Scott
Brown did the undoable: He won a senate race in deep blue
Massachusetts running on the Republican ticket. But he did so not as a
Republican; he ran as a conservative, independent of the Party
establishment.
The
Republican establishment has long forwarded the mantra that the
party needs to moderate or silence its conservative base in order to win
elections outside the South. Voters in blue states, so they argue, will
never vote for conservative candidates who do not in many ways mirror
their Democrat opponents.
This
"Me too" attitude is championed by the likes of Colin
Powell, Lindsay Graham, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and David Brooks.
They agree with the premises of the progressive welfare state agenda by
saying "Me too" then differ only on the degree to which the leftist
agenda should be imposed on the public.
Surely to the angst of this crowd, Scott Brown did not say, "Me too" to
any of the Democrat agenda. Rather, he clearly proclaimed, "Not me!"
It is
important for everyone on the right to acknowledge Brown also presented
himself as an alternative to the "Me too" Republicans. He spoke clearly
and definitively about every conservative issue from free markets to gun
rights. His campaign website reads like a collage of Tea Party signs and
placards. Basically, Brown ran the kind of conservative campaign
certainly not cooked up in the Rockefeller Wing of the RNC.
And
look what happened.
For
contrast, ponder the election one year ago. The Republican candidate in
that election favored cap-and-trade, bragged of working with Ted
Kennedy, co-authored campaign funding legislation with Russ Feingold,
and attempted to push through thinly-veiled amnesty. By all accounts he
avoided being a conservative candidate.
And
look what happened to John McCain.
It is
therefore an error to chalk up Brown's victory as a win for the
Republican brand. Frankly, there is not much of a Republican brand; only
shadows of its identity remain in the minds of voters.
Coca
Cola is one of the world's most successful companies because consumers
know exactly what their brand represents; consumers know the next taste
will be just like the last so they continue consume Coke.
Voters, like consumers, need to know what they are buying. George W.
Bush and a Republican Congress did a good job of separating the
Republican Party from good branding such as responsible budgets and
aversion to deficit spending, The brand has suffered as they turned an
appealing can of Coca Cola into Democratic-Lite. This dispirits the base
and has no appeal to independents looking for reasons not to vote for
the other guy.
So
Scott Brown had little leverage working under the Republican banner.
What he did do was clearly and passionately articulate pro freedom
principles. He conducted one big taste test and the results have come
back loud and clear: conservatism sells! And consider the context of
Brown's accomplishment: it took place in the midst of a vast socialist
power grab for the country. If ever there were a time when the public
both desires and needs a clear alternative it is now.
The
public does not want New Coke; Americans want the classic taste of
freedom-loving conservatism. Let's build on Brown's success and prepare
to meet the return demand for a good product. Word has it consumers will
be back this November.
It
will be refreshing to see Scott Brown riding his truck to Congress
because he sure did not ride an elephant to victory.