Comments on: The base, the groups, and the candidates http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/ Covering the 2008 election Tue, 02 Dec 2008 16:30:19 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.5 by: Romney’s caricatured, unreconstructed, ingenue conservatism confronts McCain-Huckabee-Giuliani’s Conservatism 2.0 « who is willard milton romney? http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-42645 Mon, 14 Jan 2008 22:40:44 +0000 http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-42645 [...] In other words, we have our own issues with conservatism 2.0. But we are not willing to dismiss it out of hand. Besides, in politics, demography is destiny, and the Republican party is skewing younger and lower in income. So: We await clarification as it emerges from the facts on the ground.Here would be the counterpoint to Goldberg: […] “FOR THE FIRST time in decades, the GOP has fielded a strong roster of candidates, at least four of them with a real chance to win the nomination,” writes Lawrence Henry from North Andover, Massachusetts, in a Spectator.org article titled Creative Destruction in the GOP The party hasn’t shrugged up somebody like Bob Dole. The nominee hasn’t been settled early. No party machine has anointed anyone. [...] […] In other words, we have our own issues with conservatism 2.0. But we are not willing to dismiss it out of hand. Besides, in politics, demography is destiny, and the Republican party is skewing younger and lower in income. So: We await clarification as it emerges from the facts on the ground.Here would be the counterpoint to Goldberg: […] “FOR THE FIRST time in decades, the GOP has fielded a strong roster of candidates, at least four of them with a real chance to win the nomination,” writes Lawrence Henry from North Andover, Massachusetts, in a Spectator.org article titled Creative Destruction in the GOP The party hasn’t shrugged up somebody like Bob Dole. The nominee hasn’t been settled early. No party machine has anointed anyone. […]

]]> by: eyeon08.com » Brooks on the future of the GOP, Huckabee, and McCain http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-41509 Fri, 04 Jan 2008 14:12:14 +0000 http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-41509 [...] Yesterday, we saw Mitt Romney, the candidate of the establishment, the lobbyist class, the interest group class, etc., get rejected by the people of Iowa.  David Brooks understands the broader implications, which I have also talked about: On the Republican side, my message is: Be not afraid. Some people are going to tell you that Mike Huckabee’s victory last night in Iowa represents a triumph for the creationist crusaders. Wrong. Huckabee won because he tapped into realities that other Republicans have been slow to recognize. [...] […] Yesterday, we saw Mitt Romney, the candidate of the establishment, the lobbyist class, the interest group class, etc., get rejected by the people of Iowa.  David Brooks understands the broader implications, which I have also talked about: On the Republican side, my message is: Be not afraid. Some people are going to tell you that Mike Huckabee’s victory last night in Iowa represents a triumph for the creationist crusaders. Wrong. Huckabee won because he tapped into realities that other Republicans have been slow to recognize. […]

]]> by: eyeon08.com » Red states gaining, but beware of resting on laurels http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-40905 Sat, 29 Dec 2007 13:46:10 +0000 http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-40905 [...] Interestingly, the 2008 GOP presidential field features three different kinds of heterodox candidates who try to address these failings. Rudy Giuliani might well offer an answer in the inner-suburbs. John McCain provides a path to greater penetration in the Hispanic vote and a personality that appeals in the upper-Midwest. And Mike Huckabee offers a populism that could help consolidate the weak Southern states and the rust-belt. The fourth option is, of course, the status quo. National Review, in an article about how broken the GOP coalition is, characterized it like this: Romney and Thompson, meanwhile, are fighting over who is the most conventional, paint-by-numbers conservative circa 1987. [...] […] Interestingly, the 2008 GOP presidential field features three different kinds of heterodox candidates who try to address these failings. Rudy Giuliani might well offer an answer in the inner-suburbs. John McCain provides a path to greater penetration in the Hispanic vote and a personality that appeals in the upper-Midwest. And Mike Huckabee offers a populism that could help consolidate the weak Southern states and the rust-belt. The fourth option is, of course, the status quo. National Review, in an article about how broken the GOP coalition is, characterized it like this: Romney and Thompson, meanwhile, are fighting over who is the most conventional, paint-by-numbers conservative circa 1987. […]

]]> by: Mark R. Levin on why Romney should be allowed to get away with playing the victim about his faith, but not Gov. Huckabee « who is willard milton romney? http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-39868 Fri, 21 Dec 2007 09:36:31 +0000 http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-39868 [...] “Gov. Huckabee”—as eye of eyeon08.com argues—”represents a new movement in American politics”: … So, I think, [after eye argued that affluent voters that the GOP has lost are probably never coming back] that the other option is to try to dig deeper into the working class. Huckabee’s overt populism is one approach. John McCain’s slightly more low-key populism, on economic issues, combined with a more rabid anti-Washington populism is another strategy and, perhaps, a more likely endpoint than Huckabee’s approach. However, Huckabee does open a window to that future. [...] […] “Gov. Huckabee”—as eye of eyeon08.com argues—”represents a new movement in American politics”: … So, I think, [after eye argued that affluent voters that the GOP has lost are probably never coming back] that the other option is to try to dig deeper into the working class. Huckabee’s overt populism is one approach. John McCain’s slightly more low-key populism, on economic issues, combined with a more rabid anti-Washington populism is another strategy and, perhaps, a more likely endpoint than Huckabee’s approach. However, Huckabee does open a window to that future. […]

]]> by: eyeon08.com » Huckabee, Baptists, and “conservatives” http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-39765 Thu, 20 Dec 2007 13:27:32 +0000 http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-39765 [...] In both Republican and Baptist politics, Thompson represents the old conservative movement trying to keep power that it has in many ways already lost. Huckabee represents a new movement in American politics and American Protestantism. Who is winning? I refer you to the numbers. [...] […] In both Republican and Baptist politics, Thompson represents the old conservative movement trying to keep power that it has in many ways already lost. Huckabee represents a new movement in American politics and American Protestantism. Who is winning? I refer you to the numbers. […]

]]> by: eyeon08.com » National Review endorses Romney http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-39117 Wed, 12 Dec 2007 14:16:25 +0000 http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-39117 [...] They seem to be saying that Romney has checked all the boxes and checked them best. This point was made in a National Review piece last month that described Romney as: Romney and Thompson, meanwhile, are fighting over who is the most conventional, paint-by-numbers conservative circa 1987. Creative domestic policy is off the table. [...] […] They seem to be saying that Romney has checked all the boxes and checked them best. This point was made in a National Review piece last month that described Romney as: Romney and Thompson, meanwhile, are fighting over who is the most conventional, paint-by-numbers conservative circa 1987. Creative domestic policy is off the table. […]

]]> by: eyeon08.com » Birth of a meme: Huck as the real Fred http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-37895 Tue, 04 Dec 2007 22:34:16 +0000 http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-37895 [...] While I see the logic in all of this, I do think that something else is going on with Huckabee. After all, Fred supporters didn’t want a soft-on-immigration populist who could change the party. They wanted to keep the whole game together. Somehow, I don’t think that’s Huckabee’s game. [...] […] While I see the logic in all of this, I do think that something else is going on with Huckabee. After all, Fred supporters didn’t want a soft-on-immigration populist who could change the party. They wanted to keep the whole game together. Somehow, I don’t think that’s Huckabee’s game. […]

]]> by: terra http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-37738 Fri, 30 Nov 2007 13:11:32 +0000 http://www.eyeon08.com/2007/11/29/the-base-the-groups-and-the-candidates/#comment-37738 I don't think that that would be a winning combination. Think of it this way. Dailykos the major liberal website was founded by a former Regan Republican, its a website that overall has a conservative demographic base (The majority skews higher income, white, and male), and its online polls tended to give Clinton about 5% of the vote. The party was driven into the ground about 3 years ago. The only question is whether it wants to keep on doubling down or cash out now and avoid more debt. I don’t think that that would be a winning combination.

Think of it this way. Dailykos the major liberal website was founded by a former Regan Republican, its a website that overall has a conservative demographic base (The majority skews higher income, white, and male), and its online polls tended to give Clinton about 5% of the vote.

The party was driven into the ground about 3 years ago. The only question is whether it wants to keep on doubling down or cash out now and avoid more debt.

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