Republicans Have to go Negative to Win

One of the talking points of the GOP is that they are the party of "ideas" and that the Democrats don't have any "ideas." This is almost always the claim of Republicans in Washington and they get a remarkably large number of Beltway Journalists to buy into it. Well, here is a question: if the GOP is the "Party of Ideas" that are supported by the public, then why are so many Republican campaigns nothing more than one long attack ad?

Think about it. Think of all the ads you are seeing on TV by Republicans. How many of them are about ideas or public policies? The House Republican Campaign Committee recently poured eight million dollars into 30 House races. According to the breakdown of the money, about 98% of that money will be spent attacking Democratic candidates and only about 2% will be spent supporting Republican candidates.

The reality, of course, is that the GOP is not the "Party of Ideas" supported by ordinary working Americans. Such Americans don't want the privatization of Social Security, or unbalanced budgets because of tax cuts for the wealthy, or a war in Iraq that does nothing to improve American security. The GOP is, however, the "Party of Ideas" for the well-connected, or the rich, or for those who advocate war while keeping their own children home safe and sound.

Since such people don't amount to a majority in any election, the GOP uses scare tactics and smear campaigns funded by its rich backers to try and defeat Democrats. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Don't be fooled, however, into thinking that Democrats are losing elections because of the superior ideas of the Republicans. It just isn't true.
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