Am I the only Republican who happens to be upset with the National Republicans mantra of "taking" issues from the Democrats? This morning, I am minding my own business, reading USA Today, when, I about choke on my muffin when I read the following:
"The earned income tax credit is the nation's largest cash assistance program for the poor, providing an average of $1,600 to 21 million households in 2005." USA Today, "Family income up, but not pay", Aug.30, 2006.
After a kind gentleman performed the Heimlich on me, it comes to me. That is right, there was that big debate about giving tax credits (read free cash) to those who don't even pay taxes. We were taking an issue from the Democrats.
Is it just me, or if we keep taking issues from the Democrats, won't we become Democrats? Or at the least, as a good friend puts it, Rinocrats? We have done a piss-poor job of selling Republican values to the American people. The sad reality is that this election will not be referendum on Republican ideals V. Democrat ideals. It will be a mere referendum on Rinocrat V. Democrat ideals. It is no wonder that the American public: A. Sees no real difference between the two parties. B. Favors Dems over us in a generic ticket (50-38, Newsweek, 8/24-25) C. Are pissed off at the national party.
I was discussing this with a friend of mine who is running for Congress in Ohio. He agrees that the Republican party has done this to ourselves. Of course in Ohio, we have the good fortune of having a Governor who is at his core a real conservative! (Sarcasm mine.) Because of Taft's failed policies and the Assembly's rubber stamp, Ohio is on its way to electing a governor who can't spell leadership and has never seen a tax he didn't like.
I was not always this down on the '06 elections. We have been down before. However, we always pushed our agenda to the forefront and won on our values. In this cycle, it appears that we have succeeded in pushing the Democratic agenda and if we lose in the fall, it will have been us who took the fall for the agenda that we knew was going to fail. I would rather be partisan and live than Bi-partisan and die.
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Republicans need to stand up for our principles of low taxes and less spending, that's for sure!
If we forget that, we will lose the debate, because we can't outspend the Democrats.
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