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February 10, 2012
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Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
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January 27, 2012
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January 26, 2012
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Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
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Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
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Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
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Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
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Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
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January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
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Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
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January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
May 7, 2009 / 13 Iyar 5769
What does the future hold for GOP?
By
Jonah Goldberg
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Compare and contrast two men: former congressmen Jack Kemp, one of the architects of the Reagan Revolution, who passed away this weekend at the age of 73; and Arlen Specter, the senator of Pennsylvania who switched parties to stay alive politically for another term. Specter is famous for believing whatever he needs to "believe" to get elected. Dour, Dickensian and mercenary, he is regarded by observers across the aisle as a relentless partisan for the Party of Specter. Kemp, meanwhile, was a man of ideas and relentless, unflagging optimism, beloved on both sides of the aisle. For Kemp, the bigger the pile of manure, the more likely there was a Christmas pony somewhere. With Specter, spreading manure is always its own reward.
Kemp's death should be cause for deep reflection about what the Republican Party is about. Specter's defection is much less significant. Yes, we can appreciate that a rat is telling us something important when it flees a sinking ship, but we don't have to admire the rat.
Few dispute that the USS GOP is listing badly. But admitting it doesn't mean one should take advice from those who helped scuttle her. For many liberals, in and out of the party, Specter'sdecision was greeted as proof that the GOP had become too right-wing, too obsessed with social issues. Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine proclaimed in response to Specter's self-defenestration, "It was when we began to emphasize social issues to the detriment of some of our basic tenets as a party that we encountered an electoral backlash." Snowe implores Republicans to get back to basics and concentrate on such things as fighting government spending.
Such analysis is gospel in many quarters, though it doesn't make much sense. For instance, George W. Bush's problems were caused by Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and the economy, not social issues. And Specter was always pro-choice and otherwise socially liberal; yet he routinely won the support of the party.
The recent anti-Specter backlash was over his vote for President Obama's stimulus package. And Snowe herself was also one of just three GOP senators, all "moderates," who voted for the federal economic stimulus. If they want to get back to basics, maybe they could have started by thwarting a Godzillan pork bill that's large enough to be seen from space, that will spend billions of dollars long after the Obama administration says the economy will recover.
Moreover, this argument assumes the existence of a creature that Kate O'Beirne, of the National Review Institute, calls the "Jackalope of American politics": the socially liberal fiscal conservative. These critters are allegedly America's real silent majority, except they are exceedingly rare. Most people who are socially liberal are economically liberal as well. Embracing what Barry Goldwater called "me-too" Republicanism agreeing to liberal principles while being just a bit more frugal about living up to them might win over a few of these exotic creatures, but it will lose tens of millions of committed conservatives. Given a choice between an authentic Democratic Party and an unenthusiastic knockoff, why vote for the pale imitation?
The real answer for the GOP isn't to narrow the differences between the parties but to heighten them. Conservatism's greatest achievements have arisen from giving Americans a "choice, not an echo," as Goldwater famously put it.
In 1974, during the bleak post-Watergate period, Ronald Reagan raised "a banner of no pale pastels, but bold colors." In 1978, as the U.S. floundered under President Carter, Kemp flew the flag of massive tax reform. Inspired by Kemp, the Reagan campaign in 1980 proposed an audacious 30% cut in taxes.
And herein lies the real opportunity in Specter's defection. It's likely the Democrats will now have the 60 votes to run the Senate. Hence, Obama's legislative failures will, by definition, be failures to win over members of his own party. Republican "intransigence" and "partisanship" will be rhetorical in that Republicans have no formal means of stopping Obama, only the power of their arguments.
That is the environment conservatives thrive in. Yes, the Republican Party needs some new ideas, new solutions to our problems. But conservatives do not need new convictions. The GOP can choose to be the party of Kemp or of Specter the choice, or the echo. The spirit of Kemp stands for principle over power. The specter of Specter glorifies solely the principle of power. Kemp was far from perfect, but after his short time in government, he'll be remembered not only for doing great things but also for believing in the greatness of America.
Arlen Specter, even if he spends 40 more years in government, will be remembered for nothing at all.
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