Squish! You might remember that sound. That was the sound of the vanquished Republican Party under the feet of Democrats in last year’s general election. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney—a formidable, moderate candidate who ran on the far right to win his party’s nomination lost to President Barack Obama, failing to win nearly all swing states. This, too, was the case in Congress. Democrats won nearly every important seat in the Senate, like that of Sen. Claire McCaskill in Missouri, where her opponent famously asserted women’s uteruses have magical powers to undo the pregnancies of rape. They even reigned in Indiana, a state Gov. Romney won, after Sen. Joe Donnelly’s opponent made similar comments about these pregnancies being “a gift from God.” President Obama and his Democratic allies in Congress trounced their Republican opposition despite the intense winds of the economic downturn blowing against them.
After sulking around and licking their wounds, Republicans dusted off their Italian-made suits, reshaped their finely designed combovers and did some much needed soul-searching and self-reflection. Looking into their political woes, Republicans discovered something quite strange—political minorities don’t vote for them.
Indeed, voting blocs like Hispanics, women and the LGBT community don’t go to the polls for the Republican Party. Upon this realization, Chairman Reince Priebus issued several prescriptions for an ailing Republican Party, each promoting a recurring theme: It’s time for the GOP to reform its extreme social ideology and rein in its members who refuse. Among other things, Priebus called for his colleagues in government to support comprehensive immigration reform, welcome the gay community and put an end to their “biologically stupid” comments to mitigate their vote share problems. To push the party in that direction, he also called for a more controlled primary process so that leaders don’t need to run so far right to win the votes of primary goers. Yet after a year of legislating and an election cycle later, GOP leaders aren’t drinking the slightly less distasteful Kool-Aid. Instead, Republicans remain the gauche party they’re known to be.
Their first misstep: immigration reform. After much compromise, the Senate passed a comprehensive immigration reform bill this summer: a bill that’s protective of our borders and holds illegal immigrants accountable while giving those who want to be Americans a pathway to get there. The bill, which could be an overnight political remedy for Republicans, sits at the desk of Speaker John Boehner, who has promised the House won’t vote on it this year.
Their second misstep: women. House Republicans passed a 20-week abortion ban this summer, and Sen. Lindsey Graham has finally taken up the bill in the Senate. Further, Republican state legislatures, like that of Wisconsin, have pushed through other restrictive abortion bills, worsening the pervasive gender gap Democrats own.
The third: the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. While Democrats in the Senate, with the help of several moderate Republicans, passed a bill making it illegal to discriminate against LGBT employees, it remains a nonstarter in the House, just like immigration reform. While their comments to the community are less intolerant than they were 10 years ago, their actions toward LGBT people remain as archaic as ever.
Despite the party’s unwise maneuvers, moderate Republicans claim to have found a beacon of hope—a light of unearthly guidance—in Gov. Chris Christie. A maverick, charismatic figure, Christie is a political miracle: a centrist GOP governor of a blue state who just won a landslide re-election against his Democratic opponent. But while certain Republicans believe Christie can be the party healer, their next presidential nominee, and even the next occupant of the White House, their hopes may be tarnished over the next year. Much to their dismay, Christie is set to become the next chairman of the Republican Governors’ Association where his primary responsibility will be to campaign for his GOP counterparts across the nation. Doing so will force him further to the right when he has to defend the policies of figures like Gov. Rick Scott and our own Gov. Scott Walker. His association with these policies—like controversial voter ID laws and failure to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act—could forever taint his centrism in the eyes of the electorate and ruin his presidential ambitions—just like Gov. Romney. Alas, the Republican identity crisis continues while a new party fails to emerge. With looming budget fights and midterm elections, it’s clear 2014 will be a crucial year for Republicans to promote their brand for 2016. Will they promote party discipline? Will the House and their extreme counterparts move toward the center? It all comes down to one question: Do they want to win? Ultimately, that’s what the GOP has yet to answer correctly.
Do you think the Republican Party can survive without changing their traditional viewpoints? Is Sean accurate with his description of the GOP? Please send all feedback to opinion@dailycardinal.com.
