First, I’ll make a prediction. The candidates in the 2016 Presidential election will be Hillary Clinton and Marco Rubio. Remember, you heard it here first. Of course over the last year or so I also predicted that the U.S. Supreme Court would strike down Obamacare, Rob Portman would be Mitt Romney’s choice for a running mate, and that Romney would narrowly defeat Barack Obama and win the Presidency. (And we all know how well those predictions panned out.)
In my own defense, I believe a thorough review of my predictions would show I’m right more often than not. (And who’s going to remember that I predicted Hillary vs. Marco anyway?)
A few more post-election observations. The day after the election, the stock market fell over 300 points, the biggest one day drop in a year. And the next day, it fell another 121 points. Most in the mainstream press attributed this drop to concern about the upcoming “fiscal cliff.” I believe it’s much more logical to conclude that it was Obama’s re-election that caused the precipitous drop. After all, businesses now face the crushing costs of Obamacare, higher taxes, and job-killing regulations. The relief which small businesses in particular had hoped and prayed for is now likely out of reach. Instead, they face a hostile re-elected Administration which demonizes, belittles, and punishes success.
I also find it very interesting how many political pundits (most of them liberal and Obama-supporting) are now weighing in on what the Republican Party should do to win elections in the future. Without citing every suggestion, let me sum them up by saying that in general, they suggest that Republicans become more like Democrats. One must first ask oneself, why would these Democrats want Republicans to be more electable in the future in the first place? In other words, why should Republicans listen to them. Answer – we shouldn’t.
Even some conservatives I respect have weighed in with some head-scratching suggestions. Bill Kristol says Republicans should throw in the towel and just raise taxes already. And Charles Krauthammer says we need to reverse ourselves on immigration, and support amnesty. He even used that word.
For the record, I disagree with both of these usually level-headed conservative commentators. That being said, Republicans must find a principled way of appealing to more women, Hispanics, Asians, African-Americans, and young people, or we won’t win another Presidential election for a long time, if ever. The demographics in America are changing so rapidly, and to such an extent, that failure to recognize and deal with this phenomena is not an option.
As I write this week’s blog, I’m on a Delta flight back to Washington for the lame duck session of Congress. Besides the issues I’ve mentioned above, we are facing the expiration of the Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003; automatic sequestration of funds ($600 billion from defense, which in general Republicans don’t like, and $600 billion from domestic programs, which in general Democrats don’t like); another potential debt-ceiling increase; and potential war with Iran over their nuclear program; among other things.
I would appreciate your input on any of these matters, and I again want to thank you for placing your trust in me to represent you in Congress for another term. See you next week.