"Reforming public education, cutting property taxes, fixing adult and child protective services and funding our budget can all occur when Democrats and Republicans engage in consensus and cooperation - not cynicism and combat. "
- Texas Governor Rick Perry
"To me, consensus seems to be the process of abandoning all beliefs, principles, values and policies. So it is something in which no one believes and to which no one objects."
- Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
As the two quotes above illustrate, even conservative leaders can have difficulty reaching consensus...on the merits of reaching consensus. More broadly, no single political party or grass roots movement has perfected nor obtained a monopoly on building consensus. Yet, electoral and legislative results of the past three decades underscore the importance of building and maintaining consensus throughout the political process, from ballot box to legislative chamber.
I am not attempting to dictate that one American political party is or has been superior to the other. Once we cut through the chest-beating rhetoric of cable news soundbites, town hall meetings, and grass roots rallies, we are left with the reality that the same American public ushered in the Reagan Revolution, the Contract with America, and Change We Can Believe In.
Mathematically, the 104th Congress (1994) elected 55 (R) and 45 (D) Senators; 228 (R) and 206 (D) Representatives. The 111th Congress (2008) elected 40 (R) and 58 (D) Senators; 178 (R) and 256 (D) Represenatives. Fourteen years did not see the entire demography of the nation shift politically, but instead followed a pendelum of social and fiscal policy. Just as midwestern union autoworkers rallied around Ronald Reagan when the economy necessitated strong fiscal leadership, families facing lost jobs and health care crises rallied about Barack Obama. People vote nationally and statewide for the economic, educational, and social policies that they view as most relevant to their own households. 1980, 1994, and 2008 demonstrated that one party more than the other delivered a message that resonated with greater than 50% of voters--plain and simple.
In future installments, we will be addressing how we may increase your share of your electorate by carefully examining and executing upon: (1) Issues upon which you hold very strong, well-defined, and possibly long-term positions; (2) Issues upon which your opponents hold very strong, well-defined, and possibly long-term positions; (3) Issues of current importance for which you have not previously developed a well-defined position; and (4) Issues of anticipated future importance for which you have not previously developed a well-defined position.
TODAY'S QUESTION: How will your campaign ensure that your message engenders the victorious spirit of 1980, 1994 and 2008?
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