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A CLASSIC BLIND SPOT

January 16th, 2009, 2:45 pm by Dan Lehr

Right: Sun-Tzu

Above: TN Rep. Jason Mumpower

Republican Jason Mumpower’s had a bad week. Denied - at the last minute - the 1st GOP house speakership in 40 years.

It was not supposed to go this way, especially because Mumpower had read up on two of the best political/strategic books in history:

“Fellow members described him as meticulous and a highly organized strategist. In addition to [Machiavelli's] The Prince, he also has a copy of [Sun-Tzu's] The Art of War in his office within easy reach.”

But he apparently wasn’t able to ingest the right lessons.

John A. Tures of the Southern Political Report explains (h/t Kleinheider):

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Posted in: Local Politics • Strategy | Post a Comment »

RECOGNIZING THE WORLD OUTSIDE THE BUBBLE (2)

January 13th, 2009, 9:32 am by Dan Lehr

In his blog, Hendrik Hertzberg wrote about his experience speaking with students at Covenant College last month (which I wrote about here):

“I liked them all—students, faculty, and the college president, Niel Nielson—very much. They were polite, serious, gracious, and un-self-righteous.

…

I got the impression that many of them are embarrassed by the likes of Dobson, Robertson, and Sarah Palin, and have no wish to be lumped in with them.

…

These students live in a bubble, and they know it. But then, people like me live in a bubble, too, and, on the whole, we don’t know it. From my angle, of course, our bubble looks bigger and better. Theirs: a constricted, six-thousand-year-old world ruled by an incorrigibly small-minded God, the secrets of which are to be found in a black-bound anthology of unreliably translated old tribal stories, poems, directives, and tracts. Ours: an unimaginably immense, unimaginably ancient universe ruled by no one, the wonders and beauties of which are continually being revealed to us through our senses and our minds. The more frank and friendly conversation there is between the two bubbles, the better.”

Emphasis mine.

On the whole, I’d say the bubble-viewer in the previous post has a far more clearer view of the outside world.

Both men, though, I think have hit upon something we all need to recognize in order to move our great country forward.

But what do you think?

FURTHER READING: Read Covenant College’s coverage of Hertzberg’s appearance.

Posted in: Strategy • The Democrats | 1 Comment »

RECOGNIZING THE WORLD OUTSIDE THE BUBBLE (1)

January 13th, 2009, 9:21 am by Dan Lehr

Yes, Virginia, there are Republicans who recognize both their current state of affairs & a way out of them.

There’s so much to like from this essay, ‘The Way Back,’ from former Virginia Congressman Tom Davis (R), like:

“We talked to ourselves and not to voters. We became more concerned with stem cell policy than economic policy, and with prayer in schools rather than balance in our public budgets and priorities. Not so long ago, it was easy to paint the Democrats as the party of extremists. Now, they say we’re extremists, and voters agree.“

&

“We’ve long-since given up on the African-American vote. We’re forfeiting the Hispanic vote with unwarranted and unsavory vitriol against immigrants. Youth vote? Gone. We ask for nothing from these idealistic voters, we offer little except chastisement of their lifestyle choices and denial of global warming, and we are woefully behind the Democrats in learning how to connect with them.”

&

“[We need to] remind ourselves the first principle of conservatism is not tax cuts or free trade or even smaller government. It is prudence, and prudence should be our guide.

Prudence dictates we take seriously the concerns of those who elect us and tailor our policy proposals to counter the government-mandate-heavy ideas bound to emerge from the other side.”

& especially:

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Posted in: Strategy • The GOP | Post a Comment »

THE (CONSERVATIVE) CART BEFORE THE (CONSERVATIVE) HORSE
January 12th, 2009, 3:18 pm by Dan Lehr

‘Cart’ = ideology & ‘horse’ = real-life experiences, as magnificently explained by Jim Manzi, who, in my view, has spotted a way to solve the problem of the Republican brand:

“It’s conventional wisdom to say something to the effect of “we need to apply the timeless principles of conservatism to the challenges of today” or whatever. The instinct behind this – adapting to changing circumstances without sacrificing basic beliefs – is surely sound. But as operational advice, it seems quite misguided.

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Posted in: Strategy • The GOP | Post a Comment »

HOW TO WIN IN AFGHANISTAN
January 7th, 2009, 1:09 pm by Dan Lehr

Just like (yet, by definition, not at all like) in Iraq, the key is counterinsurgency.

An absolutely essential read over at Foreign Policy shows how General David Petraeus’ counterinsurgency strategy can lead to victory, including these so-called “paradoxes:”

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Posted in: Essential Reads • Foreign Policy • Strategy • Terrorism | Post a Comment »

THE GOP’s NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS
January 2nd, 2009, 4:47 pm by Dan Lehr

Peter Berkowitz of the Wall Street Journal wants to remind both social & economic conservatives of the power of the Constitution…

“…a constitutional conservatism provides a framework for developing a distinctive agenda for today’s challenges to which social conservatives and libertarian conservatives can both, in good conscience, subscribe.

…

If they honor the imperatives of a constitutional conservatism, both social conservatives and libertarian conservatives will have to bite their fair share of bullets as they translate these goals into concrete policy. They will, though, have a big advantage: Moderation is not only a conservative virtue, but the governing virtue of a constitutional conservatism.”

…while Paul Krugman recommends throwing out the GOP’s divisive strategy for success for the past 40 years:

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Posted in: Strategy • The GOP | Post a Comment »

PRESSURE POINTS
December 16th, 2008, 4:03 pm by Dan Lehr

Check out Marc Ambinder’s analysis on which GOP fights in the 1st year of the Obama administration are worth picking, including:

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Posted in: Strategy • The GOP | Post a Comment »

CRITICISM OF THE BAILOUT OPPOSITION’S ‘SOUTHERN STRATEGY’
December 16th, 2008, 9:19 am by Dan Lehr

Eugene Robinson:

“The thing to do is give the automakers the money to buy some time. This is obvious to the current administration, the incoming administration, a majority in the House of Representatives and the Democrats in the Senate — but not to the Senate Republicans. They killed the bailout measure by demanding that the United Auto Workers agree to sharp, almost immediate cuts in wages and benefits.

Funny, I don’t recall a cry from Senate Republicans for salary caps on the stockbrokers whose jobs were saved in the Wall Street bailout. Nor, to my knowledge, have they demanded that white-collar workers in the auto companies take pay cuts. I do recall lectures from some Republicans in the Senate about how inadvisable it is for government to meddle in the workings of the free market. In my book, renegotiating labor contracts qualifies as meddling.

Some of the most vocal critics of a Detroit bailout — Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), for example — happen to have foreign-owned auto plants in their home states. This has led to accusations that they are deliberately trying to sabotage the Big Three to help foreign automakers, but I think it’s more likely that they’re just being doctrinaire and ultimately self-defeating.”

Emphasis mine.

I suppose that viewpoint is expected from the left-leaning Robinson, but I was surprised that someone on the right shares his view, someone who has a Midas-like knack for being wrong on just about everything:

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Posted in: Busts & Bailouts • Our Congressional Representatives • Strategy | Post a Comment »

ALIGNMENT & ALLIANCES, PART 1
December 3rd, 2008, 7:55 am by Dan Lehr

A concise & fantastic piece from Richard Posner dissects not only the recent splintering of the Republican party, but also what led liberals astray during the Reagan era; he offers excellent advice for breaking the chains of dogma:

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Posted in: Strategy • The Democrats • The GOP | Post a Comment »

HOW ‘COMMUNITY ORGANIZING’ LEADS TO VICTORY AGAINST TERRORISM
December 2nd, 2008, 8:19 am by Dan Lehr

This is part of why I was so perplexed when Sarah Palin mocked ‘community organizing’ in her convention speech last September; does she not realize how it’s leading us down the path to victory around the world?

David Brooks elaborates:

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Posted in: Foreign Policy • Iraq • Strategy • Terrorism | Post a Comment »

THE ‘OTHER’ PROBLEM
December 1st, 2008, 8:56 am by Dan Lehr

Could Neal Gabler have just hit the nail on the head when it comes to the reason the GOP had such a crushing defeat this year? I do believe so. He charts a different course in the rise of conservative success not with Barry Goldwater, but with Joe McCarthy:

“Reagan’s sunny disposition and his willingness to compromise masked the McCarthyite elements of his appeal, but Reaganism as an electoral device was unique to Reagan and essentially died with the end of his presidency. McCarthyism, on the other hand, which could be deployed by anyone, thrived. McCarthyism was how Republicans won. George H.W. Bush used it to get himself elected, terrifying voters with Willie Horton. And his son, under the tutelage of strategist Karl Rove, not only got himself reelected by convincing voters that John Kerry was a coward and a liar and would hand the nation over to terrorists, which was pure McCarthyism, he governed by rousing McCarthyite resentments among his base.

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Posted in: Strategy • The GOP | Post a Comment »

PARTY WARS: ARE ANTI-ABORTIONISTS THE PROBLEM?
November 25th, 2008, 12:58 pm by Dan Lehr

The latest installment of our listening in to the discussions among conservatives about the future of the conservative movement, after the jump.

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Posted in: Sarah Palin • Strategy • The GOP | Post a Comment »

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN KEEPING YOUR CAR IN THE GARAGE & HITTING THE ROAD
November 21st, 2008, 2:45 pm by Dan Lehr

Ross Douthat gets it exactly right:

“This problem is not, repeat not, a matter of conservatives needing to abandon their core convictions in order to win elections, as right-of-center reformers are often accused of doing. Rather, Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in: Strategy • The GOP | Post a Comment »

BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD WITH KARL ROVE
November 17th, 2008, 5:19 pm by Dan Lehr

From Newsweek:

1. Avoid mindless opposition. We should support President Obama when he is right (Afghanistan), persuade him when his mind appears open (trade) and oppose him when he is wrong (taxes). It is the Republican Party’s job to hold him accountable on the merits only.

4.Republicans must regain ground among critical voting groups. Voters ages 18–29 voted Democratic by a 2-to-1 margin. A market-oriented “green” agenda that’s true to our principles would help win them back. Hispanics dropped from 44 percent Republican in 2004 to 31 percent in 2008. The GOP won’t be a majority party if it cedes the young or Hispanics to Democrats. Republicans must find a way to support secure borders, a guest-worker program and comprehensive immigration reform that strengthens citizenship, grows our economy and keeps America a welcoming nation. An anti-Hispanic attitude is suicidal. As the party of Lincoln, Republicans have a moral obligation to make our case to Hispanics, blacks and Asian-Americans who share our values. Whether we see gains in 2010 depends on it.

& probably what I think is the most important:

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Posted in: 2012 • Strategy • The GOP • The New Media | Post a Comment »

A WARM PIECE OF ADVICE FOR A LONG WINTER
November 14th, 2008, 4:40 pm by Dan Lehr

[above: Snakeranch, Missouri, January, 1978. photograph by my father.]

Intriguing idea from Jesse Walker:

“Expel your base or retreat into an echo chamber: If those choices seem dispiriting, Republicans can take heart. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in: Strategy • The GOP | Post a Comment »

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