“It should have been a landslide if Romney had run as a true conservative”
“The battle to take over the Republican Party begins today and the failed Republican leadership should resign,” said Richard Viguerie, a top activist and chairman of ConservativeHQ.com.
He said the lesson on Romney’s loss to President Obama on Tuesday is that the GOP must “never again” nominate a “a big government established conservative for president.”
Jenny Beth Martin of Tea Party Patriots said Romney failed to make the kind of strong case for conservatism that would have won the election.
She described Romney as a “weak, moderate candidate hand-picked by the country club elite Republican establishment.”
“They didn’t see a clear distinction so they went with what they know,” she said of voters.
“It should have been a landslide if Romney had run as a true conservative,” said Brent Bozell of the Media Research Center.
Blowback
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I find it ironic that the GOP is more interested in “Independents/Moderates” than they are in Republicans. I think we should all change our voter registrations to Independent, then the GOP would care what we think!
Night Owl on November 8, 2012 at 11:03 AM
Absolutely correct. And it’s easy to see the solution in spite of all the drivel being posted on this thread.
You win a presidential election by winning people’s votes regardless of demographic. You win, repeat win, their votes–by convincing them you’re right and the opponent is wrong. Positively, you present a complete, coherent vision for the country and demonstrate your leadership qualities. And you fight to win. You demolish your opponent if he represents a danger.
The natural leader of the conservative movement in this country is Sarah Palin. If she can be convinced to take the challenge and the risk, she can and will do of the above in 2016. If not her, then we should be identifying and assessing leaders now.
RINOs have had their chance. This year all the circumstances were in Mitt’s favor against a pitifully weak incumbent and he failed to inspire. Now we go with Conservative Leaders who will fight and fight hard. And win.
spiritof61 on November 8, 2012 at 11:05 AM
It’s a fallacious argument to say that Romney didn’t run as conservative enough.
The real problem with the Republican brand these days is the size of our tent. We lost Hispanics 73/26 and Asians 72/27 and blacks 95/5 or something crazy.
We simply cannot win any more with mostly whites… From now on, the minorities added together is too much to overcome. We NEED better demographics, period.
SauerKraut537 on November 8, 2012 at 11:08 AM
Oh please. This was not handled well at all. And yes.. he was a teammate. Like it or not! And that whole freaking thing about “legitimate rape” came originally from Planned Freaking Parenthood! They are the ones who put that whole freaking theory out way back in the 70′s! But you probably didn’t know that because the freaking GOP was too busy crucifying Akin instead of continuing the war for the Senate!
Besides.. he apologized! He stated he used the wrong words and did not mean it the way he said it but we kept it in the spotlight by crucifying this man who was ahead in the polls and demanding he step down while the Democrats get away with actual rape!
Have you ever heard of a man named Bill Clinton? Obama can have a rapper on stage at a rally that sings songs about %itches and make videos about women’s parts and losing your virginity and some how that doesn’t bother the women but some no name candidate who utters one sentence and then goes over board apologizing but somehow it’s just not enough.
We think that one guy lost it all for us while we pretend not to see how top Democrats crap on women all day long! We are being lead around by our noses by the Democrat party war machine and they are laughing at us all the freaking way! They mock us while we run around in circles destroying ourselves! Demanding perfection within our own ranks while they openly disobey the freaking law! They are the party of abortion for God’s sake! Obama would deny an aborted baby life support for crying out loud! And we are freaking worried about the appearance of our party because some no name candidate somewhere mistakenly utters “legitimate rape” while the Democrat party openly brags about killing… killing babies and deny any born alive medical attention! Females included! Bill Clinton has been accused of rape and our side still calls him a great leader! This is insane!
The Democrats sit in their command center pushing buttons creating fake smoke within our party all over the country and we run around in circles frantically trying to put out the fake fires they create while they laugh and continue their march on our homes! It is inanity!
JellyToast on November 8, 2012 at 11:09 AM
Already changing that this next registration. Furthermore if the GOP runs a Chris Christie then I am not getting conned into voting this next election with the “he’s the only one who can win” ” if you stay home you are voting for the other guy” line.
melle1228 on November 8, 2012 at 11:09 AM
So your answer to my question is none. Anyone else?
Basilsbest on November 8, 2012 at 11:10 AM
Palin fans need to stage an intervention. Did you see her election eve? B-52′s beehive hair and frosted pink lipstick? The pop culture sites like DListed are in heaven: the splitting image of Peggy Bundy now. And I LIKE her. But she’s looking ridiculous! She couldn’t run for anything looking like that.
Marcus on November 8, 2012 at 11:10 AM
Thank you.
Fallon on November 8, 2012 at 11:11 AM
I’m really going to have a hard time listening to anyone who can’t see what a qualified candidate the Governor was. And you know what….even if I went along with this “hand picked by the elite nonsense”…I would think that in the end, the elite picked right. No one who ran in the primary would have done any better. No one.
lynncgb on November 8, 2012 at 11:11 AM
You win by running on consistent principles, not by balkanzing the electorate and then trying to figure out which slivers you want to pander to most.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:12 AM
This.
If our candidate was a Palin or a DeMint, we would have won.
Rebar on November 8, 2012 at 11:12 AM
Bing Bing Bing– They are the party of Ted Kennedy for God’s sake.. He frickin killed a women. The problem is that Republicans count on the electorate to know that they are not (fill in the blank) and so they allow the Dems to define them. We need to start getting as juvenile and nasty- it is what American idiots respond to.
melle1228 on November 8, 2012 at 11:12 AM
Typical and predictable denial. As if the catastrophe of Tuesday never ever happened.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:13 AM
The Democrats didn’t force Akin and Mourdock to say that they are so lacking in empathy for a woman who has become pregnant as a result of being raped that she must not have access to an abortion. This was a self inflicted wound and it did gin up Obama’s female base against Mitt. You aren’t being at all practical.
Basilsbest on November 8, 2012 at 11:15 AM
They also didn’t force Romney to say that 47% of the country consists of victmized moochers.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:17 AM
Sorry, nothing to support that, just wishful thinking. Palin’s negatives were off the charts when campaign started, DeMint is good locally – nationally ? probably not. I like them both by the way, just realistic.
runner on November 8, 2012 at 11:18 AM
No one is in denial. I just don’t agree that the outcome of the election was because of the nominee. I would love it if it were only that simple.
lynncgb on November 8, 2012 at 11:19 AM
And they didn’t force Romney to say “binders full of women” and I can guarantee no matter how stupid you think that was, Dem single women hated that line. If Romney allowed Akin or Mourdock to tar him or his position then he wasn’t articulating them enough. Part of the problem was because he shied away from social issues so much, the simple minds thought he had hidden nefarious purposes like banning tampons.
melle1228 on November 8, 2012 at 11:19 AM
Exactly. You are right on target.
Romney is a good man and would have made a good president. But he lost with everything working in his favor on Tuesday (I don’t even think he matched McCain’s popular vote totals while Obama’s numbers were way down from 2008).
We have to go back to basics and work together, moderates and conservatives, to save the country. No more 2012s, people. The nation will not survive much more bad government.
spiritof61 on November 8, 2012 at 11:19 AM
Yeppers people forget that Romney camp stepped in it as well. How about his advisor touting Romneycare?
melle1228 on November 8, 2012 at 11:20 AM
They would have gotten the base out in record numbers, the lack of which is exactly why Romney lost.
As far as negatives, what could the left have said about them, that they didn’t say about Romney?
Rebar on November 8, 2012 at 11:20 AM
The more serious problem is when she opens her mouth. She wouldn’t have gotten more than 40% of the vote. I’m curious as to how many palinistas like ddrintn didn’t vote for Romney because they wanted to be proven right?
Basilsbest on November 8, 2012 at 11:20 AM
Are you kidding? That’s denial right there.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:20 AM
Nah, you don’t really. You’re just bitter and butt-hurt that she didn’t help out Rick Perry and his Reagan-red necktie.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:22 AM
you are morphing strategy and ideology, sorry you can’t see the difference, that will not serve you well
runner on November 8, 2012 at 11:22 AM
Or maybe she’s “been there, done that” and has no intention of running for anything anytime soon.
Or of trying to pick up “coolness points” from the hyenas at sites like DListed.
Aitch748 on November 8, 2012 at 11:22 AM
Women were upset with Romney because he asked for binders of women’s resumes so he could appoint qualified women? Really.
Basilsbest on November 8, 2012 at 11:22 AM
Aren’t these the same people who said Romney was a RINO and wanted Perry or Bachman to win the Primary?
Burn the whole fucking right wing establishment down and start over.
Xavier on November 8, 2012 at 11:23 AM
No, YOU are, and it’s why Romney and his followers led us to this catastrophe. Your strategy flows from your ideology.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:23 AM
Sorry…you can call it what you will, but I think we need to beyond the nominee to figure this out.
lynncgb on November 8, 2012 at 11:24 AM
Yeah sweetie they were, because most didn’t hear the original reference. They heard what the media and the Dems made it into. If Repubs don’t start thinking like the simple minds in this country- we are doomed.
melle1228 on November 8, 2012 at 11:25 AM
need to look
lynncgb on November 8, 2012 at 11:25 AM
Because the Squish Establishment has shown they can just win, baby!!!
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:26 AM
As long as Republicans want to keep playing nice we will keep losing elections! As long as we demand perfection on our side and are quicker at attacking our own teammates than attacking our opponents then we will keep losing! War is filthy and ugly! We want it to be nice and clean! Every loss is going to make it all the harder to win next time! This was our opportunity! Romney was not up to it and now it will be harder the next time!
We have to confront reality! This is a war about the foundations of our survival! It is not about jobs! Jobs come with liberty! A strong economy and free trade are just one of the fruits of liberty! The case was not made! This is not about demographics! It is not about race! It is not about color! All of this talk is a distraction! It is about liberty! Freedom! It will always be that! Liberty is colorblind! Freedom draws all people of all colors!
There is no other road but the road that takes you straight through hell! Romney wanted to avoid that road hoping to keep the battle clean! The GOP wanted to frame this argument between good economic choices and bad ones. It was a nice argument. A much better one was needed! We needed to inspire passions! Romney was afraid he’d be called an extremist and the GOP leadership was too embarrassed to talk about anything other than jobs!
JellyToast on November 8, 2012 at 11:26 AM
LOL. The nominee gets his ass handed to him by the most beatable incumbent in probably forever, and we have to “look beyond the nominee”.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:27 AM
My question remains unanswered. Anyone care to address it?
Basilsbest on November 8, 2012 at 11:27 AM
Agreed. Just curious–what’s your favorite punctuation mark?
spiritof61 on November 8, 2012 at 11:28 AM
I voted for Romney.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:29 AM
The positions he took late were certainly conservative, except maybe being too timid on ObamaCare — understandable since he had signed into law its blueprint. The problem is Romney was never known as an ideologically-consistent conservative to begin with. He had taken just about every conceivable side on every conceivable issue. And during the primaries he was more interested in destroying any possible competition via negative ads than he was in articulating ANYthing.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:32 AM
LOL– Yeah I don’t get it. The last two elections we have had EXACTLY what they have wanted -socially moderate, and we have lost. How much more moderate should we go? I hear Zell Miller is still alive and Joe Lieberman is an independent.
melle1228 on November 8, 2012 at 11:32 AM
Your arguments would be stronger if you could read the poll data. Akin did not lose by 5 points..he lost by 15 points in a state Romney won by 9 points for a total of -24 swing. If there was a reverse Bradely effect with GOP woman simply refusing to vote for a moron, it was here!
And as for as MA is concerned, Brown ran almost 10 points stronger than Romney in a presidential years…if Kerry becomes the SOS, Brown can still pick up this seat for GOP. unless you think Akin win by 50 points in MA.
rightistliberal on November 8, 2012 at 11:32 AM
Romney didn’t lose because of the turnout for Obama, which was down 13% – with Fla still to report.
Basilsbest on November 8, 2012 at 11:32 AM
New England patricians have a bad track record thus far when it comes to winning the presidency. Mitt Romney now joins George H.W. Bush and John Forbes Kerry on that list.
Punchenko on November 8, 2012 at 11:33 AM
I’m not suggesting we pander to them, that’s the Democrats way. I’m suggesting we persuade them that we have the correct arguments, but that requires talking to them in a way that doesn’t alienate them.
We can be persuasive and yet strict. It’s all in how you do it, but we simply MUST bring more minority candidates to the fore.
SauerKraut537 on November 8, 2012 at 11:34 AM
How can you tell that Romney means it when he explains his positions? And how come he didn’t bring his conservative wisdom into play when he was governor of Massachusetts?
Aitch748 on November 8, 2012 at 11:34 AM
Problem is that you can never win the ‘truecon’ argument with the believers: Because whoever loses was never conservative enough. How can you counter that argument?
rightistliberal on November 8, 2012 at 11:34 AM
So that leaves only the possibility that Romney lost of because of lower turnout for himself…which is odd, given how utterly perfect Romney was as a candidate.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:34 AM
This entire thread makes me f*cking sick to my stomach.
I cannot believe you people actually believe what you’re saying here. The fact that so many of you are still carrying out Obama’s attacks on a good man and an excellent campaign is revolting.
Bee on November 8, 2012 at 11:35 AM
By showing us Presidents Dole, McCain and Romney. That’s how. Good luck.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:35 AM
What “attacks”? I’ve never said a damn thing about Romney personally. I’ve never even used the terms “Willard” or “Mittens”.
ddrintn on November 8, 2012 at 11:36 AM
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