There’s been a ton of talk lately about the state of the Grand Old Party of America. Is it still effective? Does it have strong leadership? Where is the next generation of Republicans? How long can it last in a nation with a media that is very left wing? I consider the two-party system a blessing, most of the time, so I’m certainly glad to debunk the fact that the Republican Party is dead or dying. Conservative talk shows, radio shows, and news channels are the most watched and listened to in America, so the public still has a strong interest in the GOP, I find the problem to be the Party’s leadership in a post-2008 America.
We had John McCain and, had he won the election, he would have remained leader of the Party. Personally, I still look to McCain as the party’s leader and the most level headed and moderate strong politician in the GOP. I still receive emails from his team about happenings in the Senate and I often find myself signing his petitions and listening to his ideas. However, there is no denying that the GOP needs to look for new leaders. McCain lost the election and will not run for the White House again, nor will he hold a position of higher power in Congress or in any sector of the Executive Branch. While he should definitely be kept as a bright light of the party, new leadership is necessary for the 2010 midterm elections and the 2012 Presidential Election.
Who is available to lead?
Well the majority of Republicans would look to 2012 Presidential hopefuls. Them being, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, and Sarah Palin. Now, I love Huckabee and he’s my 2012 hopeful. It’s ironic, though, I do feel he is strong and smart enough to lead the country very successfully, but I do not think he is cutthroat enough to lead the party, and I’m almost glad that he isn’t, it’s one of his best qualities. Romney, I am not as fond of. Nothing against his career, his policies, or anything, but he has fallen off the scope of politics and if he wants to be President he better reappear. Palin, I almost hope, is out of politics for good. I adored Sarah, felt she was a kind woman, smart ideas, good moral values, but she is simply not ready to be an Executive leader, neither President or Party Leader. One thing I do hope for her is that she either enters Congress in some sort as a strong Republican voice, or enters the media as a Republican talk show host in opposition to Ellen, The View, and Oprah which sway Liberal.
Other suggested leaders of the Party are more erratic. Rush Limbaugh is a voice, literally, that reaches millions of Americans daily. He might be the loudest voice in the party, but I don’t want him leading the party in fear that he will drive away Independent and Democratic voters with his fiercely Conservative Views, it is something I often admire, but other less-than-rightests might not. Sean Hannity and Bill O’Reilly are two other powerful Conservative voices that have similar control as Rush, but again I can’t see them taking the reins of the party. Other erratic choices include individuals like Meghan McCain, a very moderate republican and the daughter of Senator John McCain. She, and I’m very thankful for it, may yet become the voice of a young generation of Republicans, something the party has often has some trouble with.
One less mentioned name that I want to throw into the mix is Rudy Guilliani. I am a New Yorker, so I may be swayed, but Guilliani was an unbelievable mayor and was, before he flopped in campaigns, the frontrunner for the Republicans in the 2008 election. Rudy is a strong individual who still has time left to grow in Politics. He is not as far right as one could go, but he is strong in Republican value and, the most important value to me, Personal Responsibility. All well and good, but to become close to Party Leader we need to see Rudy take another position, my personal hope is that he’ll run for Governor of New York which would give him power and a way toward the 2012 election should he prove interested.
So, I suppose that the GOP is leaderless at the moment, actually I don’t want to say leaderless, but it has a struggle for leadership. The Party has a number of strong voices in politics, news, radio, and internet which can only be a good thing. It will be interesting to see which of these voices becomes most predominant and how they will work best together.
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