Griper Blade: John Boehner`s Strategy to Retake Congress

The man who will be House Minority Leader going into the 110th congressional session, John Boehner, sent a memo to GOP reps. outlining his plan to take back the majority in the House. Political Insider has the full memo. The poster, Helvidius, points to what he feels is the key point, "If we want to reclaim our majority, we first have to reclaim our mantle as the party of hope, freedom and reform ... the party of Reagan and Lincoln. As our Democratic counterparts may discover the hard way, having a majority is of limited value if you don't have a vision and a plan for using it."

I'd point out that the Republicans had a plan, but it was a really bad one -- support the war, scare the living bejesus out of everyone with terrorism, and hold the majority for the sole purpose of holding the majority. And let's not compare Reagan and Lincoln anymore, OK?

What I found funny was Boehner's reference to 1994's 'Contract with America.' "[W]hether you were here in 1994 or not, virtually all of us agree that what made the Contract historic and effective 12 years ago was its broad appeal," Boehner writes. "The Contract was about reform. It emphasized the things that unite all Republicans, but it went beyond that; it spoke to the hopes and values of most Americans." Unfortunately, there was a lot of stuff in the contract that the GOP didn't deliver on -- terms limits and a balanced budget amendment come to mind. And the contract didn't really make much difference in the election. Exit polling showed that only 30% of voters had heard of it and, of those who had, it was almost as much of a disincentive to vote GOP as it was an incentive. Voters were either 7% more likely to vote GOP because of it or 6% less likely for the same reason. The contract was a wash...

[CLICK TO READ FULL POST]

Tags: news | politics | congress | republican | democrat | propaganda | Medicare |John Boehner