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Streetcar Line
New, McGood Strategery for Conservatives
How to legislate and communicate for the imminent battles.
(Page 2 of 2)
For years, they have been paying for the special-education needs of that child via a “Flexible Spending Account.” Obamacare now limits that exemption to $2,500, thousands below what the McGoods have been using. So not only do the McGoods have extra costs now in order to pay for their child’s education, but (if Obama succeeds in raising taxes on couples making over $250,000 rather than over $450,000) they would have less time to meet the child’s need because they can’t afford the part-time clerk. (Meanwhile, the clerk, a young woman trying to put herself through classes at the University of Phoenix — another institution that has had to retrench due to Obama policies — would be out of a desperately needed job.) ….
Okay, you get the picture. Surely in all the world of Republican PR experts there exists somebody with the skill to package stories like these in ways that finally cut through the fog of rhetoric and impress the public that Obama’s proposals hurt ordinary Americans. The point is not to get lost in the details, but to put human faces front and center on the conservative side of the debate.
Those human faces, and real human needs, ought to be in the forefront of conservative politics from now on. Conservatives must demonstrate the true compassion of the free market, so that in regaining “compassion” for conservatism they need not provide a government program to make that compassion real.
With true human compassion, not government’s ersatz variety, foremost in our minds, we now are barely halfway into the new set of strategies, tactics, and messages that are needed (including, to repeat, a half-hour TV buy) for the next three imminent budget fights and beyond. More on those in the next column right here in this space, later this week.
About the Author
Quin Hillyer is a senior editor of The American Spectator and a senior fellow at the Center for Individual Freedom. Follow him on Twitter @QuinHillyer.
Letter to the Editor View all comments (23) | Leave a comment
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Aristocat| 1.15.13 @ 6:26AM
1) House vote (again) to repeal Obamacare. Follow up by cutting off funding for it.
2) Vote to forbid Obama from issuing executive orders on gun control.
3) Vote to forbid Obama from raising the debt limit without congressional approval.
4) Pass a balanced budget amendment.
5) Pass a Republican budget and force the Senate to pass a budget for the first time in three years.
That's a start.
Maxwell| 1.15.13 @ 8:33AM
Aristocat, I'd vote for that however, to do that would require a set of......stones. Something along the lines of Tray Gowdy & maybe Cruz of Texas. Notice no one is from the liberal North East? That is why this Yankee will have to relocate, South.
Cobalt| 1.15.13 @ 8:59AM
"NY Times: Obama Plans 19 Executive Orders on Gun Control"
http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfro...../id/471370
Ed Meese said Obama could be impeached over this. Right, when cows fly.
Appleby| 1.15.13 @ 7:09AM
Stop worrying so much about whether people like them, and get on with the business at hand. It is not necessary to be liked. It is necessary when the Last Trumpet sounds, to be found doing the work for which you were hired.
Alan| 1.15.13 @ 8:02AM
Most Repubs and all of the marxist/socialists have one thing in common, the hatred of conservatives.
The left needs to keep some repubs around to blame things on, and that same group of repubs is more than happy to have careers as useful idiots to be blamed for everything and stand there and take it.
SCMike| 1.15.13 @ 7:30AM
So the president wants an increase in the debt limit but does not want to bargain. Unfortunately, his party does not control the House, the party controlling the House has not been shy about what it wants in return for increasing the debt ceiling: a path to lower deficits. They would also like to return to the constitutional path of having an annual budget passed by both legislative bodies that comprise the Congress and signed by the president. Outrageous demands, no?
No. For the past three years the current administration has incurred annual deficits in excess of $1T per year. How about the House passing a Ryanesque FY14 budget that includes a debt-ceiling increase congruent with that budget? The budget might also address the remainder of FY13 that’s not already been passed into law by a continuing resolution or other irregular provision. The House would end up with an estimate of the deficit for the remainder of FY13 along with the estimated deficit for the FY14 to arrive at a total budget deficit by the end of FY 14. That total estimated budget deficit over the rest of FY13 and the Ryanesque FY14 budget would be the amount by which the debt ceiling should be increased.
JimH| 1.15.13 @ 8:01AM
All are good ideas. When you do not have the strength for direct confrontation use guerilla tactics and subject your opponent to a death of a thousand cuts. Now that we know what is in the bill, make them defend each bit individually. The trick with this is to be able to get these measures past Reid and on to the Senate floor. The tax reform measures will also require the GOP establishment to abandon its ‘me too’ support of Crony Corporate tax policies. They need to show that they are pro market, not pro business.
KennesawJack| 1.15.13 @ 8:01AM
Quin, all good and valid ideas. Problem is, in order for this to happen one must assume the Republicans in Congress have the political courage to act, a dangerous assumption indeed.
Von Mises Jr| 1.15.13 @ 8:02AM
The problem Quinn is that you don't get the picture. The GOP Establishment is in on the Sting. They cut a "Fiscal Cliff" deal that funded all these things without even being challenged in public or making an issue of the tax breaks for GE, green energy and farm subsidies. http://www.aim.org/video/pat-c.....orruption/
Ben "Foster Brooks" Bernanke expanded the M2 from $3T to $9T in 5 years and QE3 & QE4 pumps $85B per month into monetizing the debt. Fannie and Freddie owe the taxpayers about $200B and may need $300B in 2013. Real U6 unemployment is about 15% and companies are shedding jobs.
And you want the liberal right wing of the Democrat Party to stand up to the socialist left wing of the Democrat Party?
I hope some readers’ wake the hell up for their own good since thinking like this leads to collapse. All men for themselves.
Russel| 1.15.13 @ 9:16AM
We've reached the tipping point Von . Where all in congress , whatever their leanings , will show their true colors . Today we read a new member from Texas has promised impeachment if the wanna-be dictator moves to further disregard the Constitution . Nothing else matters at this point . This move should have been made in his third year . NOTHING ELSE MATTERS now . It's time to remove the little phony troublemaker before he ruins this country . I'm up to here with " how to get around him " or some such BS . Strategy on how to get rid of him is all that matters .
Von Mises Jr| 1.15.13 @ 11:01AM
Think of your family and friends first, and pray often. It is going to get ugly before it can get better.
Cuba is coming back from communism with double the GDP of the US while they privatize government functions and have large reductions in government labor force.
I suspect the good people of Texas such as my friend Tommy Frisco and others will stand tall until we get there with the reserves. Many of my friends are moving or have moved to SC where I would be proud as hell to have Nikki Haley as my Governor.
Russel| 1.15.13 @ 2:07PM
Here in Wyo . , everyone owns weapons and have little patience now with what the little Marxist twerp and his little dog are trying to do to the right to keep and bear arms . They may have snuck socilalized medicine under the wire , but this is a huge red flag . We won't have the patience to wait like Cuba did . They want war , they'll get it .
Abdullah| 1.15.13 @ 3:43PM
Von, my old buddy, E-7, stationed in Germany, sent me a message - his unit has been approached last week by some Pentagon buggers, asking if they would like to relocate in-state and be ready to go door-to-door confiscating firearms. I trust him, but would like to hear if anybody else got the message.
sickofit5| 1.15.13 @ 10:02AM
"Every effort should be made to set a different agenda than the deliberate inculcation of crises pushed by Obama; every opportunity should be taken to put Obama on the defense, on issues not of his own choosing." I read this and began bleeding profusely from every orafice. Quin baby, it's been five years and they still haven't figured it out. Also, I'm not sure if you mean "real" conservatives or Republicans. Real conservatives are not running things. THE republicans are idiots. I believe they really don't want to win. You say the obvious, which has been said by most of us in fly over country for the last four years.
Pecos Pete| 1.15.13 @ 10:25AM
Quin: Good article. Thank you. Let's hope there are enough people in Congress to use some, or all, of what you have recommended.
ansonheath| 1.15.13 @ 12:55PM
Quin, you are asking the GOP to do something that their leadership doesn't even recognize as a basic necessity, much less how to do it. They have proven time and time again - it's not even a second language to them - it simply doesn't compute!
Sadly, the GOP will (or is already destroyed) destroy itself and the country, before a new generation will emerge to get the job done, probably long after we're gone.
Joe D.| 1.15.13 @ 1:15PM
Quinn, you are right on target. And we should continue to do this with the true every time he tries to waist money or increase our taxes. Every time he waist our money on trips and Golf should be made a point as well.
Ronsch| 1.15.13 @ 1:33PM
Quin,
It would work except for a couple of things that the Low-Information/No-Information voters hear. To wit:
Conservatives: Any facts presented become "blah, blah, blah" after the first sentence.
NerObama: "free phones, free stuff, white old guys are rich and evil, make them pay their fair share."
Now, which do you think the chuckleheads we would need to vote in the 2014 mid-terms to set things right are they going to hear?
Simon Templar| 1.15.13 @ 2:22PM
We do not have to convince them all, just some of them and the idea is to create doubt and put the blame where it belongs when the proverbial crap does hit the fan. Conservatives have to be seen as warning the public and concerned about their welfare. Your points are well taken, however. There are millions of Americans who are not just stupid low-information but actually have not heard anything but media propaganda and cover up and do watch the news and tune in. These people should be our concern as well as the conservative voting block not motivated enough to vote and decided to sit on its ass and did not come out to vote. They should include Pat Cadelle and others in these TV presentations, this would force the media to not ignore the issues facing the nation.
Simon Templar| 1.15.13 @ 2:12PM
They should buy 1 hour every 3 months and put together the conservative response and a documentary like presentation exposing his lies, his waste, the consequences of his actions, and his true agenda with verifiable pictorial examples of clips of him admitting it in his own words and proof of these consequences. Perhaps these low information voters might just get some more useful information.
mike 3/505| 1.15.13 @ 3:30PM
Mr H,
Whenever you use language like "offset," or "pay for tax cut," you buy into the liberal meme that revenue is controlled only by tax rates. That's using the left's language. We need to force the language our way. Rest of the article is good.
Regards,
Mike
cicero| 1.15.13 @ 4:23PM
Quinn - your article 5. Do you really think anything was "snuck" in to that bill? Are the Republicans in congress so afraid of losing their positions that they will sign theeir names to bills without having at least their staffs read the contents? Simple answer - while they may do anything to keep their seats, they know what they are signing.
If in fact, they did not know of alll the pork they signed for, it is time to throw all of them out, and bring in another political party. If this nation is to remain free, it has to remain economically strong. This is not the way to do that. If the Repubs want to remain the party representing the conservative portion of this country, they will have to stop the spending, refuse funding for what they know is harrmful legislation (remember what the Dems did to lose the Viet Nam peace - they defunded it), and tell the American people the truth.
CHAUSSURES FEMME AIR MAX LTD | 1.16.13 @ 4:02AM
brinksmanship; 5) be creative/entrepreneurial in promoting conservative principles; and 6) of crucial importance, become adept at using real-life examples, rather than broad generalities, to explain the deleterious effects of leftist policies and the beneficial effects of conservative ones.