« Lets Let FOX and MSNBC Be Partisan | brbuchwal's Blog | The Quiet Veteran: McCain's Troubling Positions for Veterans »
America Getting Bluer?
View my blog: www.projectilepolitics.blogspot.com
The other day I posted about Christopher Buckley's departure from the Conservative National Review. Today in the Washington Post, Kathleen Parker praises Buckley for his courage in the face of rabid conservatism. Parker's tone betrays a deep depression about the state of the Republican Party and modern conservatives.
Why are they so intolerant of critiques from the right?
The answer becomes clear in two articles today in National Journal Magazine and Bloomberg Online. The Reagan era may be coming to an end and conservatives are terrified. The fact is, though, that the Reagan era was already forsaken when Bush conservatives embraced the expensive Iraq War and focused on social issues such as abortion and gay rights rather than limiting the size of government. The Reagan era is already a thing of the past. And conservatives (well, everyone) are anxious to leave the Bush era in the dust as well.
And that leaves only one option: we are likely about to experience a Democratic era. After November 4, Democrats will certainly control the House and Senate by large margins, and would even complete the trifecta if Obama gets elected President. Especially . Politico reports that, especially in the wake of this year's economic meltdown, the Democrats could usher in the largest set of government programs since the New Deal's Home Ownership Loan Corp. and Reconstruction Finance Corp. were disbanded if they obtain a large congressional advantage and the White House.
Whether or not this happens, though, it's nice to hear Democrats talking like Democrats again and advocating for the government's ability to mediate economic and social issues responsibly.
The question is whether conservatives will be able to bounce back and tap into the Reagan era or steer the country towards a new conservatism untainted by Bush's legacy.
Why are they so intolerant of critiques from the right?
The answer becomes clear in two articles today in National Journal Magazine and Bloomberg Online. The Reagan era may be coming to an end and conservatives are terrified. The fact is, though, that the Reagan era was already forsaken when Bush conservatives embraced the expensive Iraq War and focused on social issues such as abortion and gay rights rather than limiting the size of government. The Reagan era is already a thing of the past. And conservatives (well, everyone) are anxious to leave the Bush era in the dust as well.
And that leaves only one option: we are likely about to experience a Democratic era. After November 4, Democrats will certainly control the House and Senate by large margins, and would even complete the trifecta if Obama gets elected President. Especially . Politico reports that, especially in the wake of this year's economic meltdown, the Democrats could usher in the largest set of government programs since the New Deal's Home Ownership Loan Corp. and Reconstruction Finance Corp. were disbanded if they obtain a large congressional advantage and the White House.
Whether or not this happens, though, it's nice to hear Democrats talking like Democrats again and advocating for the government's ability to mediate economic and social issues responsibly.
The question is whether conservatives will be able to bounce back and tap into the Reagan era or steer the country towards a new conservatism untainted by Bush's legacy.
Advertisement
There has been another blog about this recently though I can't recall the title. I think people on the ground will make the results of this election entirely unpredictable. If you had enough people and enough time you could turn every state blue in my opinion.
The reason behind it though is an evolution in human consciousness. It becomes harder and harder for people to be manipulated by unsophisticated processes like the 'fact manufacturing' that goes on in the republican party. Most of america has grown out of that 'safety and security' 'you do all the thinkin for me' level of consciousness. Most of the country is more self aware and able to take responsibility and think for themselves. There is a certain awakening that for me is not about being democratic or republican but more conscious.
Those aspects of being conservative that are healthy for us to bring forward will prevail and still be needed. Otherwise we well swing too far like a pendulum to liberty/freedom and have to go through more severe self corrections but I think we now have a leader before us who is much more able to combine the greater aspects of being conservative with the values of privacy/freedom and a healthy interactive role between government and the people it serves.
October 17, 2008 2:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
Blue is the color
Politics is the game
We're all together
and winning is our aim
And on we go, in the sun and rain
Obama/Biden is our name.
(This is a variation on the Chelsea FC theme. For the original, replace, "Politics" with "Football" and "Obama/Biden" with "Chelsea, Chelsea").
October 17, 2008 3:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
The republican party is going to have to go back a lot further than Reagan to find a moral center. The last real conservative to lead the GOP was Ike, perhaps Nixon on his good days.
Good blog, though. The pendulum was certainly set to swing back to the lest. I am grateful that Obama appears to be the type of progressive who won't let it crush the opposition party along the way.
It's been a while since we had that kind of leadership in this country.
October 17, 2008 3:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think a lot of the reason that America seems to be turning blue is literally the conduct of the wealthy in this country, and their Republican Party.
Americans, for the most part, believe in fair play, and what is happening in our country today is just so unfair. The greed and corruption on Wall St. has taken center stage, and more and more people are hearing about obscene severance packages, golden parachutes, and corporate excesses at a time when regular, hard-working people are struggling like never before.
When most of the country was doing well, they didn't begrudge the wealthy their success. They wanted to someday BE wealthy. Somehow they were a little more willing to turn a blind eye to the plight of the poor, because, gosh, they could be doing better if they worked hard like me...
But, now all of a sudden (and it DOES seem sudden!) regular folks are being hit hard. The big American dream is slipping further away, and just keeping their heads above water is getting difficult. The safety nets are getting huge holes in them. More and more people now know someone who is being financially devastated through no fault of their own. More and more people now see that their own financial ruin is now just a corporate decision away.
I used to think of the Democratic Party as the party of the perverts and gimme, gimmes. Now I see them more as the party of just regular folks, trying to get ahead and taking care of the less fortunate on the way.
October 17, 2008 5:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
Democratic = lift ALL boats.
October 18, 2008 7:12 AM | Reply | Permalink
That was a succinct encapsulation of the shift in political awareness in this country over the last decade. I always thought it would take a little pain for America to wake up to the destructive policies of the right. Now we're getting that pain, and perhaps more than we bargained for.
Unfortunate but necessary.
October 18, 2008 12:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Repub's pool of talent is pretty slim. Who are they going to get...........Jindal!?!? He's actually a smart guy but pretty damn far to the right. By the time this is over conservative won't be a word to be proud of.
October 17, 2008 11:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hi all - I'm a long-time lurker, first-time poster. And here in Philly suburbs, things are definitely turning blue. In my township, all 5 supervisors used to be Republican. Two got tossed out in last years election. We almost had a Democratic majority for county commissioners too. Of course, the county GOP is claiming it's only because of all them Democrats moving out of Philly not because of anything they've done (or haven't done).
October 18, 2008 1:24 PM | Reply | Permalink