Chris
03-25-2014, 08:34 PM
I found this to be a fairly interesting analysis--so naturally you might have already lost interest, lol. But I am interested in the reactions of Rand Paul supporters.
What Rand Paul And Bill Clinton Have In Common (http://thefederalist.com/2014/03/25/what-rand-paul-and-bill-clinton-have-in-common/)
Let’s be clear about one thing here: Rand Paul thinks he’s going to win in 2016. He has a vision for the party, but he is not running as an idea candidate. He is trying to win the election. He’s not running for Vice President. He’s not running to grow a movement. He thinks he can run, beat everyone, and be president.
In order to get there, he is deploying a unique approach to outreach – one that is designed to promote a certain type of cross-pollinating political appeal, one that is largely unfamiliar on the right, in order to broaden a coalition not around limited government ideas so much as around his uniquely libertarian positions on key hot button issues....
Of course, Paul’s rise has relatively little to do with his positions on social issues at all. In truth, it’s in large part due to the rising distrust of government and big institutions, Paul’s message has the ability to puncture typical biases against any politician with an R after their name with constituencies who Republicans have traditionally ignored. This is why what Paul is attempting is actually far more interesting than just the promotion of a prospective 2016 candidate. What he’s attempting is an approach to politics adopted with great success by Barack Obama and Bill Clinton – one that targets particular issues to broaden his appeal and build his own personal brand.
As Jonah Goldberg and others have noted, since Ronald Reagan, the right has formed into an ideological coalition while the left has formed a coalitional ideology. Where the right has its three legs of the stool, the left has formed a coalition which gloms together the disparate interests of the middle aged school teacher, the wealthy Silicon Valley liberal, the Ivy League hipster, the environmental non-profit, and the third-generation blue collar union dad… even when their interests really don’t really align.
What Paul represents is a post-three-legged-stool reality for the Republican Party – a politician who recognizes that the party’s brand has been markedly harmed, the old ideological coalition is dying, and that the path to success may instead lie in creating a patchwork majority based on the varying faces, and unique appeal, of libertarianism.
...the Clinton “all things to all people” model contains some hope for Paul’s approach....
What held this odd grouping together was Clinton’s particular gift of reptilian political skill, and a knack for shooting the moon. Can Paul replicate that? It’s a challenging strategy. It also just might be that Paul has the personal gifts to make it work.
What Rand Paul And Bill Clinton Have In Common (http://thefederalist.com/2014/03/25/what-rand-paul-and-bill-clinton-have-in-common/)
Let’s be clear about one thing here: Rand Paul thinks he’s going to win in 2016. He has a vision for the party, but he is not running as an idea candidate. He is trying to win the election. He’s not running for Vice President. He’s not running to grow a movement. He thinks he can run, beat everyone, and be president.
In order to get there, he is deploying a unique approach to outreach – one that is designed to promote a certain type of cross-pollinating political appeal, one that is largely unfamiliar on the right, in order to broaden a coalition not around limited government ideas so much as around his uniquely libertarian positions on key hot button issues....
Of course, Paul’s rise has relatively little to do with his positions on social issues at all. In truth, it’s in large part due to the rising distrust of government and big institutions, Paul’s message has the ability to puncture typical biases against any politician with an R after their name with constituencies who Republicans have traditionally ignored. This is why what Paul is attempting is actually far more interesting than just the promotion of a prospective 2016 candidate. What he’s attempting is an approach to politics adopted with great success by Barack Obama and Bill Clinton – one that targets particular issues to broaden his appeal and build his own personal brand.
As Jonah Goldberg and others have noted, since Ronald Reagan, the right has formed into an ideological coalition while the left has formed a coalitional ideology. Where the right has its three legs of the stool, the left has formed a coalition which gloms together the disparate interests of the middle aged school teacher, the wealthy Silicon Valley liberal, the Ivy League hipster, the environmental non-profit, and the third-generation blue collar union dad… even when their interests really don’t really align.
What Paul represents is a post-three-legged-stool reality for the Republican Party – a politician who recognizes that the party’s brand has been markedly harmed, the old ideological coalition is dying, and that the path to success may instead lie in creating a patchwork majority based on the varying faces, and unique appeal, of libertarianism.
...the Clinton “all things to all people” model contains some hope for Paul’s approach....
What held this odd grouping together was Clinton’s particular gift of reptilian political skill, and a knack for shooting the moon. Can Paul replicate that? It’s a challenging strategy. It also just might be that Paul has the personal gifts to make it work.