Alright guys. We suffered many defeats this last Tuesday. I won't mince words - I am embarrassed for the Republican party. However, I am not ashamed in the least for conservatism. This was not a defeat of conservatism - it was the defeat of an internally fractured party.
It's time to rebuild from the ground up. The last two days have reminded me of the inner strength and courage that conservatives have. Yes, we're all disappointed with the outcome of the election but even now, everywhere I look, grassroots campaigns are sprouting up. As Republicans, we did the best with the candidate that we were given and we did extraordinarily well, especially for a Democratic year. George W. Bush is incredibly unpopular and the Democrats should have been ahead 20 points in the polls. BUT THEY WEREN'T. John McCain managed to stay neck-to-neck with Barack Obama and captured almost 47% of the popular vote (according to CNN) despite being a moderate candidate with weak support from his base.
John McCain did not lose because the American people rejected conservatism - John McCain lost because he was out-financed by 5:1 (at least!) and because he ran one of the worst campaigns in recent years. Ann Coulter eloquently outlined the core of why McCain was unsuccessful in her 11/05/08 column, which I have quoted below.
How could Republicans go after B. Hussein Obama (as he is now known) on planning to bankrupt the coal companies when McCain supports the exact same cap and trade policies and earnestly believes in global warming?
How could we go after Obama for his illegal alien aunt and for supporting driver's licenses for illegal aliens when McCain fanatically pushed amnesty along with his good friend Teddy Kennedy?
How could we go after Obama for Jeremiah Wright when McCain denounced any Republicans who did so?
How could we go after Obama for planning to hike taxes on the "rich," when McCain was the only Republican to vote against both of Bush's tax cuts on the grounds that they were tax cuts for the rich?
I, of course, mean no disrespect to John McCain himself, who is a true American war hero and a good man, but Ann is correct. By being willing to squander our party message to appease the left and "Republicans" against our better judgement, we have lost both the country and our way.
Barack Obama is the President-Elect of the USA but this does not mean that I, or you, are obligated to support him in the least. The game is not over - there is no reason to stay silent while Barack Obama and the most liberal congress ever assembled try to dismantle our Constitution and redistribute America's hard-earned wealth around as they see fit. The drive-by media continues to trash Sarah Palin and other mainstream conservatives, despite their huge win on Tuesday, which tells me that the Democrats in charge still see the conservative movement as a threat. We're not defeated, not yet. The media and certain John McCain staffers are trying to pin the blame of losing the election on Sarah Palin (the conservative). This sort of thing can be expected from the liberal media but to hear it from Republicans is truly upsetting. Sarah Palin saved John McCain's campaign, whether they admit it or not. She energized the base and is one of the fresh new faces of conservatism in America. She's a good woman and I hope to hear and see more of her in the future.
This fight is only beginning but I am not discouraged at all. I am seeing a re-energization of the conservative movement that I have not seen in my lifetime. The mistakes of 2008 will stay with us long in to the future as a reminder to stay true to our values and to inspire us to work hard in order to elect principled candidates. No more lame-duck candidates!
Remember, we will not be defeated if we lose - we'll only be defeated if we quit!
Links to start:
The Conservative Underground Blog
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