I think the Republican Party is in worse shape they we realize.

[Old and In the Way]

Eric Cantor pretty much folded like a cheap suit today on Morning Joe. After a high visibility rebranding effort this weekend, focused on the need to "listen", Cantor refuted his own words and now has fallen in line with Limbaugh's pronouncement that listening ain't needed-teaching (telling?) is.

This Party's got 2 big problems, I think. First, we know that the Party agenda is becoming more extreme and there's a growing intolerance with moderates. Lots has been written about that and how this is shrinking the Party's membership. Recently, polling on political brand identification suggests the 'Pubs have lost almost 20% of their base since the election.

But equally problematic for Republicans is the quality of their caucus currently in Congress. The 2008/2009 Republican Congressional caucus was bred for a different governing philosophy altogether. They are really unsuited for the present political climate. Fast, creative, cooperative, and progressive ain't bred in their political DNA.

The modern federal leadership of the GOP was years in the making. The GOP has worked hard, for decades, recruiting and electing compromised candidates who were/are intellectually weak, incurious, dependent....but personally ambitious and willing to cast their vote based solely on Party agenda. A well developed bunch of spineless drones. They had 8 years of predictable and mindless rubberstamping the Bush-Cheney agenda. No oversight, no challenge to the law breaking or fiscal mess that was being created. All by design. It was simple - vote~walk the Party line and you have a job for life. Whatever self-serving deals you can make on the side is up to you.

Now that the criminals have vacated the Executive scene, the Congressional Pub's are left holding the bag: with no accomplishments - no principles - no plans - no clues. 2008 was just the start of their nightmare...

[NC_Nurse]

1. I agree. It's amazing how inept they are. Obviously, they never thought their

run would end, so they don't have any plan B. It's weird, frankly. I guess they bought into the "permanent Republican majority" line that Rove sold them.

[Kablooie]

23. They never have a plan B. That means they would be open to compromise, a GOP anathema.

[AndyA]

2. This makes sense to me.

This is why people like Limpballs, Palin, and Bachmann seem to be the focus of attention these days. They must really be the best the GOP can find. Sad, really, but they deserve the downfall. They worked hard to earn it.

[graywarrior]

3. I'd love to know where their 21% is split up

Mostly the south, but I'm sure there are other states. That is not much support if you spread that across the entire country.

[Mr. Ected]

6. 20% of it must be right here in North Georgia

I'm demonized for sporting an Obama/Biden bumper sticker on my car. These folks are beyond neanderthal.

[graywarrior]

7. I worked in GA for a few months and it was frightening. LA was worse tho

[byronius]

20. Brave. Important, though.

[ColbertWatcher]

9. I'm going to guess Utah factors in there. n/t

[FKA MNChimpH8R]

12. The stupid belt turns up in some part just about everywhere

I mean, look at Michele Bachmann (Batshit Crazy-My Home State). The core of the base may be in the heart of the old KKKonfederacy, but brainlessness knows no particular geographic boundaries. Intelligence/rationality/education boundaries, well, that's a different story.

[jillan]

15. Arizona is still pretty red.

[Andy823]

4. What I think is

If someone in the party had the guts to stand up to Limbaugh and tell him where to stick his opinions, they might have a chance and changing their party. That isn't going to happen, and that works well for the democrats. Rush and his "ego" are destroying the republican party along with idiots like Palin, Cantor, and the rest of the zombies who don't have a clue as to what they need to do!

[StatGirl]

17. I think that's what Jeb is trying to do

From his comments about moving past Reaganism, it looks as if he's positioning himself to run in 2012, and he hopes to attract the people who used to be called moderate Republicans, and push the wackos back out to the fringes where they belong.

Yes, the Bush brand is tarnished, so he has to be gambling -- or arranging -- that something will happen to cause people to turn against Obama by then. And after all, that approach worked for Clinton. When he started running, everyone assumed that GHWB was a shoo-in for re-election.

[Psychic Consortium]

22. You are correct. Rush is a major liability to the GOP.

As is Palin et al.

Anyone who can stand up to Rush will take
the leadership back. But they are severely damaged.
And very unlikely to beat Obama who is playing
a superb game of chess with them.

[Golden Raisin]

5. I agree they are in bad shape but

I'm not writing them off or sending floral tributes to the Funeral Parlour just yet. God forbid, if there's one big domestic terror attack, or some horrendous financial eruption/disruption they will suddenly attract a base again --- a fearful base, but a base.

[nichomachus]

10. But "attract" to whom?

As I note below, there is no leader, except Rush. To attract people, you need someone or some plan to attract them to. Rush is not an attractive person -- except to a constant 20 percent of Americans.

[nichomachus]

8. One of the problems is that they're leaderless

Normally, the most recent president -- if the party isn't in power -- is the nominal leader of the party.

So far, Bush has been to a baseball game, a hardware store, and Canada. He is -- just like in Vietnam -- AWOL. He is a deserter. Of course, the fact that he is disgraced doesn't help.

The next logical choice would be Cheney, but he's despised by just about everyone in the world.

The real power behind Bush was Turd Blossom, but he is a disgusting toad and there is no love lost between him and the party members he manhandled for eight years. They fear him, but that's about all.

So, it's created a power vacuum, and politics, like nature, abhors a vacuum. So, you have the weasel Steele, who hasn't got the balls to lead. You've got Sarah Palin who disgraces herself at every turn. Mitt Romney is just a waste of hairspray and no one really listens to him.

The only one with the name and the chutzpah to lead is Rush -- and, like it or not, they're stuck with him. When the idiot Joe the Plunger can get headlines and GOP members of Congress can't, you know the party is in huge trouble.

The OP is absolutely right. The GOP did exactly what Ratzinger and Wotyla did to the Catholic Church. They spent three decades packing the College of Cardinals and the bishop posts with slavish ideologues who don't have two brain cells to run together. This is why the Catholic Church is sinking into well-deserved irrelevance. Delay, Rove, et al did the same thing to the GOP. There is no one in Congress who can stand up to Rush.

[cascadiance]

13. You know, perhaps if Rush is so full of himself these days, challenge him to run for office!

Challenge him to prove he's such a voice for a "majority" of Americans! Put his money where his mouth is. If he backs off, we call him chickensh*t! If he runs and loses, we'll have proven our point about this loser! And if he runs and wins in some right wing state, then at least we've taken him off the airwaves, and he'll be some marginalized congress critter.

And also, if he's forced into public debates when he runs, he'll have a lot more people challenging his crap than he does on his show!

[guitar man]

16. He'll never run

The mere thought of the skeletons that would be shaken out of his closets would probably preclude him ever running. What we know about is disgusting enough, I can't imagine what that slimeball still has hidden away...

[EFerrari]

11. If we're prosecuting BushCo around midterm time, yeah, they are screwn.

[jillan]

14. And they just don't get it. All they want to do is cater to their base and they think

that's going to save them. Cutting taxes, war on Christmas - same stupid bs.

As a democrat, I'm thrilled.
But as someone who believes in the give and take between both parties, it's almost sad.

[Wednesdays]

18. Never underestimate the power of dirty tricks

And the Repukes have always been masters of that craft.

Still, I like your message, and revel in their (seemingly) disarrayed state.

[malaise]

19. Yep

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5608592

[Vidar]

21. This should be a cause for rejoicing except that our pols are paid off by the same corporations.

[Kablooie]

24. Soon the public may realize that only a Dem can get things done for their district.