At a post-election event for members of the Republican Liberty Caucus, National Chairman Dave Nalle made the following remarks on the state of the Republican Party in the aftermath of the Romney defeat.
“If you nominate a candidate who has a position to please every constituency you run the risk that voters will decide that this is the same thing as having a position to alienate every constituency and respond by not turning out to vote. The party has lost its way because of lazy leaders who have ignored the sensible voters who make up the base of the party and have instead given too much influence to outside interest groups who bought their loyalty with the promise of easy votes.”
“It is time for fundamental change at the top of the party. Leaders who basically rigged the nomination process to force Mitt Romney on the party gambled their legitimacy on his success. They put the entire party at risk with a candidate whose failure dragged down other candidates including promising newcomers and incumbents whose seats should have been secure. They lost us seats in the Senate where we could have won a majority and even weakened our position in the House. They must pay the full price for their poor decisions and be stripped of any position of leadership in the party.”
“It is time for the Republican Party to return to the control of the grassroots and to a simple, ethical agenda of limiting the size and power of government and protecting the rights of individual citizens. The practice of giving special influence to outside groups whose first loyalty is to their own interests and issues must stop. Our allies should be drawn to us by our principles, not by our willingness to sell influence and trade favors.”
“The party is aging and becoming isolated from the people. Republicans have forgotten how to be activists and stir up popular enthusiasm for our cause. We have lost touch with the younger generation and we have abandoned minority groups which ought to share our principles. In too many counties and too many states the Republican Party has become an exclusive private club rather than the inclusive political movement it was meant to be. This is the course of extinction for a political party. If we do not grow and embrace new members and new strategies we will continue to stagnate and age into irrelevance.”
“The voters we need to attract to revitalize the party want less government on their backs and more liberty in their lives. They do not want to live in fear of external threats or internal security. They do not want to see the fruits of their labor seized by government or devalued by irresponsible policies. They do not want government in their businesses, their schools, their churches or their bedrooms. The Republican Party of the future should be young, entrepreneurial and inclusive. There is no hope for a party which is not strong enough to preserve its core principles while still embracing change.”
“This is the vision of the Republican Liberty Caucus. It is a challenge to the Republican Party to become a better party, rededicated to its founding principles. This election must be a turning point for the party and if we do not pick up the banner of leadership and embrace the changes which must come, then the GOP will fade away lnto whiggish obscurity.”
On November 12th, 2012 at 1:17 am
Ohio had some of the worst voting fraud and our leaders, especially from the GOP, have not come out to shout from the rooftops that we demand a thorough investigation and we demand a complete recount. The Diebold Voting Machine I voted on blacked out when I hit the button to cast my votes. I saw a video on Youtube of two men yesterday that said this was a sign that the machine had been tampered with. The few seconds of a blacked out screen was enough to download an opposite vote onto the memory stick in the machine while the print out showed the votes I actually cast. You not only have a whole lot of angry republicans; you’ve got a whole lot of democrats and independents who voted for Romney. We demand a thorough investigation and complete recount! If you don’t I swear you will never ever hear the end of this! Don’t think I’m alone in this either! Pull yourselves together and lead this party already!
On November 12th, 2012 at 6:31 am
Dear RLC, Please let mem know when the RNC stops laughing at your request/suggestion/demand. WE NEED A NEW PARTY. NOW.
On November 12th, 2012 at 6:49 am
I love the idea of more liberty
But if, as you ad states here on the page, I imagine 100 Ron Paul’s in Congress, that scares the hell out of me
100 Rand Pauls….that’s much better
On November 12th, 2012 at 7:56 am
I will make this simple. For those of us who are opposed to abortion you cannot tell us that it is acceptable for us to be opposed to abortion but it is unacceptable for us to demand that government make abortion illegal again.
For those of us who are opposed to homosexuality you cannot tell us that it is acceptable for us to be opposed to homosexuality but it is unacceptable for us to demand that government make homosexuality illegal again.
For those of us who are opposed to homosexuality you cannot tell us that it is acceptable for us to be opposed to homosexuality but it is unacceptable for us to demand that government make homosexuality illegal again.
For those of us who are opposed to the war on God you cannot tell us that it is acceptable for us to be opposed to the war on God but it is acceptable that government can conduct a war on God.
On November 12th, 2012 at 8:54 am
How about 100 of each?
On November 12th, 2012 at 9:01 am
I don’t understand the fear of Ron Paul expressed by Kelsonus. I think everything he says makes sense. 100 Ron Pauls in Congress would have us 100% aligned with the Constitution which is what preserves our liberty and builds entrepreunurial(?) spirit which thrives under capitalism.
Maybe this site is where we can explore the interest in Liberty and the fear of those who support Liberty but not liberty candidates. Perhaps we can build greater understanding and so support. Then we can better educate those “liberals” who don’t understand what “conservative” is. I think the meaning has been bastardized to where its meaning is misinterpreted. I think the liberals interpret it as a “stepford wives” or “victorian” existance instead of realizing that the liberal policies are creating that Stepford reality. It doesn’t seem to matter what the words mean, it matters what the media makes the words mean which scares people away.
Our job over the next 4 years is to educate people. And to find a way to unify all the many groups out there that support Constitutional alignment to work together toward those ends. I think if all the various groups that support those ideas worked together this time Romney wouldn’t have been the Republican nomination. We need stronger candidates than Romney, McCain, and the others who are just right of the far left candidate. We need someone who is really different and dynamic who can get passionate backing – especially by the young energetic voters. That is something that Ron Paul was very good at!
On November 12th, 2012 at 11:13 am
That you say in this article Romney is a failure is apalling to me and many in this country saying Obama campaign succeeded with voter fraud..That remains to be seen..That we have become an entitlement society, Obama phones, food stamps,killing babies, and free birth control factors NOT? There was NO mandate…and I personally was exposed to a movement that decided to take over this party by force. The Ron Paul folks who cloned their new name as Republitarians..That is underminding and not the way to unify.It started at all caucus states. Then you had the candidates that stayed on due to egos in the primaries, which cost Romney the monies freed up to advertise while Obama was lying through his teeth all summer. Every other primary candidate had their baggage that would have defined them as losers to say the least once the Obama machine got into their records. Then you had the media in the tank for Obama, even the talk radio folks and then WOW!!! A revelation..They realized Mitt was worthy and qualified once the record was set straight.Even BECK said, “WE found our George Washington.” TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE was my observation!!Oh I agree we need a review of the party going forward…but not a revolution of divide..A meeting of minds and platform of rules acceptable to THE Republican Party..If people can not stand with honor, and the party platform then go form your own party. Never will Republicans turn their back on Israel,and give up the funds to keep our Military strong to defend our beloved America…Ron Paulers bullied and are trying to change fundamentals…Go be Libertarains…and fund your own kind or sit down logically with reason…and that being said the Republicans need to review the reasons why? It might just be..Obama convinced Romney was only for the rich…NOT at all true..if people had done their homework they would know truth!!! Romney had a plan…Obama to this day still has not balanced the books and his plans are going to sink business in America…so ready to feel the pain..everyone cannot be on welfare…Soon their will be NO checks, no Obama phone and worst…A bankrupt America…Heed the Bible folks and prepare..our darkest days are ON THE Horizon…From Ron Paulers I hear we must legalize Pot, turn on Israel, and don’t keep our military might to protect in a very dangerous world. This is NOT our Party beliefs…I also was appalled they were forcing their ideals on us and using Republican funds and platform with dishonest
tactics..so why were they turned away…because they were invasive and bullies.
On November 12th, 2012 at 3:57 pm
I hope this is just a typo that escaped your proofreader:
You wrote, “It is time for the Republican Party to return to the control of the grassroots”
It should read, “It is time for the Republican Party to return to the control BY grassroots.”
We grass roots liberty citizens choose not to be controlled.
On November 13th, 2012 at 1:16 am
At first I thought that Norm Lampton’s comments were some ghastly attempt at parody. Then I remembered…you can’t parody the Religious Right; no matter how ridiculous a statement you want to attribute to them, they’re way ahead of you.
“…government make homosexuality illegal again”? How’s that been working out for you for the, oh, I don’t know, last hundred thousand years or so? Of course, while we’re at it, we should also outlaw anal and oral sex for straight couples…right?
Sure, and while we’re at it, let’s continue to champion candidates who are seriously stupid, seriously mentally ill, and embarrassingly hypocritical.
I think I see the problem now. This is the Republican LIBERTY Caucus; Mr. Lampton was looking for the Republican SHARIA Caucus. Second door on the right, Norm.