Comments on: Republicans And The Conservative Base Part I: How “Establishment” Candidates Can Win (Or R-E-S-P-E-C-T Beats P-A-C)

By: Karl Rove Vs. The Tea Party: A Solipsistic Civil War » Postmodern Conservative | A First Things Blog

Sun, 10 Feb 2013 17:10:16 +0000

[...] didn’t lose for a lack of money. Even when you count the outside spending, Castle and Lugar outspent their opponents substantially. Conservative groups spent money on the Indiana and Delaware races to help out Christine [...]

By: Searching For The 47% « 36 Chambers – The Legendary Journeys: Execution to the max!

Fri, 08 Feb 2013 22:03:23 +0000

[...] Culture doesn’t happen once every four years. As always, Pete Spiliakos is a must-read on this topic. [...]

By: djf

djf — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 03:12:50 +0000

As I said, Pete, I’m not going to get any deeper into the immigration swamp than my previous comment. I don’t necessarily disagree with your analysis of where we’ll probably end up, though.

One thing about Hannity – he’s ALL heart, since he has nothing else to go on. My Obama-worshipping brother (a hopeless political junkie) tells me that he often listens to Hannity – apparently it confirms him in his lefty ideology.

By: Pete Spiliakos

Pete Spiliakos — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 02:32:23 +0000

DJF, I do think that we were going to have some kind of change to immigration law, but the prominence of amnesty as Strategy Number 1(led by Hannity’s deeply felt change of heart when he saw the election returns) indicates some real shallowness. It is an issue, but I think it is intellectually unhealthy to start there since we will end up there (in some form)anyway.

By: djf

djf — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 19:20:02 +0000

Well, Pete, I sure hope you’re right. At this moment, the only changes of agenda that seems to interest the Republican establishment are abruptly dropping social conservatism and immigration “reform.” (I won’t comment on how I think immigration “reform” will “help” the Republican party and conservatism generally, although I will concede that GOP support for it is likely to boost the career of George P. Bush in Texas, if that’s something to wish for.) According to John Podhoretz (who is no Tea Partier), the GOP establishment is not even interested in updating the GOTV tactics that failed in just about every swing state in the last election; Romney lost, but his consultants made out like bandits, so I guess there’s no reason to switch to new methods those consultants are unfamiliar with (and therefore can’t profit from).

As always, I wish I could share your optimism. ;-)

By: Liz Mair (Mostly) Nails It » Postmodern Conservative | A First Things Blog

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 00:33:35 +0000

[...] agree with about eighty percent of this Liz Mair post. Some of it is similar to the stuff I wrote yesterday, but better written and more [...]

By: Pete Spiliakos

Pete Spiliakos — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 00:05:56 +0000

DJF, I’ll put myself to the side, since I think of my posts as participating in conversation rather than actually moving events so I have no expectations on that score.

As for Douthat, Levin, Ponnuru, and the others, I think that they will move the Republican party and conservative politics in a healthier direction. My guess is that it will look like they are having no influence, then a little influence will be visible and then, almost suddenly, their ideas will become a big part of the Republican message and issue agenda.

By: djf

djf — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 23:51:50 +0000

Pete,

There was a movie in the late 80s entitled Pascali’s Island, set on a Greek-speaking Aegean Island under Ottoman rule before WWI. Ben Kingsley starred as an undercover agent of the Ottoman secret police, who has spent many years on the island pains-takingly writing lengthy and detailed intelligence reports on the situation on the island for the eyes of the central imperial government. He sends the letters to Istanbul, each one opening with lavish, overwrought formulaic praise of the Sultan. By the end of the movie, Kingsley comes to realize (I don’t remember how) that his many missives to the Sultan, to which he has devoted his life, and in which he takes great pride, have simply been filed away and ignored by the corrupt, incompetent and decadent central authorities.

That movie comes to mind when I read the excellent advice for the Republican Party written by yourself and other insightful conservatives who recognize that the old tactics won’t work anymore (Ponnuru, Salam, Douthat, Levin, Manzi, maybe a few others).

The letters go to the sultan, but do his ministers read them?

By: Pete Spiliakos

Pete Spiliakos — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 21:51:40 +0000

Michael, I think vigorous debate is fine, but there are reasons why Scott Brown was better thought of by conservatives than Michael Castle in 2010. Some of it had to do with the lack of a conservative alternative candidate in MA, but a lot of it had to do with how Brown treated conservatives. That would be a good lesson for “moderate” and “establishment” Republicans to learn.

By: Michael Parrino, MD

Michael Parrino, MD — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 20:44:35 +0000

I think that this is a bit harsh. I myself lean toward the Tea Party side of Republican politics, but I think we get better candidates by having vigorous primaries with all points of view going at one another to elect a candidate who I hope will be supported by all sides against the Democratic Party candidate. Sometimes that turns out badly as 2012 showed. But the voters of a state rightly chose the party candidate with whom they identify. In MA that was Scott Brown, a man whom I personally like but would not support in my native SC against a DeMint. On the other hand I’d support him 365 days of the year in MA against a Kennedy or a Barney Frank. I would also back him against the other Republican Senator from SC, Lindsey Graham, who makes me gag when I see him or write his name.