After election loss, GOP hones in on brand, message, appeal

[No Elephants]

After election loss, GOP hones in on brand, message, appeal

By NICOLE DEBEVEC, United Press International

<snip>

Unlike 2008, when John McCain of Arizona returned to the Senate and became the face and voice of the party after losing to President Obama, Mitt Romney has no other public office to use as a pulpit. He simply returns to private life -- although he recently was named to return to the Marriott International board of directors -- much criticized by those in his party as a flawed candidate who ran a flawed campaign.

While some blame the better organized Obama election machine and others lay criticism of the GOP standard-bearer, others have said the party's image -- particularly among Hispanics and women, who voted overwhelmingly for Obama -- is what needs retooling.

"Many Republicans are upset with the Romney campaign's approach to the 2012 election, believing that a winnable election was lost by a poor fall campaign," political commentator Steven Schier of Carleton College in Minnesota said. "The 2012 GOP presidential failure has prompted much reassessment within the party's ranks about how to avoid 2012's presidential mistakes in the future."

"You win and lose as a team," Republican Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, a potential 2016 presidential candidate, said in an interview with MSNBC. "We have to look at everything we do -- from logistics to turnout to technology to message to tone."

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2012/12/09/Politics-2012-After-election-loss-GOP-hones-in-on-brand-message-appeal/UPI-48631355045400/#ixzz2EdRyPUO5


I remember a lot of DU posts and a lot of talk, both in my personal circle and in media, in 2008 about how the Republican Party was toast. Then came the 2010 mid-terms.

[Enthusiast]

1. The Democratic Party could have made the Republicans burnt toast

in 2010.

But enthusiasm in the Democratic base was lagging in 2010. There were several reasons for this.

After the 2008 election many of us were hoping to see an investigation of Bush Administration malfeasance for both intentionally misleading intelligence leading up to the Iraq War and actual war crimes in the form of torture. We also expected the Bush tax cuts would end one way or another since they were set to expire naturally. And then there was the fraudulent, reckless activity on Wall Street that has gone entirely unpunished. Not to mention the lack of a public option in health care reform.

Many of us were deeply discouraged by what we saw as a betrayal by the Administration. This was enough to further depress the traditional low turnout in midterm elections. So many of us wanted that mythical pony. Or so we were told. That and we were retards for not wanting to continue the insane fucking Bush governance as if it was entirely reasonable.

Will we see a repeat of this in 2014? I would not be the least bit surprised. It will all depend on the actions of the Obama Administration, particularly in regard to "fiscal cliff" negotiations.

[No Elephants]

2. I agree with your analysis of reasons why turnout in 2010 was poor,

and then some.

The Obama administration's doubling down on the position of Bush in legal cases got to me, too, but I don't know how many Americans followed that closely.

In general, I would say never count your votes before they're hatched.