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The Conservative Delusion: Mike Pence Explains the Meaning of the 2008 Election

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What is really insulting is for people to think that because the writer's name Schlesinger follows the this article that you are in the same league as that of the historian Schlesinger. Having the right name in Washinton or inside the beltway must give you a free ride.
Nepotism is ugly along with stupidity and you seem to be batting a thousand in that ballpark. You dont think this country is conservative? Look at the margins in the states where bans on gay marriage have become state law and constitutional issues. I understand that common sense must not be your strong suit but please try not to look so dumb. Sometimes it is hard to know when to feel sorry for you!!

Jeff of WI 9:07PM March 11, 2009

You asked: "Why did the GOP lose its way pursuing policies voters don't like? How does that happen?"
It all comes down to ego. Politicians like to "do something." They like to think they are the straw that stirs the drink, that they have to power to fix all that ails the country. Republicans, ideology aside, only proved that they were no more immune to the intoxicating effects of wielding the levers of power than the Dems are. That, combined with a "big government conservative" in the White House, is what led the GOP to lose its way. Given the choice between big-government frauds or the real thing, independent voters went with the real thing and conservative voters stayed home. Add in the fact that the bogus Dem explanation for the economic collapse ("It's all Bush's fault... er, somehow or other.") is easier to explain than the truth, and the result at the ballot box was inevitable.

Ben of AZ 3:51PM March 11, 2009

Larry-
I'm a Republican, and fairly conservative one at that, but I don't find this especially insulting or condescending. Schlesinger is pointing out the disparity between public opinion, as expressed in both surveys and the polls, Pence's explanation of the last election's results, and the direction Republican leadership wishes to take the party. At least as far as the numbers go, his analysis is correct. The party needs to come up with some ideas (how about health care reform that leverages the market, increases personal responsibility, and decreases the economic drag imposed by high costs and uninsured individuals?). It sounds to me too like Pence--and lots of our party's leadership--are grasping at straws while they cast about for a direction. That said, if Pence means getting the party gets back to hard-headed, non-idealogical fiscal policy and social moderation, I agree in theory. But let's have some ideas.

Todd of PA 1:52PM March 11, 2009

I am a small government, limited spending conservative and I find you to be very insulting. You are like a lot of the left that talks about working together and being nice but only with the people that agree with you. When someone disagrees with you and your kind you start calling names and trying to make others feel stupid or inferior. You and your kind are why I will never vote from a Dem.
If you would be honest with yourself and your readers you would know that this entire mess wasn't the Rep or Dem fault, it was the idea that the government is here to provide the citizens something they didn't earn. I know that for you the word earn is a hard one to understand just like personal responsibility. Nothing is free in life, everything has a price and someone has to pay it at some point in time.

Larry of CA 12:21PM March 11, 2009