The 2004 election was a disappointment for conservatives nationwide. It didn’t take long for President Barack Obama’s vision of America to become clear, and with the House and Senate under Democratic control, the freshman Senator-turned-President rammed though Obamacare.
On March 11, 2013, Rasmussenreports.com released the results of a recent poll on the Obama healthcare legislation. According to Rasmussen;
“Forty-five percent (45%) view it favorably, while 48% share an unfavorable opinion of it. This includes 18% with a Very Favorable view and 33% with a Very Unfavorable one.”
The poll’s results were similar to the polling results before the 2012 election, and there were clear ideological divides in the country when Romney faced off against Obama. As reported by the Gateway Pundit, Romney received nearly three million votes less than McCain when he ran against the freshman Illinois Senator in 2004, so the message did not improve with Romney... it worsened.
The last election proved that the “establishment Republican” message is not resonating with nonwhite voters, young voters or even those in the conservative base. McCain, who is considered a confused Democrat by many, did better than the “Roveske groomed” Romney as a clear example.
On March 16, 2013, Reuters.com reported that Concord 51, a new political action committee (PAC), is attempting to clearly define conservatism for the younger voter. The group sates it is, “The voice of the young, fiscally conservative professional" and the PAC has simplified its message into three concise points. Concord 51‘s message is based on strong fiscal responsibility, a strong national defense, and energy advancement.
The young conservative group’s message is far more secular and Concord 51 stepped away from many hot-button issues that have defined Republicans for years.
As Reuters.com explains, Matthew Swift, chairman of the New York City-based PAC Concord 51, is not afraid to ruffle some feathers;
"I think it's about embracing the fights we're already in," Swift said. "We're not afraid to disappoint some people and frankly we're not afraid to tick some people off."
Reuters.com described the challenges facing Republicans in the 2014 and 2016 elections;
"In the last two presidential elections, Republican candidates lost the youth vote, and the race. As many as 23 million voters under age 30 turned out in 2012, analyses show, and Democratic President Barack Obama could not have been re-elected without them."
The antiabortion, antigay-marriage and anti-environmental message that is strong in many conservative circles, but the message comes with a price. Ultimately, the vote of many potential young-conservatives is alienated by popular voices like Bill Maher and John Stewart who trash the conservative message nightly. Republicans must focus on what makes conservatism great, traditional “conservative” values based on religious doctrine do not resonate with younger voters, and this is something the Republican party must face.
The American Religious Identification Survey, conducted by Trinity College in 2008, demonstrated a tremendous difference in the American population from 18 years prior. In 1990 only 8.2% of the respondents identified as nonreligious (atheist and agnostic), nearly two decades later 15.0% of the respondents identified as nonreligious. The data is misleading, only 34 million Americans identified as nonreligious in 2008, but over 30% of respondents claimed to live a secular lifestyle in the same survey.
Over 68 million Americans live a secular life, issues based on religion like abortion and gay-marriage do not motivate the secular-but-conservative voter, in fact... the hot-button “religious-based” issues may even turn potential conservative votes into votes for the other side. What is even more damaging is when traditionally conservative voters just stay home like they did in 2012.
During the last election, establishment types like Rove turned away countless conservative voters as he attacked Tea Party candidates who challenged his “establishment” picks in Senate and House races nationwide. Many feel this proves that Rove, The Architect... is in fact out-of-touch.
The “other side” is constantly evolving their message, conservatives can do the same without sacrificing core values, and the “anti-_________” message is not palatable to many younger voters. “Pro-strong fiscal responsibility, pro-strong national defense, and pro-energy advancement” brings much more substantive issues to the banner of the party.
In other news, today, the GatewayPundit.com reported that President Obama has told a group of Muslim leaders that he has no plans to bring peace to the Middle East, because, “Israel is not interested.” Conservatives must do all they can to stop Obama in 2014... the stakes have never been higher.
Sitting presidents have always supported Israel, the target of endless Muslim aggression, but Obama's position represents a radical swing. One has to ask, "Is this the way we want to swing as Americans?"
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