Notes From D. R.

Dishonor

The far-left disrupts a Veterans' Day Parade in Boston. I can't think of anything more disgusting. More from the Boston Globe and Boston Herald.

UPDATE: More from the Boston Herald.

Weekend Box Office: Hollywood Buzz

Bee Movie tops the charts. Also, Lions for Lambs becomes the third straight Bush-bashing movie to fail at the box office. More from Power Line.

The Future

The Boston Globe on Massachusetts Republican Party Executive Director Robert Willington.

Striking Gold

Political strategist John Grenier, a key figure in Barry Goldwater's 1964 Presidential campaign, passes away at 77. More from the Birmingham News.

Huck Off

Are the media fascinated by Mike Huckabee, or what?

The Naked And The Dead

Controversial novelist Norman Mailer passes away at 84.

Third Way

Rich Lowry, Fred Barnes and Dean Barnett on the '08 election.

Only In Theory

Just because Joe Lieberman delivered a good speech criticizing the far-left does not mean that the GOP should consider making him a Vice-Presidential candidate next year...

Chief In Command

Give the New York Times some credit: despite their usual loathing of George Bush, they actually ran a fairly positive story about his visits to wounded troops.

A New Leaf?

Boy, Hillary's campaign is getting off to a poor start, isn't it?

History Major

The George H. W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum reopens in Texas.

Executive Power

The Wall Street Journal interviews Mitt Romney.

Vanishing Point

Can the Republican Party survive a 2008 loss?

The ghosts of 1976 and 1992 haunt the GOP these days. Thirty-one years ago, Gerald Ford could not overcome Richard Nixon’s bitter legacy, and lost a close race to Jimmy Carter. Fifteen years ago, George H. W. Bush succumbed to voter anger brought on by a perceived economic collapse, and surrendered the White House to Bill Clinton.

It may take some time to rebuild the GOP brand if the party takes a fall next year. The Republicans have recovered from horrible losses before—Ronald Reagan brought the party back to life in 1980, and Newt Gingrich revived the party again fourteen years later—but we may well be into the 2010s before the party wins another Presidential election.

One of the problems facing the GOP today is that there seems to be no clear consensus as to what the party’s governing philosophy really is. It’s easy to define liberalism/progressivism, but today it’s much harder to define conservatism.

The GOP has to figure out a way for theory to match fact. In theory, conservatism means limited government, lower taxes, a strong national defense, respect for religious tradition, protection of the unborn, equal opportunity, the rule of law, and a commitment to protecting the Bill of Rights from being sabotaged by the government. If people believe that the party doesn’t really live up to these principles, they’ll naturally vote for the Democrats.

Constantly trying to invoke the memory of Ronald Reagan will only lead to diminishing returns. Reagan was a great President in part because he truly believed in conservatism; he was committed to the governing philosophy of the right, and acted accordingly. The GOP will decay if average voters perceive the party to be represented by phonies, those who speak a good conservative game but truly believe in nothing besides the acquisition and protection of power.

Progressives would love to believe that conservatism itself has been discredited. That’s not the case; the main themes of conservatism, when properly expressed, can still resonate with a majority of voters. However, those themes will not resonate if people suspect that the Republicans espousing those themes are flying under a false flag.

People respect commitment, even if it’s commitment to principles they may have ideological problems with. Did every last person who voted for Reagan agree with him? Of course not. However, they respected the fact that he dealt honestly and spoke plainly about what he believed. As much as Bush’s “compassionate conservative” slogan irked some folks on the right, it resonated with the American people because Bush sincerely believed in the power of conservative principles to remedy societal inequities.

It would be the height of irony if the GOP lost in ’08 for the same reason John Kerry lost in ’04: a perception that the party was fundamentally dishonest and not truly committed to the vision it claimed to believe in. Insincerity angers voters far more than corruption, far more than perceived incompetence, far more than even war.

Say what you will about Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, but they truly believe in the left-wing agenda. They may not be able to implement much of that agenda because they are, at bottom, not ready for prime-time players, but there is no dispute about their commitment to progressive principles. The Democrats may well hold on to the House and Senate in ’08 because that party, at the very least, makes clear its beliefs.

If the Democrats recapture the White House next year, it won’t be because of Iraq, Larry Craig, the gas prices, or the “Bush-Cheney legacy.”  It will be the logical consequence of the GOP obfuscating what it stands for, while the Democrats fully reveal their vision. It’s often been said that people will prefer “wrong and strong” to “weak and right.” The Democrats may be wrong on the economy, the judiciary and national security—but if the Republicans’ message is incoherent and opaque, the party will fall down in a political earthquake.

So Outrageous!

Racism on the Boston School Committee? Hmmm...

The General

Michael Mukasey has been confirmed. More from National Review.

Partisan Brawl

Karl Rove and Peggy Noonan on the Democrats.

St. Nick

Power Line on the leadership of French President Nicholas Sarkozy.

American History

Daniel Henninger on Clarence Thomas and the South.

A New World Order

Pat Robertson endorses Rudy Giuliani. More from the Washington Post, Rich Lowry, Daniel Flynn, Michael Reagan and the Weekly Standard.

The Unbearable Lightness Of Being

Thomas Sowell on the stupidity of certain pop-culture slogans.

Angels & Demons

Human Events on the sex scandal at Oprah Winfrey's South African school.

Sue Like It's 2007

Some of Prince's fans may begin to think of him as a royal pain in the behind after reading this story...

Rendition

Alan Dershowitz argues that, despite the GOP's unpopularity, the Republicans could still win the '08 election if the Democrats continue to come across as unwilling to use any means necessary to fight terrorism. 

Religious, Right?

A Republican Senator investigates conservative-leaning megachurches. Interesting... More from the Washington Post.

The Ultimate Non-Story

The Boston Globe thinks it's news that a conservative Republican administration opposes racial quotas? No wonder the paper's circulation is declining!

By The Wey

Conservative icon Paul Weyrich endorses Mitt Romney. More from the Boston Globe and the Weekly Standard.

In Theory

President Bush will nominate conservative Harvard Law School professor Mary Ann Glendon as the new US Ambassador to the Vatican. Please don't tell me the Democrats will play politics with this nomination, too. 

Family Affair

The Washington Post on the Bush family and the '08 election.

Off The Air

Will Don Imus be heard in Boston once again?

Hooray For Howie-wood

Boston talk-radio legend Howie Carr will apparently return to WRKO-AM. More from Dan Kennedy and Boston Magazine.

Bought And Paid For

Jed Babbin on the relationship between MoveOn.org and the New York Times.

Errant Nonsense

Enough, please, with the baseless notion that Rudy Giuliani would make the Republicans competitive in the Northeast if he became the GOP nominee. More from the Washington Post.