Optimism and the Path Ahead

I often think conservatives see the world through an optimistic lens. They believe, as Ronald Reagan often said, that America's best days lie ahead. They believe in the basic goodness of mankind, and that God created the United States of America to hold a special place in the World, to serve as a shining beacon on a hill representative of individual freedom and liberty.

As I rode to work today, I read an excellent commentary by Senator Jim DeMint from South Carolina. The commentary appeared in today's issue of the Washington, D.C. Examiner, a free newspaper publication widely distributed in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. In his commentry, Senator DeMint noted that while Republicans lost in this past election, it is because Republicans strayed from conservative principle, and noted that fundamentally, America itself has not changed. He noted strong evidence that America remains a conservative country, with fully 60 percent of Americans identifying themselves as conservatives every year since 2002. Democrats' victories across the country, he explains, in large measure resulted from Democrats running on conservative themes of tax cuts, spending restraint, Second Amendment rights, and energy independence. He explains that the recent Republican losses and the Democrats' undoubted push for a liberal agenda give conservative Republicans a golden opportunity moving forward. He proposes a four-point plan that conservatives need to begin acting on now.

They include first leading by example. This means imposing a 2-year earmark moratorium and ending the seniority-based system in the Republican party that too often rewards seniority over merit. He proposes replacing it instead by a merit-based system for conference leaders and committee assignments. Second, Republicans must restablish themselves as the party of ideas, offering superior alternatives to emphasize personal control over better quality health care, education, and retirement. Third, Republicans must work with Democrats when it furthers America's interests, but must fight against a liberal agenda, recognizing their moral obligation to "fight for freedom and liberty in our great country." Finally, Republicans must recruit new conservative leaders. As Senator DeMint notes, "We need more Sarah Palins -- moms, dads, teachers, doctors and business owners who want to defend liberty and solve big problems, not become part of the Washington establishment. We must find them, encourage them and fight for their elections."

Senator DeMint echoes many of my own thoughts, and the purpose for this blog. Identifying the broad themes, creating a limited and easily explained agenda that represents those broad themes, and recruiting conservatives leaders who are not out for power for themselves but rather to change America for the better, is what this blog is all about.

You can read the entire DeMint commentary by clicking here.