2010-03-07
Fixing the GOP's Libertarian Problem
Sorry I've been AWOL from the site for so long. Travis and I have been working our butts off with our day jobs and my campaign. For those of you who were unaware, Travis is serving as my campaign manager and he's been blowing people's minds with how aggressively he's pursuing this.
One thing I've noticed as I've been on the campaign trail is that a lot of Republicans want to know what we should do with the "crazies," "nut-jobs," "freaks," and others who are trying to hijack the Republican Party. In particular, they are talking about the libertarian movement and the wacky Ron Paul people out there.
My answer is relatively simple: "Listen to them."
Seriously, during the Bush Administration, the Republican Party (under the leadership of President George W. Bush, John McCain, and Bill Frist) began to abandon its "limited government" message by pursing enormous spending projects that alienated MOST Republicans in one sense or another. The difference is that most Republicans were willing to turn a blind eye because they were "National Security Conservatives" or part of the "Christian Right." Because so many of us were going along with what the President said to support the party, the "Small Government Conservatives" were left with just a hand full of asinine idiot leaders who were willing to speak to those values... namely, idiots like Ron Paul and Alex Jones.
Of course, these neglected conservatives are going to not only listen to the small handful of people talking about these values, but they're going to sympathize and identify with them because they are treated like scum by the establishment and, because they are being neglected, they feel as though the establishment is treating them like scum, too.
Because I've been so involved in the TEA Party process in so many different states, I've also had the opportunity before my campaign to talk to a lot of these "Small Government Conservatives" who feel neglected by the Republican Party. And do you know what? They aren't "crazies," "nut-jobs," or "freaks." These are honest to goodness conservatives who believe strongly that the best government is self-government and the larger government gets, the worse it is. These are good people who any one of us would be willing to sit down and share a family meal with.
And do you know what's going on in their minds? Well, they're feeling alienated again. First, at the hands of the Republican Party, and again by the people trying to hijack the Republican Party... the "leaders" of these local TEA Party groups. Across the country, these TEA Party groups have been posting increasingly radical information to their message boards and sending increasingly disgusting e-mails to their lists.
- They're claiming that 9/11 was a government conspiracy.
- They're claiming vaccines are a government conspiracy.
- They're claiming that TWA Flight 800 was a government conspiracy.
- They're claiming Gov. Daniels is part of a globalist conspiracy because of the I-69 expansion.
- They're suggesting that the Catholic Church and the Illuminati want to take over the world.
On that last one, a Michigan woman joked "at least then abortion would be illegal."
The alliance between these conservatives and the nut jobs in charge of many (but NOT ALL) of these TEA Parties is incredibly fragile. Even here in Northwest Indiana, one must simply look at the message board for the "Northwest Indiana Patriots" to see why I no longer go to their meetings or participate in their events. Simply put, I don't want to be associated with that crap. And likewise, the group has seen participation at its events drop quickly for the same reason. People are more angry now than ever before and, due to the unemployment rates, people have more time now than ever before.
I promise you, the "Small Government Conservatives" aren't the enemy. The enemy within for the Republican Party and the Conservative Movement are the REAL nut-jobs. Ron Paul, Alex Jones, and the idiots who excitedly rally behind them and their offensive, outrageous conspiracy nonsense.
The Republican Party will have to prove itself to the good people in the "Small Government" group when it wins in 2010. But likewise, these "Small Government Conservatives" will have to support them as they do it. There is a serious disconnect between these grassroots conservatives and the party as a whole and both sides need to come to terms with the fact that they need each other. The GOP needs their political voice and support in the setting of the 21st Century political arena and the grassroots, "Small Government Conservatives" will need the Republican Party to stop the aggressive, socialist agenda of the Democratic Party.
