Being A Terrible Party Has Consequences

Republican voices are so adamant in their claims to represent a “silent majority” that occasionally this lie could be mistaken for the truth. Luckily there’s a ton of polling data to refute that coming out these days. How is being the Party of No Ideas working out for them?

“The Post-ABC News poll this week found that only 20 percent of adults identify themselves as Republicans, the lowest single number in Post-ABC polls since 1983. Only 19 percent had confidence in congressional Republicans "to make the right decisions for the country's future.”

Ouch. Well we keep hearing about how Americans have soundly rejected Obama, so his numbers must be in the single digits or something…

“Obama scored 49 percent.”

Not exactly great, but it sure beats having numbers lower than the ones George Bush was getting at the end of his second term. How about that great Republican new hope, Sarah Palin? The wingnuts love her, while the entire nation saw how pivotal she was in securing victory for McCain.

"Sarah Palin stands ready to stump for the
Republican gubernatorial candidates running in
the two most closely watched campaigns in the
country this fall, but neither seems to want her
help.

Less than a month before voters go to the polls,
it appears increasingly clear that the former
Alaska governor, vice-presidential nominee and
conservative favorite will not appear on behalf
of either New Jersey’s Chris Christie or
Virginia’s Bob McDonnell.

“The governor offered her assistance with both
races,” said Palin adviser Meg Stapleton. “The
ball is in their court.”

Neither GOP campaign wanted to discuss why they
didn’t want Palin in the state — to say so would
offend the conservative base that both Christie
and McDonnell are counting on, not just to vote
for them but to also volunteer time in the crucial
final weeks of the election."

I was hoping that more candidates would embrace her and ruin their own campaigns, but I guess having everyone awkwardly avoid her for fear of getting Palined (to consign yourself to defeat by forsaking all moderates and independents in favor of the far right) is also pretty funny.

There are a lot of reasons for why 2010 could be a good year for Republicans. If they keep up with this infighting and a complete absence of new ideas, though, anything is possible.