rssGOP Can Win Seats, But Can It Claim an Ideological Mandate?
Thursday, October 28, 2010 at 12:25 pm
- 16 Comments
Following midterm elections, what kind of mandate can the Republican Party claim? A new Bloomberg National Poll indicates that while voters are ready to elect Republicans, they’re not especially keen on the GOP itself or a majority of its proposals:
The poll finds Republicans in an unusual position: on the brink of making political gains while the party and its policies are unpopular. Likely voters are evenly divided on the Republican Party, with 47 percent holding a positive opinion. [...]
Republicans have said they want to cut $100 billion from the federal budget as early as January. That would amount to 21 percent of the government’s so-called discretionary spending and target programs such as college loans for low-income students or medical research at the National Institutes of Health.
Less than one-third of poll respondents — 31 percent — say they support cutting federal spending in areas such as education and health care, excluding Social Security, Medicare and defense.
Of course, these numbers won’t by any means stop a new Republican Congress from claiming a wide mandate to enact its agenda. Besides the obvious numerical calculus entailed in controlling the Senate, this is one of the reasons that the Senate races coming down to the wire in Pennsylvania, Colorado, Wisconsin and Nevada are so important.
The candidates representing the GOP in these races are all true believers in deeply conservative causes, and a victory for them would certainly seem like a sign that the nation has moved significantly to the right. If they loose, however, writes E. J. Dionne, it’ll make Republican claims of a sea change that much harder to justify:
So far, being righter-than-right has been anything but helpful. O’Donnell’s nomination virtually sealed a victory for Democrat Chris Coons. In Colorado, Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet, after spending the summer under assault from anonymously funded conservative groups, has been closing in on tea party favorite Ken Buck. In Wisconsin, Sen. Russ Feingold has narrowed Republican Ron Johnson’s once substantial lead.
In Alaska, the tea party’s Joe Miller faces a formidable write-in challenge from Sen. Lisa Murkowski, whom he defeated in the Republican primary, even as Democrat Scott McAdams battles to sneak through on the GOP split.
Republican Rand Paul has clung to a lead over Democrat Jack Conway in Kentucky, a very red state where a Republican should not be having so much trouble. As for Nevada, nobody knows if Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will prevail over marquee tea party candidate Sharron Angle, but Angle’s bizarre brand of conservatism is the one thing giving Reid a fighting chance.
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Here at World Spinner we are debating the same thing……
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Comment posted October 28, 2010 @ 5:05 pm
An ideological mandate to cut taxes, while continuing to fund large defense, privatize SS before killing it, deregulating Wall Street & the insurance industry, having our children/grandchildren pay the interest to the Chinese for the wealthy's tax breaks, and eliminate a woman's right to choose even in case of rape/incest? What a mandate! Time to move to Canada if these things come to fruition!!!
Comment posted October 28, 2010 @ 5:25 pm
I think GOP is smart enough to promote the ideology of pragmatism. Any other ideology will hurt them (look at Democrats and what leftist ideology can do to used to be respectable party)
Comment posted October 28, 2010 @ 6:01 pm
THIS IS HOW THEY MANDATE: First they took our Paychecks, Then Our Homes, What Next?
http://motherjones.com/politics/2010/11/galbraith-social-security-middle-class
Americans wake up to what is going on. No more carrying the tax burden, while GOP let wealthy and corporations get away with Paying No taxes or very little. That is why we have such a high tax burden. No more saying Nay to not investing in America, which creates Jobs, Jobs, Jobs, while our jobs go to China and India. Realize that less Government, means No Regulations and no one to get in the way of their fraudulent schemes! Say no the Party of No on November 2nd! And, if you do not vote, and you lose Social Security benefits because of privatization or if Unemployment Benefits are put on Freeze, or more jobs shipped overseas, and all you get in Congress is Gridlock and Fillibusters, so that nothing can get accomplished, then there is no one to blame but yourself!
The Pretenders, GOP/Tea Party's, “mission” is to sell to the American people the “bill of goods” that we Need less government, after all, government will only get in the way of their fraudulent schemes and try to hold them accountable to people and not to corporations!
Then, they pretend that they want to lower taxes for the American people knowing full well that the loopholes they created for the wealthy means that Corporations and wealthy Americans pay very little taxes or No taxes at all, so that every-day Average Americans have to carry and Shoulder all the tax burden.
Then they pretend they want to Create Jobs in America, but to Create Jobs, you must Invest in America, not in China and India — that grows their economy, not ours!
Comment posted October 28, 2010 @ 6:14 pm
This election ask yourself the question: Which party – Democrat or Republican – has a vested interest in solving your problems with the economy in the next two years?
The Republicans are sworn to defeat the Democrats in the next presidential election two years from now. A stagnant economy will work out for them. Simply doing nothing will achieve the Republicans' goal. For the unemployed, this means waiting at least TWO more years before it serves the Republican agenda to do anything about high unemployment. Will your savings last that long? It simply is not in the Republicans' best self-interest to do anything about the economy before 2012.
The Democrats, on the other hand, must turn the economy around to win re-election. If they fail, they will fail trying.
So ask yourself this election: Which party's best self-interest serves your own? The party that need do nothing to win or the party who must do something even if they face the possibility of failure? Republican or Democrat?
Comment posted October 29, 2010 @ 4:18 am
Answer: Yes.
http://libertyatstake.blogspot.com/
“Because the Only Good Progressive is a Failed Progressive”
Comment posted September 3, 2011 @ 5:17 am
I’d have to check with you here. Which is not something I usually do! I enjoy reading a post that will make people think. Also, thanks for allowing me to comment!
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