MEMO to the GOP: Caving is not a path to winning.

As I have been saying for years, "out-democrating the democrats" is never going to be a successful strategy.

On the state and national level, the GOP got it's collective clock cleaned.  Only at the local level did the GOP meet with some success.

Early on, I wasn't a Romney supporter.  It was only in August when he made some slight, subtle changes in verbiage that I believed he was going to be in a position to seal the deal: and it was after he destroyed Obama in the first debate that I was sure he'd win... and I had the polling to prove it.

Except we all now know that the democrat polling of left-leaning outfits like PPP, which turned out to be the most publicly accurate, was on the mark, while the here-to-fore polling of Rasmussen and Gallup were pipe-dreams.

So, Romney lost the popular vote by millions, because it appeared we had an even smaller turn out than with McCain.  Given the state of this nation, which is charitably "sorry" as a result of the ineptitude and incompetence this administration will go down in history for and acknowledging the accuracy of Romney's 47% observation, which turned out to be startling... and moronically... (on the part of those ignorant idiots who voted for Obama) accurate, the idea that the clown who bears direct responsibility for this garbage heap could be re-elected is just.... unfathomable.

Early on, I referred to Romney as a RINO.  I had written about him:

Romney is of the far-left Evans mold. As Republican as my Cocker Spaniel, to see our future with his governance is to recall his past as Governor of Massachusetts, a record little distinguished from his democrat predecessors and marked by Romney-care and a state level violation of the 2nd Amendment, their assault weapons ban.

In an era where transparency is GOP watchword, Romney apparently believed the people were speaking Sanskrit when demands for him to release his tax returns began to surface; in a frighteningly inept and inexcusable lapse, he was entirely unprepared to deal with the issue and his response to the demand has been hesitant, half-hearted and altogether unsatisfactory.

Romney has it all: self-financing, establishment backing (Of course, locally, "the establishment" candidates, like at the congressional level, have been the foreseen consequence of worthless representation... hardly the stuff to build faith in their judgment, I believe) 6 years or so of constant campaigning, an envious organization, contacts through out the country and what should have been an envious record of accomplishment in the business world... a record that now seems to be the "Bain" of his existence

I watched his failure to pound Obama with Benghazi in dismay, as one of the more bizarre perceptions of that moron is that he has a fricking clue about foreign policy and that he'd allowed Americans, which he clearly does not seem to value, to be slaughtered without even trying to save them ("Saving" was not the test.   "Making every effort to save them" was the test, and he couldn't even do that.)

Three days before the election, I was discussing it all with my wife, and I told her I had a feeling that Romney was going to lose... but that I couldn't articulate the reasons.  I could, however articulate a dozen reasons why he would win, and as an adherent of the Patton "Never Take Council of Your Fears" school of thought, I just shoved it aside until about 5:30 election night, when it became clear that he was going to lose because he hadn't taken Florida or Virginia outright.

More locally, RINO Rob McKenna became the very caricature of what many GOP'ers now want the GOP to become: milquetoast versions of conservatives... mainstreamers who reflect the democrats in every social area and in most of the financial.

McKenna, for example sold out Clark County on the CRC AND the Tribes, in some bizarre, pointed effort to play nice with the unions and the Indians... who proceeded to provide Inslee with money at the rate of (when I looked last) about 6 to 1; a blithering, leftist hack who couldn't, apparently, even get one endorsement from a daily because he was, frankly, too much of the stupid partisan hack... with a bonus of alienating his base by moving not only to the center, but by selling out the entirety of the GOP by moronically attempting to co-op leftist positions.

Let's remember, as a brief aside, that the people backing McKenna were the exact same people backing Herrera and who did so very well with Rossi.  What's that definition of insanity again?  And Herrera's none-leadership caused me to vote for a whack like Haugen, she's so terrible for this region.

Late polling, however, indicated a shift towards RINO Rob after months of being behind because of his campaign's idiocy.  He was closing... fast... and I thought that a sign of Romney coat tails which, obviously, didn't exist.

So, how'd it go here in Clark County?

Just ask Commissioner-Elect Madore and Commissioner Mielke.

Clearly, thousands of people voted for Obama and then, in turn, voted for both Melke and Madore... the same phenomena I observed in 2008.  Back in 08, Mielke was the only conservative running for commissioner.  Boldt ran as a conservative, but without the scrutiny he deserved... and against worthless opposition.

Mielke, who was outspent roughly 4 to 1 in 08, was outspent roughly 8 to 1 in 12.  He won by 209 votes if memory serves in 08, and Mielke's brand of conservatism resulted in a paltry 6000 or so this go-round.... while conservative GOP'er Madore has rung up a roughly 13,000 vote lead.

So, here locally, what it is that caused Madore and Mielke to exceed both Romney and Obama in percentage of vote?  Why would so many vote for Obama and then, apparently, turn around and vote for these two?

And in another case study, why is it that the entirety of the Wisconsin government was retaken by the GOP, but Romney lost the state?

"Mainstreaming" or "moderating" the GOP does not appear to be the answer.  I offer this because both Romney and McKenna appear to be the most "moderate" choices available.... Romney being the polar opposite of McCain... and then garnering roughly 3 million fewer votes than McCain.

Don't misunderstand me, I'm not discounting the religious bigotry element of this: there are some I've seen who flatly refuse to vote for a Mormon president, or a Mormon anything else.

A vote for a Mormon in many minds is the religious equivalent of mainstreaming homosexuals.  I get that.

But if it were Romney's religion... if that was the factor... then how does caving on principle change any of that?

Did Obama win by "moderating" his fringe-left views, as opposed to lying every time his lips move?

There is a gullibility and enlightened self-interest element here, combined with the typically bizarre and incompetent GOP ground game.

Obama has provided the recipe on winning.  It's up to the GOP to provide the ingredients.

And at the state and national level, that appears to be a task that is simply beyond the current GOP leadership... and their enablers.

Team Obama gets mad props for their campaign.  It is, after all, an outcomed-based business.  I give even "madder" props to Tom Mielke who won with practically nothing.

When it comes to techniques and strategies, I defer to the Obama camp.

When it comes to substance, Mielke has to get the nod.

After all, when it comes to becoming more moderate:: 

Boldt has acknowledged that he has become more of a moderate since his days as a five-term state representative from the 17th District.

And how did that work out for him?

This was an election rife with lessons.  The question now is this:  are those who lost going to learn?