(The Phoenix-Victor Kamber)......Among Republicans, there are 15 million true believers. They listen to Rush Limbaugh every day, believe everything he says and worship the airwaves he unbalances.
Then there are the moderates, thoughtful, hopeful their party will come to grips with problems that trouble average citizens...Republicans on Capitol Hill don't want to write off the moderates. Losing a "liberal" like Arlen Specter was okay, but those two women Senators up in Maine should be saved if the East Coast is not to be abandoned altogether.
Southern officeholders, those with the safe seats who can and do say the most outrageous things that leave GOP voters elsewhere gasping and changing their registration, are to do what they were taught as children: be silent and let the adults speak.
The party has to get some new, attractive, young leaders. Newt Gingrich has been around for such a long time people often forget why they don't like him. Minority whip Eric Cantor is a bright young man who has good ideas but comes across as someone about to foreclose on your house. He and the party also need reminding that while "no" may be a tactic, it is not a policy for rebuilding America.
Finally, Republicans have to get a grip on taxes. Despite everything Grover Norquist has told them, cutting taxes does not solve every problem. The party needs to understand that our government can't function without taxes. Despite what Rush tells you, taxes are needed for more than just Medicaid and food stamps. Taxes pay for schools, highways and sewer systems. Taxes pay for our military war machine that the GOP leadership can't have enough of — they keep throwing money (taxpayer money) at new weapons systems the Pentagon says it doesn't need.
While the GOP picture may look grim now, we Democrats have been there. We know they just might be one obscure community organizer away from turning it around.
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