Bobby, Bobby, oh Bobby.
You hit the nail on the head back in 2012 when you correctly diagnosed what was ailing your beloved GOP after some surprising election losses. But did anyone listen? Of course not!
Just to refresh our memories, here is what you said ten years ago when your party lost two winnable 2021 Senate races (Missouri, Indiana) after your candidates (Todd Akin, Richard Mourdock) made some really stupid comments about rape :
“We must stop being the stupid party. I’m serious. It’s time for a new Republican party that talks like adults. It’s time for us to articulate our plans and visions for America in real terms. We had a number of Republicans damage the brand this year with offensive and bizarre comments. We’ve had enough of that.”
After having backed perhaps the worst, most unqualified candidate for the United States Senate in GOP history, Herschel Walker, this is what your National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman, Rick Scott, said recently:
“While Herschel came up short last night, I know he will continue to be a leader in our party for years to come.”
A smart party leader would never have said that! A clear-headed politician, one in touch with reality, might have said that old Mitch McConnell was correct… Republicans need to focus more on candidate quality going forward … or, better yet, might have said nothing at all!
There undoubtedly is a GOP playbook somewhere which says “never admit error… just keep doubling down.” Bobby, I’m afraid yours is a party that hates admitting a mistake even more than having committed the mistake in the first place.
So, Bobby, what happened to you? You had such a promising political future! You were young, diverse and sharp. Some were calling you the next best thing for the GOP. You won reelection for governor of Louisiana in 2011 by a landslide. And now you’re an advisor at some investment firm?
I’m guessing you eventually got tired of banging your head against the wall. You came to realize that while you can fix many things, you can’t fix stupid.
Still, Bobby, why haven’t you come out to say only a “stupid party” would even consider nominating a one-term, twice-impeached loser to run again for the presidency in 2024? Just asking.
Photo | AP/Michael Conroy/thenation.com