Re: Dawson – Just what the party needs: a chairman who belonged to a club with a “whites only” deed which snubbed Jews and blacks.
Republicans may be “overconcerned” with Israel and Jews, given Israel dislikes Republicans and Jews vote Democratic year after year by substantial majorities. Jewish money, expertise, instititutional clout, and money – since it is worth repeating twice is all somewhat important to Republicans, but Republicans would do well to drop 80% of the “Jews and Israel” stuff from their speeches and substitute in “hispanics and our brother Latins in this Hemisphere”. And not forget Asian-Americans in Republican primaries where it seems they waste half their time arguing about who hates abortion and who loves Israel the most.
They should think long and hard about putting any Southern white with a bad race relations record or excessive ties to intolerant elements of the Religious Right in the Chair (Folks now saying: “We lost in 2006 and 2008 because we weren’t conservative enough and didn’t love Jesus enough, spent too much time on the 3/4th of the Country that isn’t the Real America!”).
1. Auto bailout – I’m not a “let the US auto industry die, those union bastards!” kinda guy anymore than I want a quarterly check cut on the backs of workers making 20 bucks and hour to subsidize 73 dollar an hour workers endlessly.
What I want is not 3 million people thrown into unemployemt as the “let the workers die! let Detroit die!” crowd want, but a credible plan, as Romney said – to show that Detroit can end the excess wage and benefit package that adds 2,000 more to each auto than American workers in Ohio, Alabama making Hondas, Toyotas, Volvos do.
2. I favor tax cuts for businesses to stimulate capital goods investment. I do not favor more tax cuts for the wealthy to pay for their China stuff, french perfumes, and private jets. I think the public sees tax cuts for the rich as failed supply side strategy that added more debt to their kids in Bush’s 8 years than in all previous American history. However, domestic energy without all the Lefty “unicorns and rainbows will give us Green Power” delusions – and legal reform and getting onboard with making our health care costs competitive with all the other advanced countries AND cover everyone ARE winners for Republicans.
3. I don’t see a fight over Coleman as a Top Four “do or die” matter for rebuilding Republicans. If Dems buy into Franken’s idiocy and seat him over massive protests – they have one of the most odious men ever to be in the Senate and likely damage themselves greatly in 2010 and 2012.
4. Similarly, I’d reject going after Holder on Bill Clinton’s pardons. It would be petty and partisan, like punishing Robert Bork was for carrying out Nixon’s orders. And it would be seen by plenty of moderates and independents as selectivley bashing the most prominent black appointee who already is recognized as the competent person that ran Justice for the unfit Reno..What I would like in hearings is to have Republicans explore Holders past zealous conduct in opposing any death penalty and being someone with action after action directed against 2nd Amendment rights. Get pledges from him that he will fry the worst terrorists we catch and not interfere with States criminal sentences…and say exactly where he stands on guns after DC v. Heller was decided.
I don’t think it would be smart at all right now – given the great crises we face – for Republicans to focus on efforts to retry Bill Clinton through proxies like Holder. Or to reignite 30-year old cultural war stuff that only played well for Palin and her crowd in rural and Fundie areas.
In fact, the thing that will most get the Republicans back in the Game is the painful stuff –
(A)admitting that 30-year old Reagan worship and uncritical embrace of stuff like Supply Side, Trickledown, and Tax Cuts for the Wealthy has run it’s course and new ideas are needed or it’s like Democrats talking about “the great LBJ ideas” in 1994.
(B)Determining how the War between the Religious Right and the rest of the Country, plus the Republican “RINOs” and heretic Mormons and Catholics outside Fundie-Land will play out. By play out, I mean end, even at the risk certain zealots will bolt the Party.
(C)Get away from being the Party of More Wars and being Against Things. Become the Party For affordable colleges, For helping Middle Class fight runaway government union pay and pension costs, For Reasonable Growth with less cumbersome laws and bureaucratic process, etc.
