PUNCHLINES

I'm absolutely determined to stop myself before I engage in a self-inflicted high-tech lynching."

-- "Arlen Specter" self-censors in the "news" story Dazed and Confused, Arlen Specter Filibusters Himself.

The Satirical Political Report



TRENCH WARFARE
BEYOND THE BELTWAY
Page last updated: 4:32 p.m., May 8, 2009
$97B supplemental bill  |   57% approval for Gov. Strickland  |   241 Gitmo detainees

8 a.m. ET: Six months after Republicans lost control of the White House and slipped further out of power on the Hill, most coverage of the party portrays it as lost in the wilderness, riven by internal conflict and searching in vain for a winning message. In the past week alone, we've read about Sarah Palin vs. Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee vs. Eric Cantor, social vs. economic conservatives, Meghan McCain vs. Bristol Palin, and so on.

Implicit in much of the coverage is the need for Republicans to find their perfect leader, the man or woman to lead them out of the wilderness. But who says the minority party can or should have one person in charge? Who was "the leader" for Democrats in 2006? The party had multiple figures jockeying for power -- Howard Dean and congressional leaders fought regularly -- and yet they still won that cycle. Newt Gingrich played a vital role for Republicans in 1994 but he was by no means the only leader of the effort, and he was a constant combatant in intraparty battles too.

Republicans are said constantly to be looking for "the next Ronald Reagan." But even his success was dependent on the circumstances being just right -- a weak Jimmy Carter, a country feeling "malaise." Reagan was the perfect marriage of man, message and moment. The same could be said of Barack Obama in 2008. Maybe the GOP will find a similar winning formula in 2012, but it doesn't neccesarily have to. The party can inch its way back to power, starting with a strong showing in next year's elections, even if it doesn't find a single leader or message behind which everyone falls in line.

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STAFF PICKS
WHAT STAFF WRITER ALEC MACGILLIS
IS READING TODAY »
More Sotomayor The New Republic | On the New Republic's Web site, Jeffrey Rosen responds to the firestorm of reaction to his piece quoting anonymous sources arguing against Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court justice.
Who Defaults? The Bellows | On his blog, Ryan Avent looks at who's really being hit hardest by foreclosures, and whether the switch to higher adjustable mortgage rates will be truly disastrous.
Sooner Rather Than Later Washington Monthly - Political Animal | Steve Benen takes on President Obama's distinct delay in addressing "don't ask, don't tell," with a link to Rachel Maddow's interview last night with a West Point grad who got kicked out of the Army.
Day Is Done National Review - The Corner | At The National Review's Corner, William Bennett chimes in with his thoughts on Jack Kemp.
The Fed and the IMF Agree New Yorker | At the New Yorker blog, James Surowiecki offers his review of the bank stress tests.
WHAT'D THEY SAY?

No I don't. I think it would be a mistake for us to moderate."

-- Dick Cheney when asked if he thinks the Republican party needs to move to the center.

The Hill


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