Michael Steele on ATC

First of all, I am back after a while, I was off getting married and planning a wedding is time consuming. My wife and I are very happy to be done with it.

Now onto the stuff I am known for. I was listening to GOP chairman Michael Steele on ATC this afternoon, being sarcastic and making a point that he is glad to see senator Arlen Specter go. He had lots of ways to say that, mostly reffering to the idea that his decision to defect to the democrats was a calculated sefl serving political choice.

I agree, but I take issue with the statement. First of all Specter basically said as much. What he said was that he could not win a primary against someone who is far more conservative than he is. Secondly Steele's agrgument once again demonstrates the GOP's refusal to face reality. Specter is the same guy he has always been, well respected in the senate for being so. The problem that republicans don't want to face is that they have moved too far to the right and the people who were in the middle, like Specter, Snow, Collins, Grassley, Lugar, Warner and many others have been left by themselves. I realize Warner isn't there anymore but you get the idea. While the GOP has moved to be more exclusive and to the right, the Democrats led by Obama have moved to be more inclusive and also tot he right, absorbing that all important middle.

By expanding, Obama and the dems have embraced an old belief of the beloved Ronald Regan. Regan formed his big tent grand coalition by adopting the idea of 80-20, as long as we agree on the 80percent lets worry about the 20 percent later and focus on the common ground. This has produced a huge Democratic Party while the GOP has done the opposite, sweating the details and the 20 percent allienating many people who would have otherwise been loyal supporters. Specter is one of them.

Finally I am somewhat struck by the contradiction in the GOP, which claims to be the party of individuals and self sufficiency, but is willing to criticize someone for looking out for his own self interests. Specter has been the same senator for almost 30 years, a known known to the GOP, therefore they could figure out his position on most things and take that into account when figuring a vote count, so his leaving the party shouldn't matter except that it just shows how out of touch witht he country the Republican leadership is. He is the Senator from Pennsylvania first and a party member second, if his state is trending democratic then to represent them so must he. The Republicans are just going to have to stop calling names and come up with some solutions if they want to stop the nationwide trend.