GOP Has Trouble Settling on Candidates Who Can Win | RealClearPolitics
By Michael Barone - February 21, 2013
They've lost the presidency twice in a row, and in four of the last six contests. They've failed to win a majority in the U.S. Senate, something they accomplished in five election cycles between 1994 and 2006.
And they've been doing better in elections to state legislatures than at any time since the 1920s.
But there's another reason, which has been particularly glaring in races for the U.S. Senate: candidate quality.
Over the years, I've noticed that Democrats tend to have a disproportionate share of candidates with sharp political instincts and ambition.
Probably that's natural. Democrats tend to want more government, and smart Democrats like to go into politics. Smart Republicans tend to take other paths.
That's the main reason why Democrats have a 55-45 majority in the Senate after the very Republican election cycle of 2010 and a 2012 cycle in which 23 Democratic and only 10 Republican seats were up for grabs.
It's generally agreed that Republicans booted sure Senate wins in 2010 in Nevada and Delaware and perhaps Colorado.
There's no Republican establishment like that today. Republican National Chairman Reince Priebus is by definition an insider.
He also seems to have good political instincts -- good enough that in Wisconsin he backed a newcomer like Ron Johnson in 2010.
So I don't see this as a fight between the grass roots and the Washington establishment. It's a struggle to find candidates with serious convictions and good political instincts -- which is usually an uphill struggle for Republicans.
Related Topics: Karl Rove, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Reince Priebus, Voting Result, Senate, United States Senate, House Of Representatives, Texas, Wisconsin
GOP Has Trouble Settling on Candidates Who Can Win | RealClearPolitics
By Michael Barone - February 21, 2013
They've lost the presidency twice in a row, and in four of the last six contests. They've failed to win a majority in the U.S. Senate, something they accomplished in five election cycles between 1994 and 2006.
And they've been doing better in elections to state legislatures than at any time since the 1920s.
But there's another reason, which has been particularly glaring in races for the U.S. Senate: candidate quality.
Over the years, I've noticed that Democrats tend to have a disproportionate share of candidates with sharp political instincts and ambition.
Probably that's natural. Democrats tend to want more government, and smart Democrats like to go into politics. Smart Republicans tend to take other paths.
That's the main reason why Democrats have a 55-45 majority in the Sen
ate after the very Republican election cycle of 2010 and a 2012 cycle in which 23 Democratic and only 10 Republican seats were up for grabs.
It's generally agreed that Republicans booted sure Senate wins in 2010 in Nevada and Delaware and perhaps Colorado.
There's no Republican establishment like that today. Republican National Chairman Reince Priebus is by definition an insider.
He also seems to have good political instincts -- good enough that in Wisconsin he backed a newcomer like Ron Johnson in 2010.
So I don't see this as a fight between the grass roots and the Washington establishment. It's a struggle to find candidates with serious convictions and good political instincts -- which is usually an uphill struggle for Republicans.
Related Topics: Karl Rove, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Reince Priebus, Voting Result, Senate, United States Senate, House Of Representatives, Texas, Wisconsin