Times They Are A Changin'
15/09/10 12:09
To quote the great Bob Dylan:
Come senators, congressmen
Please heed the call
Don't stand in the doorway
Don't block up the hall
For he that gets hurt
Will be he who has stalled
There's a battle outside ragin'.
It'll soon shake your windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'.
Last night's primary election results came as a shock to many. Like Lisa Murkowski in Alaska, Sue Lowden in Nevada and Bob Bennett in Utah, Mike Castle was widely expected to win the Republican primary in Delaware. However, Delaware voters, like Alaska, Nevada and Utah voters, turned conventional wisdom on its head. Christine O'Donnell defeated RINO Mike Castle in a huge upset.
You would think that after seeing the primary results in state after state after state, the pundits, strategists and the GOP establishment would get the message. The Republican electorate wants CONSERVATIVE candidates. This message was sent in Florida, Utah, Nevada, Delaware, Colorado, Alaska, Kentucky, and potentially in New Hampshire, yet the NRSC still doesn't get it. Karl Rove was on Sean Hannity's show last night talking about the O'Donnell victory and how it diminished the Republican's chances of winning the Senate in November. An unidentified, high-ranking GOP staffer is quoted in the Daily Caller bashing Jim DeMint and his Senate Conservatives Fund for derailing the Republicans attempt to win a majority.
Even in my home state of Alabama, conservative voters are rejecting the status quo. Dr. Robert Bentley beat out Bradley Byrne and Tim James, both favored heavily by the Republican establishment, to win the GOP gubernatorial primary.
I, however, don't think anyone should really be surprised by this election cycle. Most of the "establishment candidates" who are being defeated are squishy moderate conservatives--the same kind that we've had in Washington who got us into the mess this country is in by spending like drunken sailors. Polls show that all Americans are overwhelmingly worried about the national debt and want more fiscal responsibility. Why would they support the very same people who have failed to give them that year after year?
Whatever their reasons are, the message is clear, "We want conservative candidates." There is a definite sense of revolution in the air. People are tired of being told they have to vote for the moderate because he/she is "more electable", tired of voting for the lesser of two evils. They want solid conservative candidates that believe in limited government and fiscal responsiblity. They want candidates that represent their values and ideology. They've bought into the idea of pragmatism for years now, and look where it has gotten them. I think voters overwhelming recognize that if you keep putting the same people (or same type people) in office, you're going to get the same result.
I don't know what's going to happen come November, but I do think that a lot of the talking heads will be surprised. Since the election of Obama, this country has swung far to the left, and people are unhappy with the results. The pendelum is due for a significant swing to the right. Fortunately, with the rise of the tea party movement, people are starting to realize that simply putting a Republican in office is not enough. True movement conservatism is making a comeback, and it's a real threat to the entrenched GOP establishment. Things may get ugly before they get better, but one thing is clear, the times they are a changin'.
Come senators, congressmen
Please heed the call
Don't stand in the doorway
Don't block up the hall
For he that gets hurt
Will be he who has stalled
There's a battle outside ragin'.
It'll soon shake your windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'.
Last night's primary election results came as a shock to many. Like Lisa Murkowski in Alaska, Sue Lowden in Nevada and Bob Bennett in Utah, Mike Castle was widely expected to win the Republican primary in Delaware. However, Delaware voters, like Alaska, Nevada and Utah voters, turned conventional wisdom on its head. Christine O'Donnell defeated RINO Mike Castle in a huge upset.
You would think that after seeing the primary results in state after state after state, the pundits, strategists and the GOP establishment would get the message. The Republican electorate wants CONSERVATIVE candidates. This message was sent in Florida, Utah, Nevada, Delaware, Colorado, Alaska, Kentucky, and potentially in New Hampshire, yet the NRSC still doesn't get it. Karl Rove was on Sean Hannity's show last night talking about the O'Donnell victory and how it diminished the Republican's chances of winning the Senate in November. An unidentified, high-ranking GOP staffer is quoted in the Daily Caller bashing Jim DeMint and his Senate Conservatives Fund for derailing the Republicans attempt to win a majority.
Even in my home state of Alabama, conservative voters are rejecting the status quo. Dr. Robert Bentley beat out Bradley Byrne and Tim James, both favored heavily by the Republican establishment, to win the GOP gubernatorial primary.
I, however, don't think anyone should really be surprised by this election cycle. Most of the "establishment candidates" who are being defeated are squishy moderate conservatives--the same kind that we've had in Washington who got us into the mess this country is in by spending like drunken sailors. Polls show that all Americans are overwhelmingly worried about the national debt and want more fiscal responsibility. Why would they support the very same people who have failed to give them that year after year?
Whatever their reasons are, the message is clear, "We want conservative candidates." There is a definite sense of revolution in the air. People are tired of being told they have to vote for the moderate because he/she is "more electable", tired of voting for the lesser of two evils. They want solid conservative candidates that believe in limited government and fiscal responsiblity. They want candidates that represent their values and ideology. They've bought into the idea of pragmatism for years now, and look where it has gotten them. I think voters overwhelming recognize that if you keep putting the same people (or same type people) in office, you're going to get the same result.
I don't know what's going to happen come November, but I do think that a lot of the talking heads will be surprised. Since the election of Obama, this country has swung far to the left, and people are unhappy with the results. The pendelum is due for a significant swing to the right. Fortunately, with the rise of the tea party movement, people are starting to realize that simply putting a Republican in office is not enough. True movement conservatism is making a comeback, and it's a real threat to the entrenched GOP establishment. Things may get ugly before they get better, but one thing is clear, the times they are a changin'.
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