Where do Illinois Republicans go from here?
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Originally posted: November 6, 2008
Where do Illinois Republicans go from here?
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Long-time blogger and cool head Jake Parillo has some opening thoughts: In order to be successful in 2010, we need reform in how we run the party, reform how the party organizes, and reform in the issues we bring to voters….Here’s what needs to be done. And done now.
1. Build the movement online – Let’s organize online around issues all Illinois voters care about. 2. Recruit the best candidates – We need candidates who can connect with suburban, city, and downstate voters. 3. Advocate on the issues people care about – Getting out of a primary should not be our top concern. 4. Refrain from being a rigid party – Making room for voters of all shapes and sizes is the path to victory in Illinois. I’d add only that they need to tamp down the crazy and the angry. The success of the Obama campaign drove many area conservatives and Republicans into an unbecoming place rhetorically – obsessing wildly over trifles and hurling insults when the actual issues weren’t working for them. Why talk about tax policy, health-care reform, energy and national security when you can stamp your feet and demand Obama’s college transcripts? Or try to link him to someone else’s violent protests in the Vietnam era? Or speculate about who said what at a dinner party five years ago? Now’s the time they should try to learn from Obama — the kind of campaign he ran, the way he appealed to moderates and independents — and stop hating him. |
admin @ November 6, 2008