Part-Time Pundit

The Marriage Between Conservatives and Republicans is Over

During the past 6 years conservative and Republican have been used as interchangeable words. No more. The Republicans have abused the fact that conservatives have no one else to vote for as an excuse to abandon conservatism. They can no longer hide behind the specter of “8 years of Bill Clinton.” If Republicans wants our votes, they need to prove they’ll govern as conservatives, not as big government spendaholics.

Conservatives, for their part, can no longer take for granted the conservative credentials of someone just because there is an “(R)” after their name. If candidates and elected officeholders don’t deliver, then they need to be thrown out of office. If conservative voters will tolerate Republicans who support conservative policies 5% of the time, that is exactly what they’ll get.

The last election cycle shows that in at least some areas, Democrats can be impressed upon to be more conservative. The campaigns of Casey Jr., Ellsworth, Webb, and others, show that Democrats that are closer to the center are more likely to win. This shows, that if we keep the pressure up, we can move the political center of gravity to the right. Few people truly believe in a government-run life anymore.
We need to stop being a supporter of a party (or the opponent of a party) and start being the champions of ideas. We must demand that those who wish to have our vote are also champions of ideas. Those who can do nothing but spout attack ads must continue to be rejected. It’s not enough to be against Hillary, they must be “for something.”

Where possible, voters should seize the political initiative and put conservative referenda questions on the ballot. Even with a pathetic showing of the GOP this last season, conservatism won with referenda. This is where the future is, pushing policies around politicians. Where this is not possible, voters need to push for binding referenda.

Today marks the rebirth of the conservative movement. For too long it has been little more than Republican boosterism and this has fallen flat. It’s time to re-enter the battle of ideas where we have always had the upper-hand.

November 23rd, 2006 Posted by John Bambenek | Elections, Politics | 7 comments

Citizen Legislation: Returning Power to the People

Note: Originally written for America’s Victory

The Republican Party (with exceptions) has abandoned conservativism. Even beyond ideology, most politicians in Congress have embraced corruption and Beltway politics. This, more than anything else, was the reason that the GOP was delivered a stinging defeat in 2006. Many commentators have stated that the 2006 election was the demise of conservatism. This is hardly true.

Where conservatism succeeded was in ballot initiatives. Most notably, the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative which banned affirmative action was passed despite the opposition of almost every politician in Michigan. Gay marriage bans passed throughout the country. One of the main mechanisms that keeps California from being a runaway socialist Republic is the binding ballot initiative.

However, many states still do not have binding referenda. Illinois, for example, allows non-binding referenda complete with laws that even allow the entrenched elite to squash attempts to put questions on the ballot that run against the established groupthink. Binding referenda movements need to be established in every state to allow relatively easy ballot access for citizen-initiated referenda.

Where binding referenda exist already, conservatives need to engage in a full-court press to put conservative questions on the ballot and get them passed. For decades conservatives have complained about affirmative action and it wasn’t until citizens in Michigan got the job done until the policy changed. If it was up to the established elite, gay marriage would be a reality everywhere.

Some politicians may come along who take conservative values seriously and when they do they should be supported. Until then, it is time to practice politics without politicians. If we can’t have citizen legislators in office, we can at least practice citizen legislation with binding referenda.

November 23rd, 2006 Posted by John Bambenek | Elections, Politics | no comments