A Center-Right Country?

If you have been listening to the aftermath of the 2008 election, and the ensuing GOP identity crisis; you've no doubt heard this line peddled by practically the entire right wing punditocracy. "This is still a center-right country" they continually say even as they lose the presidency, see their numbers continue to drop in both houses of congress, and see an overall blue shift in statehouses countrywide. This is some pretty twisted logic indeed. It doesn't surprise me that these are also the same people who believe wholeheartedly in some of the most transparently false ramblings of religious dogma ever invented. I'll try to restrain myself from making this a diatribe on religion, and save that for another posting. Suffice to say, just on its face this is a highly delusional belief, and isn't supported by any real evidence. Elections are the ultimate indication of where the country is politically, and I'm afraid that it is not looking too swell for my friends on the right.

People who follow presidential elections have no doubt heard the tired line about whoever is running against a conservative is the "most liberal" person ever. The formula is no secret, here's how it works. "(Insert candidate) is the most liberal (insert his/her current job description) in America. (Insert candidate) is to the left of (insert well known left wing lighting rod)." This year, Barack Obama was the most liberal senator in the whole senate, four years ago it was John Kerry, catching on yet? Apparently all you have to do to win the Democratic nomination is to be the most left wing you can be at your job and you are assured to win. It isn't just used against Democrats. Ironically, conservatives used this same attack on John McCain in the 2008 GOP primary, then had to do some serious backpeddling after he became their party's nominee.

So lets put together this logic from a conservative pundit's point of view. We just supposedly elected the most left wing person in the entire senate as our president. This "radical" left winger won with greater electoral vote, and popular vote margin than George W. Bush did either time. He won in states that Bush won in 2004 by double digits, including Indiana which Bush carried by a 21% margin. But this is somehow evidence that the United States is fundamentally conservative? If the Bush victory in 2004 was a vindication of conservatism, how is the Obama victory the same thing? Maybe after you figure this out, you can explain "Joe the plumber" mania.

The future doesn't look too bright for the Republican Party, and its not too difficult to see why. The GOP is quickly becoming exclusively the party of rural white men. A powerful voting bloc for sure, but not enough for a party wishing to effectively govern on a national scale. The GOP is being marginalized into a politically irrelevant southern, mountain-west party. This is largely their own fault, but could be easily remedied with a little political courage. The simple answer is to jettison the religious right. This immediately brings the party as a whole far closer to the center and gives them far greater national appeal. They can focus more on economics and national defense, by far their greatest strengths. Their candidates won't have to waste time paying lip-service to crackpot preachers, and religious zealots that seriously undermine their appeal to moderates. The majority of Americans support abortion rights, and keeping religion out of government, another strike against this "center right" nonsense.

I'll be clear, I don't think the United States is a seriously left wing country by any means. I would argue that if elections are any indication, the country altering its conservative course and moving back towards the center, which now clearly means a move to the left. Barack Obama was elected largely on a moderate-left platform; pro-choice, universal health care, ending the war in Iraq, middle-class tax cut, etc. You can expect him to work towards delivering on the promises that got him elected by not just by the traditional Democratic causes, but an expanding group of independents and moderates.