Rassmussen released a poll recently showing that only 37% of Republican voters thought the GOP leadership in Congress was doing a good job of promoting Republican values. While it found that 53% of Republican voters think the Republicans in Congress have lost touch with GOP voters over the last several years. Many were surprised that the numbers weren’t even worse.
It helps explain why Republicans lost 40 seats in the House last November, including many districts where the President’s approval was hovering around 50%. Districts that Mr. Trump carried, in some cases by double digits. There just wasn’t much enthusiasm for warmed-over mush. Their time in the majority was mostly wasted, fecklessly treading water.
Over in the Senate, at least they confirmed some decent judges. They gained seats.
For a party that claims to champion free market principles, there is a feeling that our Leaders have forgotten the most basic one of all. Serve the customer. Even large, once successful companies sank into bankruptcy when they forgot who their customers were. Successful enterprises are supposed to serve them. Not the other way around.
Just recount the accomplishments of the GOP while they had the majority. They passed important tax reform that has helped fuel the economic recovery that we enjoy today. Second, they blocked a lot of goofy ideas proposed by the Left. Good things, both.
But, it is the failures that have caused so much frustration. The failure to replace ObamaCare. The failure to actually embrace the President’s America First agenda. The hand-wringing over the President who is finally standing up to the decades of trade abuses by the Communist Chinese. Failure to have a clear position on immigration. Failure to fund the wall when they had the majority. Failure to show some semblance of fiscal restraint. Failure to defund Planned Parenthood or NPR. They not only failed to hold wrongdoers at the FBI and DOJ accountable for their unethical (criminal) behavior, they went along with a bogus ethics investigation of Chairman Nunes when he began to blow the whistle.
To top it off, their messaging on issue after issue has been pathetic.
To quote Mr. Potter from It’s a Wonderful Life, “Do I paint an accurate picture? Or, do I exaggerate?”
These folks could screw up a three car funeral. Lou Dobbs is not alone. Many activists are done making excuses. The Leadership’s actions (or inactions) have made them fair game. Coaches with years of losing records are soon called former coaches. Fans and alumni have grown restless.
The Left can say or do whatever they want without consequence. They can kiss up to anti-Semitic Muslim leaders. They can engage in the most vile vocabulary. We are daily treated to their name calling, virtue signaling and character assassination. They can even call the President of the United States a Motherf##ker. We get mostly crickets from our leaders who claim to be advocates of civility.
But, let a Republican Member who talks openly about defending Western Civilization and our Southern Border make a clumsy response to a loaded question from a New York Times reporter. He will be smothered with jam and tied to an ant hill. Much like the boys in MAGA hats who smiled and stood their ground in front of the Lincoln Memorial, he is criticized in the harshest terms. By Republicans!
This is beyond stupidity.
It must not be tolerated. Groveling to the gods of political correctness will not appease them. It will only embolden them. Feeding the hyenas one of your own only sharpens their taste for blood. They will surely be back for more. It is the classic description of the stupid party. Mark Steyn did a brilliant job of explaining this while sitting in for Rush a few weeks ago. He said that if they cannot even defend Western Civilization, there is nothing left to defend.
Political stupidity is seldom curable and is almost always fatal. The modern day leadership of the Republicans in Congress seems determined to lead their troops wandering aimlessly. Without direction, purpose or principle they are in serious danger of going the way of the Whigs.
Gil Gutknecht served six terms each in the Minnesota and the U.S. House of Representatives. He writes about healthcare and political issues of the day.
Gil Gutknecht
Gil Gutknecht is a former Republican congressman from Minnesota.
