Requiem for Republicans

The indictments go beyond the Iraq War and a recession. They include the catastrophic mishandling of Hurricane Katrina; an ice-cold response to the signature issue of global warming; deeply inbred symbiotic alliances with corporate lobbyists; failure to engage on the green revolution; an apparent impotence to stop rising energy prices; obstructionism on national health care; hands-off policies on Wall Street’s mega-financial institutions; taxation strategies favoring the rich and corporate behemoths; a bankrupt education agenda; and budget-busting fiscal policies while advocating balanced budgets and no new taxes.

For those who recall the late San Francisco ad man Hal Riney’s commercial, “Morning in America,” produced for Ronald Reagan’s reelection campaign, New Republic writer Sean Wilentz titles his article, “Sunset in America: The end of the age of Reagan.” Wilentz writes, “The age of Reagan has, thanks to George W. Bush, finally lost its relevance, except as a nostalgic touchstone of bygone Republican glory.”

In a cover story in The Nation, Eyal Press asks, “Is the Party Over?” He observes that Republicans have done themselves in by shoddy leadership:

“Republicans were finally given the opportunity to free the citizenry from the chains of the Leviathan state, the result was crony capitalism, fiscal recklessness and bumbling incompetence on an unprecedented scale.”

A recent New Yorker cover trumpets an account of the fall of Republicanism: “Is the GOP brain dead? Conservative thinkers fear the ideas that helped Republicans dominate for a generation have run their course.”

I have my own simple explanation.

Republican government has taught Americans why they desperately need their federal government to be the national advocate and protector of the common good, and the guarantor – of last resort – of a level playing field for every citizen.

Clint Reilly’s initial foray into political consulting at age 23 developed into a successful 26-year career in politics, during which he founded the nation’s largest political consulting firm of its time. Reilly managed winning campaigns for a wide variety of high-profile candidates, including current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, and former California State Senate President Pro Tem Dave Roberti. Recently, Reilly has led the battle to preserve media competition in the Bay Area via two landmark anti-trust lawsuits (Reilly v. Hearst and Reilly v. MediaNews, et. al.). Reilly was chairman of the board of Catholic Charities/CYO from 2002 to 2006 and is active in a variety of civic and charitable causes. This article first appeared on www.clintreilly.com/ and is republished with his permission.