Have We Really Fallen This Far? Since the 2012 election, it seems a week cannot go by without some Republican leader coming forth with a new plan to “reinvent” the party.  Much in the same tone, we just as regularly see a Democrat decrying the downfall of the Republican Party.  I think what I see is this: Faced with a brutal self-examination following their loss to Obama and their failure to take control of the Senate (both instances where they had, at worst, decent prospects of success), the Republican party was faced with two choices.  One was to reshape itself in order to better appeal to the voters that many see as essential to any electoral victory; Hispanic, black, and female voters.  The other choice was to reopen the question on exactly what the party stands for; an honest and wide-ranging debate on the real principles that underpin the party.  Unfortunately, the Republican Party has apparently chosen the former; now desperately seeking ways to make it more attractive to the right demographic and trying to outbid the Democrats in the giveaway bonanza game called legislating. 

To its credit, the Democratic Party has always been rather shameless about its approach to elections.  Its simple rule is to win at all costs and it has always responded with a wink and a nod to anyone who comes in proximity of inquiring about this method.  If ever this practice was put to the test, it was in November of 2012.  The Republicans incessantly debated through the primaries the lunacy of Obamanomics.  Mitt Romney held forth that any reasonable, pragmatic person should recognize that his approach to executive administration was far more professional than that of Obama.  Alas, the results simply bore out the suspicions of many that the Republicans were bringing a knife to a gunfight.  Now, after decades of labeling the Democrats as shameless, the Republicans have thrown shame to the wind and themselves enthusiastically into the bidding war.

Oh, for the lack of a statesman.  Are there no individuals of either party who are willing to decide the merit of pending legislation based on merit and not on the size and source of campaign donations?  Can’t we have candidates who speak the speech to every crowd they address, without changing their speech patterns and without shameless pandering?  Why can’t we somehow find a media outlet that seeks to evaluate and present these candidates on their positions and principles rather than their ability to read teleprompters and wear tailored suits?

It is hard to see how any third party candidate could win a major election in our political system; the deck is simply too stacked against it.  However, with the Democrats and Republicans falling over each other to please each and every voter (on an individual and differing basis…let’s not be bothered with hypocrisy), the time would certainly seem ripe for that right person who can stand up for what they believe, relay that conviction to the voter, and manage to somehow strike the right tone for the moderates of each party to find some success in our political arena.  Is it time for a statesman (stateswoman) to come sweeping in out of left (or right) field?