Transitioning to a New Political Party
Conservatives, constituting the largest portion of the electorate, have no viable political party to represent them today at the national level. The political establishments of the two major parties promote a Progressive, Big Government agenda, and actively oppose and undermine conservatives. At the federal level, conservatives have minority status within a minority party.
The strategy of trying to reform the Republican Party has failed for more than 100 years. The reason why the reform strategy is a failure is because it contains the dynamics of its own defeat for the entire duration of its use. Rather than draw a clear distinction for the electorate between a conservative party and a progressive party, the strategy perpetuates a party where politicians with opposing ideologies can call themselves Republicans. This leads to confusion, uncertainty, disappointment, and discouragement among voters and to low voter turnout, which is why the divided Republican Party is politically weak today and has been for a long time. The value of the Republican label is problematic. The Republican Party has no branding. As long as the GOP lacks branding, conservative voters simply stay home, causing further Republican defeats, which further advances the Progressive agenda.
Historically, the GOP already was deeply divided between progressive and conservative wings by the early 1900s. The attempt to have a “big tent” for the Republican Party caused the Party to lose its branding more than 100 years ago.
The Republican Party today is divided into factions whose conflicting interests -- a Big Government minority party versus a Limited Government majority party -- are at an irreconcilable impasse.
Progressive Republican establishment leaders have demonstrated long-standing, entrenched opposition to conservatives within the Party, indicating that Progressives do not want either a reformed party or a “big tent.”
The reform strategy uses financial resources inefficiently on primary elections -- another weakness of this strategy. Republicans exhaust their financial resources in primary battles, while Democrats save their financial resources for the general elections -- a strategy for defeat.
Conservative leaders who want to continue to reform the Party perpetuate a weak party. Even with a Republican landslide in 2014 due to Democrat overreach, the GOP is still a divided, politically weak party.
As long as conservatives spend time fighting within the Republican Party, Progressives continue to advance their agenda without opposition from a conservative party.
This century-long struggle has led to the political landscape of today, which consists of minority political status for conservatism, within a weak minority party; an increasingly belligerent Progressive wing; and a united, Progressive ruling class that is rapidly achieving foundational, constitutional changes to America. Progressives are advancing their agenda, eliminating constitutional liberty, and destroying the country. Conservatives just suffered their worst political defeat in history by losing on ObamaCare.
All the while conservatives are working on “taking back the party,” these political disasters will be repeated until the political establishment has made opposition by any resurgent party all but impossible. It is foolish to continue to repeat the reform strategy that has failed for more than 100 years and that has led to minority political status for conservatism.
The reform strategy is a failure and American liberty is suffering for it. The economic, societal, and political stakes involving foundational, constitutional freedoms are far too high now for continued attempts to use this failed strategy.
Americans have recognized the necessity of political representation -- in 1776, in 1854, and in 2014. At these significant points in history, Americans yearned for, and then have coalesced and united around freedom. Americans’ desire for a new, conservative political party and new leadership is at an all-time high because citizens are dissatisfied with the way things are going in America today.
The transition of the Whig Party into the Republican Party provides a model to follow and a successful, workable solution to the political turmoil of today. Whigs together with representatives of other parties agreed that one unified front was crucial to the fight, and thus founded the Republican Party.
Today, Republicans, Reagan Democrats, Tea Partiers, Libertarians, Independents, and discouraged declined-to-voters can unify to form a new party. By reaching out to all comers -- then and now -- the new party draws from a much larger base by which to become the dominant party. Conservatives have sufficient numbers to form a new, dominant political party, according to polling data.
The transition of one political party into another, as occurred successfully in the formation of the Republican Party, is a proven means to form a viable, conservative political party that provides political representation for conservatives. This transition recognizes the reality that the old party cannot be reformed, and that its members must transform it into a new party. This proven, successful approach is far superior to the unsuccessful strategy of trying to reform a party.
An established party provides an organizational infrastructure to screen and field conservative candidates, which is much stronger than individual political action organizations working in concert. The new party serves as a forum and a recognizable, cohesive body for politically like-minded Americans to interact with one another beyond an annual or biannual meeting. A well-branded conservative party defines its principles and platform for the electorate, and this identifiable branding helps conservative candidates to get elected. The party can help to hold candidates accountable to conservatism once in office. Today, the majority of Republican members of Congress plus a minority of senators -- dissidents from the Party but solid with their voters -- are the natural core of a new party.
Conservatives need a majority party to govern, to enact conservative public policies, and to restore liberty.
An effort to form a new political party must make the successful, proven transition of one party into another -- as happened with the Whigs -- even better known and more certain than the reform strategy, so that conservative leaders can feel comfortable and confident in proceeding on this path.
Statesmen, such as Washington, Lincoln, Churchill, and Reagan, did not follow the “politically safe” path. Rather, the Declaration of Independence states, “with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.” One climbs Mt. Everest one step at a time.
An adage says that history repeats itself. One party transitioning into another -- that is what needs to occur today -- that is the history that needs to be repeated. Conservatives today can do the same as our forbearers -- unite, network with other people and organizations, and form a new, dominant political party.
There now is a window of opportunity between elections for conservatives to begin the process of forming a strong, viable, new political party. This moment in time is shortly after the 2013 elections, before the 2014 midterm elections, and well before the 2016 presidential election. It is before annual conservative conferences that provide the opportunity for necessary discussions and meetings to occur.
The sooner efforts are begun on forming a new political party, the more likely liberty will be restored in America.