Comments on: Palin Could Still Have Bright Future

By: mike mcEachran

mike mcEachran — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 22:36:16 +0000

For those of us looking for the quickest route the Republican make-over should hope the Dems don’t over-reach in the next two years. A Dem screw up will give Palin-esque socons and neocons the excuse they need to keep a foot in the Republican door. A good showing by a Dem super-majority, and the far-right will wither, and fiscal conservatives will take over. Then in year 3-4 the Dems will almost certainly over-reach and Blue-dog and Reagan Dems will split off to take over the Republican party. Palin is nowhere in this picture. So, I’m already planning my affiliation switch in 2010. Oh, please, oh, please…

By: blackoutyears

blackoutyears — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 22:11:35 +0000

As a moderate I’ve been lamenting the ascendance of the socons/theocons for years. I’m not wild about the proposed fracture in the Right for the very reason Bob mentions, but I suppose I’m banking on a coup by moneycons to make the GOP palatable enough to moderates that we could restore equilibrium. Not that that’s anything but naked self-interest on my part and a bid to completely marginalize socons, the only sub-group of the electorate with which I find myself in true contention.

By: Bob Aman

Bob Aman — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 20:25:52 +0000

As a disaffected member of the evangelical crowd, I think it’s safe to say that the rift between the social conservatives and the fiscal conservative is growing, and will likely become a very big deal over the next four years. I’ve been hearing a lot of pulpit-borne claims that the current economic woes are a judgment from on high. Much like every other major negative event ever. Quite a few of these “pastoral” pronouncements have pinned the blame on Republicans for abandoning the evangelicals. Among the social conservatives, Palin will continue to be popular, largely because she’s “one of them” and shares their extreme biases. Not much else matters to them. Among the fiscal conservatives, they will rightly begin to see social conservatives as poison in the well, and begin to distance themselves. Unfortunately, even slight movement in this direction will doom both to the benefit of the Democrats, and I don’t think that’s actually good for the country.

By: BBQ

BBQ — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 19:11:50 +0000

I’d say they should be more sick of the neocons with two wars and a huge budget deficit. Socons get more heat because of the rhetoric but it’s been the neocons who actually got more of their policies in place.

By: stuperb

stuperb — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 18:07:50 +0000

I agree with Mike that the Republican party *seems* ready to fracture – especially if Obama wins, and wins big (I’m skeptical that it will be a landslide).

I wonder, though, whether the party will split if Obama becomes President, or come together in solidarity against him. It’s hard to say.

I’d think the fiscal conservatives out there have GOT to be sick of the religious right’s hijacking of their party by now.

By: mike mcEachran

mike mcEachran — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 17:58:37 +0000

I agree as long as the Evanglical base of the party holds sway – and I don’t think they will. If the Republican party is forced into a make-over – long needed – they will likely move toward fiscal responsibility, meritocracy, and libertarian leanings. I don’t think there will much room for “dinosaur and people roamed the earth at the same time cuz the Bahble says so” types. But I could be wrong.