SALON

Monday, Mar 18, 2013 6:24 PM UTC

GOP “autopsy” dismembers the party

Priebus is right about his party's terminal illness, but he'll have to fight Palin and Limbaugh to save it

By

Topics: Reince Priebus, Republican Party, CPAC, Editor's Picks, ,

GOP “autopsy” dismembers the partyReince Priebus, Sarah Palin (Credit: AP/Chris Usher/Reuters/Jonathan Ernst)

It’s a little weird to call an inquiry into the troubles of a living entity an “autopsy” – they’re normally performed on the dead — but that’s what Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus labeled his four-month examination of his party’s 2012 defeat. It turns out he believes in truth in labeling.

Priebus’s thorough-going investigation and its 200 pages of recommendations leave the modern GOP dismembered, its diseased vital organs cut out, their toxicity examined, and the patient lying dead on the table. Some of the recommendations are surprisingly substantive, urging the party to rethink its harsh stands on gay rights and to back comprehensive immigration reform, for instance. It admits many voters see the party as “scary” and “out of touch.” But with the far-right crackpot CPAC convening as its backdrop – Exhibit A in scary and out of touch — it’s hard to see any organized GOP constituency for such changes, while there’s plenty of party opposition.

“Let’s be clear about one thing, we’re not here to rebrand a party,” Sarah Palin declared Saturday. “We’re here to rebuild a country.” Rush Limbaugh has already declared war on Priebus and his makeover plans. “The Republicans are just getting totally bamboozled right now,” Limbaugh told his listeners. “The Republican Party lost because it’s not conservative, it didn’t get its base out. People say they need to moderate their tone — they don’t.” He dismissed Priebus’ project as designed to soothe the party’s “donor base.”

Sure, some of the language is just namby-pamby massaging of the message. The section on women sounds like an old Midol commercial, promising to “address concerns that are on women’s minds in order to let them know we are fighting for them.” (Actual policies not included.) Of course, in the real world Republicans are still trying to defund Planned Parenthood and introducing new anti-choice bills coast to coast. And just over the weekend, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell showed his desire to reach out for the women’s vote by ridiculing Hillary Clinton as the right age for the cast of “Golden Girls” but not the White House.

There’s also lots of support for “speaking out,” as in “We should speak out when a company liquidates itself and its executives receive bonuses but rank-and-file workers are left unemployed,” the report says. And also: “We should speak out when CEOs receive tens of millions of dollars in retirement packages but middle-class workers have not had a meaningful raise in years.” Speak out, and say what? Tougher still – do what? It’s clear Priebus is concerned that the party is perceived as the protector of the top 1 percent – but that’s because it is.

The report recommends a $10 million outreach effort to Latinos, African-Americans and Asians, concluding, “If we want ethnic minority voters to support Republicans, we have to engage them, and show our sincerity.” Still, there’s not much acknowledgment that GOP policies are actively repelling voters who aren’t white – and just pushing those policies with more friendliness and sincerity isn’t likely to win those voters to the GOP. It pledges to do more outreach to low-income voters, and help them become middle-class, but since Paul Ryan’s latest budget gets two-thirds of its cuts from programs for the poor and working class, that’s going to be a hard sell.

The one exception to that preference for outreach above policy overhaul is in the area of immigration, where the report endorses comprehensive reform. Even at CPAC it was clear there’s a split in the party, with Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a 2016 hopeful, pushing reform that includes some kind of path to citizenship, an idea Ann Coulter blasted as self-destructive. “If amnesty goes through, America becomes California and no Republican will ever win another national election,” Coulter said. It’s amazing how conservatives’ anti-Latino racism finds new justifications: Now the problem isn’t that they’re taking “our” jobs, or bring violence with them across the border à la Jan Brewer – it’s that they vote Democratic. But Coulter has lots of company in concluding that GOP-backed immigration reform doesn’t help Republicans, by taking a wedge issue off the table, it helps Democrats by handing them new voters.

The other bold declaration in the report has to do with gay rights. It’s framed in terms of the party’s worry that young people are increasingly voting Democratic, but it’s still a step forward. “[W]e do need to make sure young people do not see the Party as totally intolerant of alternative points of view. Already, there is a generational difference within the conservative movement about issues involving the treatment and the rights of gays — and for many younger voters, these issues are a gateway into whether the Party is a place they want to be.”

And while there’s some movement within the party on gay rights, House Speaker John Boehner still felt it necessary to reassure Republican voters that unlike Ohio Sen. Rob Portman, he wouldn’t support gay marriage –  not even if his son was gay! House Republicans paid to support the Defense of Marriage Act even as the Obama administration refused to back it before the Supreme Court. Gay rights may be the policy issue where change comes fastest for the party – but it probably won’t be in time for 2016. That year’s presidential primaries will almost certainly feature a roster of Democrats who support gay marriage – Hillary Clinton made it formal with a video Monday — making it a divisive issue only on the GOP side.

Priebus deserves some credit for tackling a couple of tough issues as well as facing up to the party’s collision course with extinction if it doesn’t broaden its demographic base beyond older white people. But if he goes too far for the right, he doesn’t go far enough to make a real pitch for moderate voters and voters who aren’t white.  His autopsy won’t make sense until Republicans realize their party is dead as a national entity at least in its current paranoid, polarizing incarnation.

Joan Walsh

Joan Walsh is Salon's editor at large and the author of "What's the Matter With White People: Finding Our Way in the Next America." More Joan Walsh.

You Might Also Like

More Related Stories

Featured Slide Shows

7 motorist-friendly camping sites

close X
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 9

Sponsored Post

  • White River National Forest via Lower Crystal Lake, Colorado
    For those OK with the mainstream, White River Forest welcomes more than 10 million visitors a year, making it the most-visited recreation forest in the nation. But don’t hate it for being beautiful; it’s got substance, too. The forest boasts 8 wilderness areas, 2,500 miles of trail, 1,900 miles of winding service system roads, and 12 ski resorts (should your snow shredders fit the trunk space). If ice isn’t your thing: take the tire-friendly Flat Tops Trail Scenic Byway — 82 miles connecting the towns of Meeker and Yampa, half of which is unpaved for you road rebels.
    fs.usda.gov/whiteriveryou


    Image credit: Getty

  • Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest via Noontootla Creek, Georgia
    Boasting 10 wildernesses, 430 miles of trail and 1,367 miles of trout-filled stream, this Georgia forest is hailed as a camper’s paradise. Try driving the Ridge and Valley Scenic Byway, which saw Civil War battles fought. If the tall peaks make your engine tremble, opt for the relatively flat Oconee National Forest, which offers smaller hills and an easy trail to the ghost town of Scull Shoals. Scaredy-cats can opt for John’s Mountain Overlook, which leads to twin waterfalls for the sensitive sightseer in you.
    fs.usda.gov/conf


    Image credit: flickr/chattoconeenf

  • Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness Area via Green Road, Michigan
    The only national forest in Lower Michigan, the Huron-Mainstee spans nearly 1 million acres of public land. Outside the requisite lush habitat for fish and wildlife on display, the Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness Area is among the biggest hooks for visitors: offering beach camping with shores pounded by big, cerulean surf. Splash in some rum and you just might think you were in the Caribbean.
    fs.usda.gov/hmnf


    Image credit: umich.edu

  • Canaan Mountain via Backcountry Canaan Loop Road, West Virginia
    A favorite hailed by outdoorsman and author Johnny Molloy as some of the best high-country car camping sites anywhere in the country, you don’t have to go far to get away. Travel 20 miles west of Dolly Sods (among the busiest in the East) to find the Canaan Backcountry (for more quiet and peace). Those willing to leave the car for a bit and foot it would be remiss to neglect day-hiking the White Rim Rocks, Table Rock Overlook, or the rim at Blackwater River Gorge.
    fs.usda.gov/mnf


    Image credit: Getty

  • Mt. Rogers NRA via Hurricane Creek Road, North Carolina
    Most know it as the highest country they’ll see from North Carolina to New Hampshire. What they may not know? Car campers can get the same grand experience for less hassle. Drop the 50-pound backpacks and take the highway to the high country by stopping anywhere on the twisting (hence the name) Hurricane Road for access to a 15-mile loop that boasts the best of the grassy balds. It’s the road less travelled, and the high one, at that.
    fs.usda.gov/gwj


    Image credit: wikipedia.org

  • Long Key State Park via the Overseas Highway, Florida
    Hiking can get old; sometimes you’d rather paddle. For a weekend getaway of the coastal variety and quieter version of the Florida Keys that’s no less luxe, stick your head in the sand (and ocean, if snorkeling’s your thing) at any of Long Key’s 60 sites. Canoes and kayaks are aplenty, as are the hot showers and electric power source amenities. Think of it as the getaway from the typical getaway.
    floridastateparks.org/longkey/default.cfm


    Image credit: floridastateparks.org

  • Grand Canyon National Park via Crazy Jug Point, Arizona
    You didn’t think we’d neglect one of the world’s most famous national parks, did you? Nor would we dare lead you astray with one of the busiest parts of the park. With the Colorado River still within view of this cliff-edge site, Crazy Jug is a carside camper’s refuge from the troops of tourists. Find easy access to the Bill Hall Trail less than a mile from camp, and descend to get a peek at the volcanic Mt. Trumbull. (Fear not: It’s about as active as your typical lazy Sunday in front of the tube, if not more peaceful.)
    fs.usda.gov/kaibab


    Image credit: flickr/Irish Typepad

  • As the go-to (weekend) getaway car for fiscally conscious field trips with friends, the 2013 MINI Convertible is your campground racer of choice, allowing you and up to three of your co-pilots to take in all the beauty of nature high and low. And with a fuel efficiency that won’t leave you in the latter, you won’t have to worry about being left stranded (or awkwardly asking to go halfsies on gas expenses).


    Image credit: miniusa.com

  • Recent Slide Shows

  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 9

Related Videos

Comments

 76 Comments

Comment Preview

Your name will appear as username ( settings | log out )

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href=""> <b> <em> <strong> <i> <blockquote>

follow salon

Most Read

Popular on Reddit

links from salon.com

vote
Let's Stop Screwing Around and Impeach James Clapper: After lying to Congress about all the different ways the NSA's spying on us, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper lies about how he lied. Call the White House at 202 456-1111 and Tell Obama to Get Rid of Clapper
332 points333 points | 16 comments
vote
Let's Stop Screwing Around and Impeach James Clapper: After lying to Congress about all the different ways the NSA's spying on us, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper lies about how he lied. Call the White House at 202 456-1111 and Tell Obama to Get Rid of Clapper
196 points197 points | 25 comments
vote
Machiavelli doesn’t belong to the 1 percent | "The Prince" is oft-quoted on Wall Street, but its author was a hero of the working class who despised elites
89 points90 points | 33 comments
vote
Let's Stop Screwing Around and Impeach James Clapper: After lying to Congress about all the different ways the NSA's spying on us, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper lies about how he lied. Call the White House at 202 456-1111 and Tell Obama to Get Rid of Clapper
55 points56 points | 7 comments
vote
“Whistle-blower” now means “homegrown terrorist” And other definitions from the new dictionary for our post-9/11 security state
40 points41 points | 2 comments

From Around the Web

Presented by Scribol
listener_new_rect The Listener: "The Joker": Laughing at life's deepest sorrows