earth despite what it says on paper.

I'm not saying it will cure all our problems. Or most of them for that matter. But its a start.

Oh, and cut military by 40-60%.

If you think our corporate tax rate is one of the lowest on earth, you CLEARLY don't understand the U.S. tax system.  Fact: The U.S. is one of the few countries to tax individuals and businesses on all of their worldwide income, regardless of whether earned in the United States.  Fact: Our corporate tax rate is one of the highest in the world.  Fact: To add insult to injury, for many investors, corporate income is taxed twice - once at the world-leading high corporate income tax rate, and again when distributed to shareholders as a dividends.  If the Democrats get their way, double taxation will become the norm for all taxpayers again, including those in lower brackets.

Raising taxes is not the answer.  See California for an example what happens to high-tax jurisdictions.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

The Republicans have zero credibility when it comes to deficits.

[paul718]

The Republicans have zero credibility when it comes to deficits.

Not to belabor the point, but it's very, very true.  I think it will be the GOP's main argument for the next few years (as it should be), but after the recent Republican deficit-fest, that cat won't bark.

[2952-0-0]

We could be on the verge of a watershed moment where a political struggle changes public opinion for decades to come. Just like Reagan and the air traffic control strike. Once that happens everyone will have to rethink their strategy.

[tmthforu94]

I think we should sit back and wait. If you are a TRUE conservative Republican, you probably have doubts on the success of the Obama administration. Hopefully, now that Democrats finally have their full control, they will do what we did in the mid-2000's, and self-destruct their party. Then, we can talk strategy.

[Zarn]

You can't be a true Republican and true conservative at the same time.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

I think we should sit back and wait. If you are a TRUE conservative Republican, you probably have doubts on the success of the Obama administration. Hopefully, now that Democrats finally have their full control, they will do what we did in the mid-2000's, and self-destruct their party. Then, we can talk strategy.

The public will probably give them two years at least before they begin complaining. Obama's approval rating is something like 75% right now despite having done nothing so far. He and the media are doing a good job of convincing the public that we need to spend $900 billion or so in order to avoid collapse.

[aaaa2222]

I really hope the Republicans start trending this way, and reverse their ideas of massive military spending. Then, I would be happy. But, as said before, they have 0 credibility on this issue so far.

[Matt Damon™]

Given how Obama has discredited a good chunk of the civil rights/victimology industry by virtue of his being elected period if the GOP were to drop the nixonite code-words and dixie accent it could make good inroads among nonwhites.

[2952-0-0]

But can they do so having alienated Hispanics with their immigration BS, African Americans with one of them straight in the White House, and Asians who are more educated and less receptive to their message?

[paul718]

But can they do so having alienated Hispanics with their immigration BS,

I don't know where I stand, regarding immigration.  But how have they alienated Hispanics?  Don't legalized Hispanic immigrants want other immigrants to go through the proper channels, the way they did?  I'm not doubting that it's had the effect of alienation, but I don't understand why. 

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What do you mean by this?

[2952-0-0]

I don't know where I stand, regarding immigration.  But how have they alienated Hispanics?  Don't legalized Hispanic immigrants want other immigrants to go through the proper channels, the way they did?  I'm not doubting that it's had the effect of alienation, but I don't understand why.

Karl Rove was proud that 44% of them voted for Bush in 2004, and he was sure that this trend will accelerate if Bush could pull off big reform in the second term.

Don't ask me what happened next.

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If they could reinvent themselves as being more pro-solutions and less reactionary (especially when the Democrats inevitably fuk up) then they might have a future.

[justfollowingtheelections]

But can they do so having alienated Hispanics with their immigration BS,

I don't know where I stand, regarding immigration.  But how have they alienated Hispanics?  Don't legalized Hispanic immigrants want other immigrants to go through the proper channels, the way they did?  I'm not doubting that it's had the effect of alienation, but I don't understand why. 

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What do you mean by this?

About Hispanics:  Not really because many of them see the GOP's opposition to immigration reform as racism.

About Asians: I guess what he/she was implying is that Asians vote more like white yuppies rather than like other minorities.  Therefore attempts to appeal to minorities would probably push them more towards the Democrats.  Correct me if I'm wrong.

[Psychic Octopus]

Prediction: In the future, Asian Americans will be a major cornerstone of the Republican Party voting 75-25. Hispanics will depend on the Candidate, and African-Americans will vote for the Dems.

[Scam of God]

Prediction: In the future, Asian Americans will be a major cornerstone of the Republican Party voting 75-25.

You mean 'in the past'. Asian Americans used to vote Republican at those levels, particularly Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean ex-expatriates (with the Japanese not far behind, for obvious reasons). The past two elections, however, have seen a significant shift in that electorate, which will probably continue as the memory of Communism fades into the fog of history.

[Matt Damon™]

If we make it through the interregnum of the next few decades(Mexican implosion, Islamist Tide, peak oil, European Horror, Russian Disintigration etc) without having our political system distorted beyond recognition, the GOP won't resemble our party now. Even now, there's a wing of the GOP increasingly receptive to a safety net of some sort even if it's just our level. The logical evolution of this is a GOP becoming a national populist party at least during the interregnum, and perhaps even becoming a moderately liberal part on the line of many latin american christian democratic parties.

While I'm against massive government spending/deficits I'll take pleasure in seeing Libertarians flipping out and realizing how irrelevant they are. On both economic and to a lesser degree social('states rights' arguments for Jim Crow plus bleating about the 'will of the people'(keeping abortion issue alive by reminding peopel about it being the corts doing it)), Libertarianism has proven itself to be nothing more than a virus afflicting the body politics. As a final note, notice that Libertarianism first reared it's head in a visible manner once the insane asylums were shut down in the early 1980s. Certain memes such as Islamism, Deep Ecology, Maoism-Third Worldism, Neoconservatism, and Libertarianism tend to attract a certain class of individual; one who most definitions would call seriously mentally disturbed at best.

[Zarn]

If we make it through the interregnum of the next few decades(Mexican implosion, Islamist Tide, peak oil, European Horror, Russian Disintigration etc) without having our political system distorted beyond recognition, the GOP won't resemble our party now. Even now, there's a wing of the GOP increasingly receptive to a safety net of some sort even if it's just our level. The logical evolution of this is a GOP becoming a national populist party at least during the interregnum, and perhaps even becoming a moderately liberal part on the line of many latin american christian democratic parties.

While I'm against massive government spending/deficits I'll take pleasure in seeing Libertarians flipping out and realizing how irrelevant they are. On both economic and to a lesser degree social('states rights' arguments for Jim Crow plus bleating about the 'will of the people'(keeping abortion issue alive by reminding peopel about it being the corts doing it)), Libertarianism has proven itself to be nothing more than a virus afflicting the body politics. As a final note, notice that Libertarianism first reared it's head in a visible manner once the insane asylums were shut down in the early 1980s. Certain memes such as Islamism, Deep Ecology, Maoism-Third Worldism, Neoconservatism, and Libertarianism tend to attract a certain class of individual; one who most definitions would call seriously mentally disturbed at best.

Are you sure you weren't a product of an asylum being shut down somewhere?

[Matt Damon™]

As I am not a Libertarian, no.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Hopefully, now that Democrats finally have their full control, they will do what we did in the mid-2000's, and self-destruct their party.

Too bad for you Obama isn't going to invade a country that poses no threat to us and then completely botch it resulting in a giant disaster and embarassment.