Hope, change and politics

Two excellent assessments

Jay Cost, Obama misread his mandate

Michael Barone, When liberal leaders confront a centrist nation

Barone makes a key point that underlines the stupidity of Obamacons like Frum, Brooks, and Parker.

There are more conservatives than Republicans and more Democrats than liberals. That's one of the asymmetries between the parties that helps to explain the particular political spot we're in. The numbers are fairly clear. In the 2008 exit poll, 34 percent of voters described themselves as conservatives and 32 percent as Republicans; 39 percent described themselves as Democrats but only 22 percent as liberals.

Therefore

The result is that the two parties have offsetting political advantages. Democrats tend to win on party identification. Republicans tend to win on ideology. Democrats don't have to appeal to as many independents as Republicans do. Republicans don't have to appeal to as many moderates as Democrats do.

Thus, Frum's idea that the GOP should jettison the conservative base to appeal to moderates is a fool's errand. More importantly, the Obamacons's continued demonization of regular conservatives helps the Democrats, not Republicans.

Makes you wonder if they really care about conservatives or Republicans....

Another nagging question. The Obamacons like to claim that Limbaugh, Levin, Coulter, Palin, et. al. are making the GOP seem crazy, irresponsible, and irrelevant. Yet, here we are. Levin leads the best-seller list, Limbaugh dominates radio, and Palin dominates the news cycle via a Facebook message. This should mean that the Obama administration is soaring as moderates flee the right. That's what Frum says will happen.

Yet, instead, the political tides are running in the opposite direction. Is it possible that David Frum is not infallible?