They’re talking… is America listening?
With the defection of Arlen Specter to the land of Democrats and a lack of clear leadership aside from cartoonish entertainers, the Republican Party needs to sit down and have serious talk… with America. At least I’ll give them this: Republicans tend to see the free market value of products like personal loans and mortgage loan modification…
Warner Todd Huston blogs on Red State at http://www.redstate.com/warner_todd_huston/2009/04/30/the-national-council-for-a-new-america-launches-conference-call-report/ that the National Council for a New America (NCNA) has launched. It’s “not a contract with America,” says party luminaries like John McCain, but that conversation they’ve been meaning to have. It is the GOP’s after-school special moment, but there’ll be no teenage Helen Hunt leaping through a plate glass window. This isn’t dramatic theater; this is the Republican Party trying to re-brand itself (they say it isn’t, but they’re… lying). Will they hold to their conservative values?
Five pillars of America’s recovery
According to Huston, there will be five areas of discussion: the economy, healthcare, education, energy and national security. He sees the NCNA as a chance to “re-introduce” Republican principles to the people. But didn’t they just have that chance recently? Perhaps there’s a failure to communicate here.
Representative Eric Cantor’s office put out a press release on the NCNA’s goals. Here are some highlights, with my comments included.
The NCNA and you
Today, we are launching the National Council for a New America (NCNA), a caucus of Congressional leaders gathering the expertise of national leaders and doers. We hope that will form the foundation of a concerted, policy-based forum to listen to, partner with, and empower the American people with ideas and solutions that speak directly to the needs of our great nation. This forum will engage in a conversation with America that seeks to remove ideological filters, addresses the realities we are confronting, and speaks to the challenges our citizens are facing.
Empowering the American people? Removing ideological filters? Are you going to introduce synergism into the American paradigm next? How can you empower and remove ideological filters for others when you can’t achieve those ends for yourselves?
So now you contain multitudes?
The NCNA will bring together citizens from across the country to begin a dialogue with the American people through a series of forums, town halls, and an online effort that will engage people in a discussion to meet our common challenges and build a stronger country through common-sense ideas.
And making the swine flu into a racist diatribe is very common-sense… please.
Instead, we want to ask the American people what their hopes and dreams are.
Saving Alaskan wolves, making bridge projects go somewhere and convincing Rush to try football announcing again…
Ultimately, however, we are only launching this effort. The real drivers will have to be the American people. We invite Americans from all walks of life to speak with us as we begin anew rebuilding and re-energizing our nation.
The American people have already voted. They’ve driven where they wanted to go. I can cut your excitement with a Play Doh knife.
CLICK HERE to keep reading…
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One of the oddities I find within a fair amount of conservative platforms is often a desire to return to a way of life that they think existed during a particular place in time. Those of us who have labored in the field of History often understand what many don’t – it never existed. The idealized versions of the past never existed, they weren’t really like that, and those that were around at the time would tell you so. So often, a lot of conservative and “family values” folks like to point to the 1950s as some sort of example of a high point for the USA. They were in ways, and in others, they weren’t. Where shall I begin?
First, you had the constant looming threat of nuclear war. The 1950s was the beginning of the Cold War, and the threat of Stalin, and alter Kruschev launching nukes was a real possibility. Second, big business, free market, and pro executive/anti-labor types should remember that union membership was at an all time high at that point. Just a thought.
I could go on. At any rate, the Republican party seems to be coming unglued. It seems that the only real Republican left is Ron Paul, with the rest being a bunch of neo-con zealots.
That was a very sarcastic remark. I do think that Ron Paul is probably the most honest Politian in either party. So far I have not been impressed with the current administration or with the billions of dollars going to greedy executives. So far I have not seen ANY CHANGE for the better and not much HOPE for it either.
However, there are a lot of good reasons for the forum. It is an effort to listen to the people. Isn’t that what we always say? “Nobody asks me my opinion”. Yes, it is common sense and they are making an effort. Maybe we should cut these guys a break and bring our concerns (and complaints) to the forum. Just maybe they will listen and act. I’m not giving up on family values either.