The future of the Republican Party
What do Republicans do now?
MY PRINT column this week looks at President Barack Obama's inaugural address. I suggest that Mr Obama's speech, in addition to making a case for government safety nets in a market economy, also offered a glimpse of his second term political strategy. The strategic side of the speech can be boiled down to an assertion and a bet. The president's assertion is that he leads a coalition, while Republicans are a tribe. His bet: that his coalition beats their tribe. You can agree or disagree with the president's partisan analysis (and it certainly makes some Republican leaders quite cross). But I argue that it does identify a real weakness in today's conservative movement.