The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

‘Fun, Light-hearted and Accessible’ Is OK, But How About Winning Elections?

Posted on | May 16, 2010 | 33 Comments

My first reaction to the Ricochet story was admittedly idiosyncratic, whereas Dan Riehl takes a more practical view:

It’s a complex topic, but the Left tends to use new media tactically to generate specific results and win elections, not just nationally – but in states and districts, as well. OTOH some on the Right seem focused on creating, or simply recycling the same old same old, in hopes of creating new stars. There’s a need for both. But I suspect what the Left is doing is more likely to pay off, politically speaking.

I certainly agree, and have witnessed this phenomenon first-hand. I’ve been amazed at the difficulty in the past few weeks of getting conservatives to pay attention to the PA-12 special election. Here is a chance to take a seat away from Nancy Pelosi — to give the Democrats a good punch in the nose — and yet it hasn’t gotten nearly the kind of attention that Scott Brown got four months ago.

Some of us were discussing this Friday evening in Pennsylvania, and various explanations were offered. OK, it’s a congressional election — one of 435 seats — as opposed to a Senate seat. And there is not the kind “41st vote” factor here, as there was in Massachusetts in January. Neverthless, PA-12 is the only actually election (i.e., not just a primary) on Tuesday, and you’d think conservative New Media would be fired up and focused. But they’re not, at least not like they were in January.

It was suggested, in the discussion we had Friday, that perhaps the failure of the Lynch campaign in last month’s FL-19 special election had made people a little gun-shy about getting emotionally invested in PA-12, but that doesn’t make sense. Every election is a different election. FL-19 was a nearly unique situation — Michael Barone’s post-election analysis was insightful — and the demographics and political history of PA-12 are completely different.

If that explanation doesn’t work, what about Bill Russell’s relentless badmouthing of Tim Burns? Russell, who lost to Jack Murtha by 15% in 2008, is disgruntled over not getting the GOP nomination in the PA-12 special election. Russell has ostentatiously refused to endorse Burns in the special election, and Russell’s campaign — he’s still on the ballot in the GOP primary — seems focused entirely on tearing down Burns. (Russell’s spokesman smeared Burns as an “opportunist” in the Pittsburgh paper last week.)

It isn’t hard to imagine that those who supported Russell in 2008 share his disappointment, but the logic of being the anti-Murtha candidate died with Murtha on Feb. 8, and Russell never developed any other message. The “opportunist” smear against Burns is just that, a smear. Burns helped organize the first Tea Party in his community in April 2009 and his congressional candidacy was the result of grassroots supporters encouraging him to run. Yet I fear that Russell has used the connections he made in 2008 to discourage conservative New Media coverage of the Burns campaign.

As troubling as that scenario might be — one man’s vengeful spite damaging an otherwise promising prospect — there’s an even more disturbing possibility. Maybe the inattention to the PA-12 special election indicates that New Media on the Right simply don’t understand what’s at stake here.  Maybe conservatives don’t realize that politics is about, y’know, winning elections?

A scary thought. Dan’s point about the Left’s tactical use of New Media stirred up that thought, which has been rattling around in my brain for a few weeks.  Maybe the Tea Party phenomenon was a temporary fad, an ephemeral thing. Maybe all those people who turned out at rallies on 9/12 just got bored and lost interest when their activism didn’t yield immediate results. Now they want to go back to what they were doing before — bitching about liberal bias in the MSM, etc. — and so there’s no incentive for conservative New Media to pay attention to the mechanics of electoral politics. Why cover campaigns, if nobody wants to read about campaigns?

Scary thought, I say, because all these pundit projections of Republicans gaining 40 or more House seats in November — enough to recapture a majority — don’t mean squat, if people won’t pay attention to key campaigns this fall. Among the 253 House seats currently held by Democrats, at least 90 are plausibly winnable for the GOP. (See Jim Geraghty’s analysis at National Review.) If getting New Media focused on House campaigns is difficult when there’s only election in the whole country, what will it be like after Labor Day, when there are 90+ key races going on?

Most conservatives already live in Republican-held House districts. The GOP’s biggest New Media challenge for 2010, I believe, is to motivate and mobilize these people as activists, getting them to help out with congressional campaigns in nearby Democratic-held districts, so that Republican challengers in key districts have more volunteers to act as “boots on the ground” in these campaigns. While online fundraising is important, the money will follow if people get fired up about the candidates.

However, unless there is some greater effort to do what Dan Riehl talking about — using New Media “tactically” — I fear that Republican House campaigns will suffer unnecessarily from a shortage of enthusiasm.

Category: Blogging

Comments

33 Responses to “‘Fun, Light-hearted and Accessible’ Is OK, But How About Winning Elections?”

  1. goddessoftheclassroom
    May 16th, 2010 @ 12:45 pm

    Thank you! I live in the 12th district, and although I hate to admit to such ignorance, I was confused about where Bill Russell fit in to this picture. Thanks to you, I now know.

    GO TIM BURNS!!!!

  2. goddessoftheclassroom
    May 16th, 2010 @ 7:45 am

    Thank you! I live in the 12th district, and although I hate to admit to such ignorance, I was confused about where Bill Russell fit in to this picture. Thanks to you, I now know.

    GO TIM BURNS!!!!

  3. Noel
    May 16th, 2010 @ 2:07 pm

    ‘Fun, Light-hearted and Accessible’ Is OK, But How About Winning Elections?

    Ricochet is fun, Robert–and also about winning. On the latest show (#16), Dr. Robert Steele is interviewed in depth. Steele is taking on the “Dingell Seat”, in the family business since 1932!

    Steele has a medical business employing hundreds in depressed Michigan, while Dingell has never earned–or signed–a private paycheck in his life.

    Anyway, I was very enthused after hearing the doctor, and Ricochet has been featuring other candidates as well.

    Reagan and Limbaugh had great success with the audio format. Hopefully, this internet talk show can follow in that path.

  4. Noel
    May 16th, 2010 @ 9:07 am

    ‘Fun, Light-hearted and Accessible’ Is OK, But How About Winning Elections?

    Ricochet is fun, Robert–and also about winning. On the latest show (#16), Dr. Robert Steele is interviewed in depth. Steele is taking on the “Dingell Seat”, in the family business since 1932!

    Steele has a medical business employing hundreds in depressed Michigan, while Dingell has never earned–or signed–a private paycheck in his life.

    Anyway, I was very enthused after hearing the doctor, and Ricochet has been featuring other candidates as well.

    Reagan and Limbaugh had great success with the audio format. Hopefully, this internet talk show can follow in that path.

  5. Noel
    May 16th, 2010 @ 2:09 pm

    Oops–here’s the link:

    http://podcast.ricochet.com/ricochet-podcast-episode-16.mp3

  6. Noel
    May 16th, 2010 @ 9:09 am

    Oops–here’s the link:

    http://podcast.ricochet.com/ricochet-podcast-episode-16.mp3

  7. Thrasymachus
    May 16th, 2010 @ 2:48 pm

    Why should conservatives worry about winning elections? Conservatives have won plenty of elections and it hasn’t made any difference.

    Conservative media figures do what they do as criticism of the system, without any real hope of changing it. Deep down I think conservatives are afraid of what would happen if they really did get control. What happened fronm 2001 to 2007 was seriously distorted by 9/11 and the war; but even so there is little reason to a conservative government would change anything. Too much power lies outside the control of government, in the judiciary, the media, and the educational establishment, to make much difference.

  8. Thrasymachus
    May 16th, 2010 @ 9:48 am

    Why should conservatives worry about winning elections? Conservatives have won plenty of elections and it hasn’t made any difference.

    Conservative media figures do what they do as criticism of the system, without any real hope of changing it. Deep down I think conservatives are afraid of what would happen if they really did get control. What happened fronm 2001 to 2007 was seriously distorted by 9/11 and the war; but even so there is little reason to a conservative government would change anything. Too much power lies outside the control of government, in the judiciary, the media, and the educational establishment, to make much difference.

  9. ak4mc
    May 16th, 2010 @ 2:54 pm

    Too much power lies outside the control of government, in the judiciary, the media, and the educational establishment, to make much difference.

    The judiciary and the educational establishment are part of the government. The problem is that elected conservatives, when they’ve had the power to do something about these things, have let the establishment media browbeat them into submission.

    The decline of the establishment media will eventually make that less of a factor, and “eventually” comes sooner for a Chris Christie type than for, say, a John McCain or a Newt Gingrich.

  10. ak4mc
    May 16th, 2010 @ 9:54 am

    Too much power lies outside the control of government, in the judiciary, the media, and the educational establishment, to make much difference.

    The judiciary and the educational establishment are part of the government. The problem is that elected conservatives, when they’ve had the power to do something about these things, have let the establishment media browbeat them into submission.

    The decline of the establishment media will eventually make that less of a factor, and “eventually” comes sooner for a Chris Christie type than for, say, a John McCain or a Newt Gingrich.

  11. Right-Wing Links (May 16, 2010)
    May 16th, 2010 @ 10:12 am

    […] ‘Fun, Light-hearted and Accessible’ Is OK, But How About Winning Elections? […]

  12. Robert Stacy McCain
    May 16th, 2010 @ 3:28 pm

    “Too much power lies outside the control of government, in the judiciary, the media, and the educational establishment, to make much difference.”

    If you believe that you can’t make a difference, that is a pretty good guarantee you won’t make a difference. Change begins with the belief that change is possible. As grim and discouraging as events may be, pessimism is never warranted, because pessimism is an argument for doing nothing.

    “It is history that teaches us to hope.”

  13. Robert Stacy McCain
    May 16th, 2010 @ 10:28 am

    “Too much power lies outside the control of government, in the judiciary, the media, and the educational establishment, to make much difference.”

    If you believe that you can’t make a difference, that is a pretty good guarantee you won’t make a difference. Change begins with the belief that change is possible. As grim and discouraging as events may be, pessimism is never warranted, because pessimism is an argument for doing nothing.

    “It is history that teaches us to hope.”

  14. TR Sterling
    May 16th, 2010 @ 3:55 pm

    Dear Stacy,
    You put some nice background to the Russell-Burns issue and the desire for media purity vs. candidate support in elections that right wing ‘new media’ tend to follow. Seems like more than a few bloggers are just like Russell, demanding their pound of flesh from any ‘opportunist’ who is not on board with their idea of right wing purity.
    Its a fine line that allows you to write with conviction and support for a politician without sounding like a spin machine. One step towards the advocate position from Michael Barone, one step back from Erik Erickson. You do it very well Mr. OMcC.

  15. TR Sterling
    May 16th, 2010 @ 10:55 am

    Dear Stacy,
    You put some nice background to the Russell-Burns issue and the desire for media purity vs. candidate support in elections that right wing ‘new media’ tend to follow. Seems like more than a few bloggers are just like Russell, demanding their pound of flesh from any ‘opportunist’ who is not on board with their idea of right wing purity.
    Its a fine line that allows you to write with conviction and support for a politician without sounding like a spin machine. One step towards the advocate position from Michael Barone, one step back from Erik Erickson. You do it very well Mr. OMcC.

  16. You know I actually kind of agree with this « A Conservative Shemale
    May 16th, 2010 @ 12:06 pm

    […] The Other McCain disagrees, while discussing a related story, arguing that the point isn’t to be accessible but to win elections. He misses the point when he says that, to win elections conservatism has to be accessible. McCain also misses the point on PA-12 which he attempts to tie in with this story – I certainly agree, and have witnessed this phenomenon first-hand. I’ve been amazed at the difficulty in the past few weeks of getting conservatives to pay attention to the PA-12 special election. Here is a chance to take a seat away from Nancy Pelosi — to give the Democrats a good punch in the nose — and yet it hasn’t gotten nearly the kind of attention that Scott Brown got four months ago. […]

  17. Noel
    May 16th, 2010 @ 5:51 pm

    “Why should conservatives worry about winning elections? Conservatives have won plenty of elections and it hasn’t made any difference.”

    “Any” is a big word. But it’s very true that we’ve got a lot of fronts to fight on. That’s why ‘Ricochet’ is a small victory–it’s culture and politics.

    Besides, were you doing something else?

    Wake up Maggie; I think she’s got something to say to us:

    “That’s why I was, however, wrong on one important matter. Of course, I understood that some of my Cabinet colleagues … were more to the left, some more to the right. But I believed that they had generally become as convinced of the rightness of the basic principles as I had. Orthodox finance, low levels of regulation and taxation, a minimal bureaucracy, strong defence, a willingness to stand up for British interests wherever and whenever threatened — I did not believe that I had to open windows into men’s souls on these matters. The arguments for them seemed to me to have been won. I now know that such arguments are never finally won.”

  18. Noel
    May 16th, 2010 @ 12:51 pm

    “Why should conservatives worry about winning elections? Conservatives have won plenty of elections and it hasn’t made any difference.”

    “Any” is a big word. But it’s very true that we’ve got a lot of fronts to fight on. That’s why ‘Ricochet’ is a small victory–it’s culture and politics.

    Besides, were you doing something else?

    Wake up Maggie; I think she’s got something to say to us:

    “That’s why I was, however, wrong on one important matter. Of course, I understood that some of my Cabinet colleagues … were more to the left, some more to the right. But I believed that they had generally become as convinced of the rightness of the basic principles as I had. Orthodox finance, low levels of regulation and taxation, a minimal bureaucracy, strong defence, a willingness to stand up for British interests wherever and whenever threatened — I did not believe that I had to open windows into men’s souls on these matters. The arguments for them seemed to me to have been won. I now know that such arguments are never finally won.”

  19. RightKlik
    May 16th, 2010 @ 6:13 pm

    Very interesting topic.

    Consider the big picture: NY, NJ, VA, MA and UT (defeat of Bennett).

    I think the Conservative New Media/Grassroots/Tea Party will continue to be a force to be reckoned with, through November and beyond. There’s still a tremendous amount of momentum.

    I don’t know why there’s not more interest in the special elections and the primaries. It is worrisome. Maybe there’s some post-ObamaCare battle fatigue. The 41st vote to stop ObamaCare…didn’t. Some of us are probably stunned by the arrogance of the Democrats defiance of the will of the people.

    Maybe conservatives have become more focused on local issues, e.g. Utah…and the other 56 states. Those of us who are religious about politics want to nationalize every race. And I think that’s good. But the closer we get to November, the more difficult that will be.

    Maybe conservatives are still on the steep portion of the learning curve. The anti-Obama movement has brought in a lot of rank amateurs, including yours truly. We’re less than 2 years into the Obama regime. The liberals had fight for 6 years to turn the tide during the Bush administration. Patience.

    The conservative insurrection has been unpredictable and surprisingly smart. A month before Scott Brown won decisively with Tea Party help, who could have predicted that? Is it wise to invest time and money taking down liberal dynasties in Blue States? Conservative pundits said, “don’t waste your time on a lost cause.” Good thing the question was crowdsourced to the grassroots.

    Where possible, conservatives have been bold. Who would have predicted the success of Charles Djou or Marco Rubio?

    In other settings, conservatives have made more conventional decisions, e.g. Mark Kirk & Dan Coats.

    Looking back at the big picture over the past year or so, I can appreciate the wisdom of the conservative marketplace of ideas. Perhaps one of our strengths is that we are a leaderless movement, constantly surprising seasoned conservative strategists and pundits.

    We conservatives are fighting on at least three fronts: against the left-wing machine, the liberals in the GOP establishment, and powerful Big Business special interest groups that are in bed with Big Government. Despite the daunting challenges, I think we’ve made a lot of progress lately.

    The requisite enthusiasm is there. We know what’s at stake, and we know what we need to do. But as we all know well, this war against the left is going to be a slog, not a sprint.

  20. RightKlik
    May 16th, 2010 @ 1:13 pm

    Very interesting topic.

    Consider the big picture: NY, NJ, VA, MA and UT (defeat of Bennett).

    I think the Conservative New Media/Grassroots/Tea Party will continue to be a force to be reckoned with, through November and beyond. There’s still a tremendous amount of momentum.

    I don’t know why there’s not more interest in the special elections and the primaries. It is worrisome. Maybe there’s some post-ObamaCare battle fatigue. The 41st vote to stop ObamaCare…didn’t. Some of us are probably stunned by the arrogance of the Democrats defiance of the will of the people.

    Maybe conservatives have become more focused on local issues, e.g. Utah…and the other 56 states. Those of us who are religious about politics want to nationalize every race. And I think that’s good. But the closer we get to November, the more difficult that will be.

    Maybe conservatives are still on the steep portion of the learning curve. The anti-Obama movement has brought in a lot of rank amateurs, including yours truly. We’re less than 2 years into the Obama regime. The liberals had fight for 6 years to turn the tide during the Bush administration. Patience.

    The conservative insurrection has been unpredictable and surprisingly smart. A month before Scott Brown won decisively with Tea Party help, who could have predicted that? Is it wise to invest time and money taking down liberal dynasties in Blue States? Conservative pundits said, “don’t waste your time on a lost cause.” Good thing the question was crowdsourced to the grassroots.

    Where possible, conservatives have been bold. Who would have predicted the success of Charles Djou or Marco Rubio?

    In other settings, conservatives have made more conventional decisions, e.g. Mark Kirk & Dan Coats.

    Looking back at the big picture over the past year or so, I can appreciate the wisdom of the conservative marketplace of ideas. Perhaps one of our strengths is that we are a leaderless movement, constantly surprising seasoned conservative strategists and pundits.

    We conservatives are fighting on at least three fronts: against the left-wing machine, the liberals in the GOP establishment, and powerful Big Business special interest groups that are in bed with Big Government. Despite the daunting challenges, I think we’ve made a lot of progress lately.

    The requisite enthusiasm is there. We know what’s at stake, and we know what we need to do. But as we all know well, this war against the left is going to be a slog, not a sprint.

  21. KG
    May 16th, 2010 @ 6:20 pm

    Perhaps all this is why things have gotten so bad in America, because conservatives, and those who lean that way, just can’t sustain enthusiasm for politics for long? If that will not change, will anything?

  22. KG
    May 16th, 2010 @ 1:20 pm

    Perhaps all this is why things have gotten so bad in America, because conservatives, and those who lean that way, just can’t sustain enthusiasm for politics for long? If that will not change, will anything?

  23. Almost as Good as ‘Epistemic Closure’ : The Other McCain
    May 16th, 2010 @ 2:02 pm

    […] light-hearted fun should have begun with a phone call to me, and (b) at this point in time, winning congressional elections should take precedence among conservative priorities?Ideology and iPodsNot too much support for […]

  24. ak4mc
    May 17th, 2010 @ 1:30 am

    KG, one of the things that defines a conservative is his preference for a life free of politics. When conservatives become enthusiastic about politics they cease to be conservatives and become, instead, John McCain or Newt Gingrich.

  25. ak4mc
    May 16th, 2010 @ 8:30 pm

    KG, one of the things that defines a conservative is his preference for a life free of politics. When conservatives become enthusiastic about politics they cease to be conservatives and become, instead, John McCain or Newt Gingrich.

  26. ak4mc
    May 17th, 2010 @ 1:33 am

    Recognizing politics as a necessary evil, on the other hand — and especially as one that will become more evil and less necessary if left to liberals — does demand that conservatives take part in politics, if only so as to survive.

  27. ak4mc
    May 16th, 2010 @ 8:33 pm

    Recognizing politics as a necessary evil, on the other hand — and especially as one that will become more evil and less necessary if left to liberals — does demand that conservatives take part in politics, if only so as to survive.

  28. Bob Belvedere
    May 17th, 2010 @ 1:06 pm

    RightKlik is dead solid perfect [bravo].

    One quibble…

    You wrote [emphasis mine]: We conservatives are fighting on at least three fronts: against the left-wing machine, the liberals in the GOP establishment, and powerful Big Business special interest groups that are in bed with Big Government.

    Its not just the liberals in the GOP Establishment, but those conservatives who have been there too long and have ‘gone Washington’. So, I think its the whole of the Stupid Party Esatblishment we’re fighting.

  29. Bob Belvedere
    May 17th, 2010 @ 8:06 am

    RightKlik is dead solid perfect [bravo].

    One quibble…

    You wrote [emphasis mine]: We conservatives are fighting on at least three fronts: against the left-wing machine, the liberals in the GOP establishment, and powerful Big Business special interest groups that are in bed with Big Government.

    Its not just the liberals in the GOP Establishment, but those conservatives who have been there too long and have ‘gone Washington’. So, I think its the whole of the Stupid Party Esatblishment we’re fighting.

  30. Bob Belvedere
    May 17th, 2010 @ 1:07 pm

    Stacy: Remember your Patton…

    Do not take counsel of your fears.

  31. Bob Belvedere
    May 17th, 2010 @ 8:07 am

    Stacy: Remember your Patton…

    Do not take counsel of your fears.

  32. The American Conservative » Daddy, Don’t Take the T-Bird Away!
    May 17th, 2010 @ 9:16 am

    […] McCain complains that he wasn’t invited and that his team should devote their efforts to electing more […]

  33. Cold Fury » The Despair of Denethor
    May 17th, 2010 @ 4:46 pm

    […] was over at The Other McCain today and read a piece called ‘Fun, Lighthearted and Accesible is OK, but how About Winning Elections?’  The discussion was on a new website, Ricochet, and Dan Riehl’s reaction to it.  Of course, […]