The political landscape for Republicans has never been as favorable leading up to a midterm election as it is in 2022.
The electorate is clamoring for a change in direction, though there is growing doubt a “red wave” election will actually materialize and deliver that change.
Recently, Republican House Leader Kevin McCarthy unveiled his “Commitment to America,” a list of promises fashioned after Newt Gingrich’s “Contract with America,” which delivered Republicans historic success in 1994.
In the works for nearly a year, this document is intended to clearly lay out the Republican Party’s approach to solving the country’s most pressing problems. But it reads like a regurgitation of political promises Republicans have been making for decades. It’s long on what’s wrong and who’s to blame, but falls woefully short on delivering a detailed plan to bring the relief so many Americans are craving.
The Commitment to America was written to foster purpose, action and unity among Republican candidates. In baseball terms, though, it’s a swing and a miss.
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Making America safe by arresting rising crime, conquering crippling inflation and rebuilding the economy, restoring rights that have been under attack by the Biden administration, and promoting government accountability are the document’s core pillars. All are worthy ideals most conservative voters would certainly agree on. But McCarthy’s plan is missing a 100-day legislative agenda to achieve its goals.
Without a legislative agenda every Republican House candidate will enthusiastically sign on to, voters are likely to view the Commitment to America as little more than a rehash of familiar rhetoric, a phantom.
Republican House and Senate candidates seem to be anything but united in promoting the ideals of the Commitment to America in their own campaigns. An examination of Republican campaign ads reveals a familiar playbook: Identify the problems, blame Biden and the Democrats, and engage in ad hominem personal attacks on opponents.
The ads for both sides are nearly indistinguishable. Democrats identify their own set of problems, blame Trump, and attack Republicans as evil insurrectionists. In what is considered to be a change election, it’s bizarre that both sides are making essentially the same appeal to voters.
Even if Republicans gain a modest majority in the House and a razor-thin advantage in the Senate, they still won’t be able to deliver on the Commitment’s promises. But Republicans could, by unifying, bring to the floor of both chambers legislation that delivers accountability to Biden and the Democrats.
Should congressional GOP leaders be removed from their positions?
The strategy is to make Democrats say no to real solutions ahead of the 2024 presidential election. To do so would require actual unity among Republicans, although unity is a flower that doesn’t grow in their garden.
The Republican Party is split into four factions: the neo-conservatives (neo-cons), leftovers from the George W. Bush era, Trump-affiliated “MAGA” Republicans, and the shrinking though still present “Never Trumpers.” The party is so fractured it can’t agree on the time of day, let alone a legislative agenda.
House and Senate candidates endorsed by Trump were over 90 percent successful throughout the 2022 primary season, suggesting Trump and his MAGA ideology are firmly in control of the party’s direction. But the current party leadership won’t allow that to happen.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is at least Trump-averse and leans strongly toward the Never Trump camp, a constant thorn in the former president’s side. Even McCarthy has been less than a reliable voice in support of Trump’s agenda. Longtime House and Senate committee leaders such as Lindsey Graham must also be replaced.
The Republican Party must clean house and turn the page once and for all.
The party needs a united leadership presenting a united front to the opposition. Republicans who talk tough on Fox News then whither when it comes time to vote must be removed from leadership positions.
If there is to be a single document that defines and unifies 2022 midterm Republican candidates, one they will all enthusiastically sign on to, fashion their message around, and agree to be held to, let it be a pledge to remove all existing House and Senate Republican leadership in January 2023. Only so drastic and definitive an action will convince voters Republicans will deliver the change they are demanding.
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