.comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

Born at the Crest of the Empire

Friday, November 07, 2008

Here's another Gingrich protege to watch.

Y'all blasted me the other day for suggesting that Newt Gingrich would end up pulling the strings in the GOP, but I'm sticking to my guns. Here's another Gingrich/GOPAC follower Michael Steele being floated to run the RNC.

Just something to watch.

posted by mikevotes at 10:48 AM

12 Comments:

  • There's the GOP, as in party, and there's the Republican base, as in the angry, low info, quasi-"christian" grassroots.

    Gingrich may well end up pulling strings at the GOP. I'm just not sure the Republican base can be corralled and manipulated as it was over a decade ago.

    By Blogger -epm, at 11:02 AM  

  • I think that's a bit of a difference between our views.

    I think that if you can find a candidate who clears the fundamentalist and immigration hurdles in some fashion, the GOP will swing in behind almost anyone if they speak the right way.

    They are a top down party.

    (And I don't think Steele would be their candidate. I don't know who it's gonna be yet. I'm just betting that Gingrich has his claws in them and the process.)

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 11:13 AM  

  • "They are a top down party."

    I don't know jack, but here's the thing... I'm wondering if this year changes that.

    There was something frighteningly NOT top down about Palin-mania. Indeed, the "top" tried to put a lid on it at times, to no avail.

    By Blogger -epm, at 11:23 AM  

  • The GOP as a whole worships authority. That's what the whole God Thing in the Base is about. Gingrich understands that, and he's the only one with the intellect and the sack who's able to lead them. He will.

    He also understands the absolutely tremendous potential for activism that's scurrying around in there. There will be a fairly radical departure from the former GOP M.O., and it won't be further in Palin's direction. It will be a mirror of Obama Community Activism. Gingrich has suggested, for example, that kids be paid for getting good grades.

    By Blogger MarcLord, at 12:55 PM  

  • EPM, I agree with Marc. I see the GOP as a shaken party, but not a broken party.

    Now, they couldn't run an atheist, but the GOP base is inherently prone towards authority, that's why they develop these external massive church structures with national "religious" figures passing judgment on morals.

    .....

    As a broader point, I think the GOP's best access point is to head towards small business rather than large business, to become the party of opportunity once again. The idea being to bring their dream of success down to an accessible level to most people.

    Just a thought.

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 1:16 PM  

  • "I think the GOP's best access point is to head towards small business rather than large business, to become the party of opportunity once again. The idea being to bring their dream of success down to an accessible level to most people."

    That's an extremely cogent point, and I will strongly encourage them to do so. It would force the Dems to go in the same direction, bearing in mind that I'm a registered Republican.

    By Blogger MarcLord, at 1:24 PM  

  • I've always leaned toward Anarcho-Syndicalism myself but you've got to hitch your horse to a post once and awhile.

    Marc is write but small businesses don't bring in that large K Street money.

    By Blogger matt, at 1:38 PM  

  • No, Matt. While I'm an anarcho-syndicalist myself, Obama's campaign proved the K Street model wrong. That hypothesis is the very basis of his politics, that small donor contributions could scale and beat out K Street. Every politician in the country knows the game is different now. I saw it coming 15 years ago, so my household and my small business donated the maximum to Barack.

    By Blogger MarcLord, at 2:08 PM  

  • I see, I was referring exclusively to the GOP and the K Street model. You're pragmatism will hopefully pay off.

    By Blogger matt, at 2:42 PM  

  • I'm probably centerleft. I'm a big believer in trickle up economics, primarily because we're now a consumer economy. I think we get far more benefit from "raising economic classes" at the lower end than working top down, ad small businesses and real education are the surest ways to bring the middle and middle lower up.

    .....

    However, I don't think you can clearly say that Obama is free from lobbyist/Washington money. He put limits on how they could donate, and, because of the massive popular fundraising, they're a smaller part of the pie, but Washington money was still a big part of his pie.

    That "smart money" did come, but because of his huge haul, he has alot more freedom to ignore it.

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 3:16 PM  

  • matt and mike,

    oh corporate money is still there, very much so, and the Republicans haven't let go of the K Street tit. There will be many who can't let go.

    I just mean the stranglehold is broken, and the winning political model is now fundamentally altered. It will take some time to reverberate and accelerate, and the process is just getting underway. Long way to go yet.

    By Blogger MarcLord, at 5:30 PM  

  • I get ya.

    But one more clarification. The Dems, with control of everything, get most of the lobbying money now.

    The way of the world.....

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 6:01 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home