The Washington Post has an article today about the emerging belief among some Republicans that fighting against the Obama stimulus package has rejuvenated he party’s fading brand:
“We’re so far ahead of where we thought we’d be at this time,” said Rep. Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.), one of several younger congressmen seeking to lead the party’s renewal. “It’s not a sign that we’re back to where we need to be, but it’s a sign that we’re beginning to find our voice. We’re standing on our core principles, and the core principle that suffered the most in recent years was fiscal conservatism and economic liberty. That was the tallest pole in our tent, and we took an ax to it, but now we’re building it back.”
I would guess that, purely as a matter of political tactics, the approach makes sense. The House Republicans in particular can’t stop the legislation, and are unlikely to be able to effect major changes in it. So why not just fight it?
But when it comes to longer-term strategy, I’m not so sure. It’s pretty obvious that the GOP has no big new ideas for getting us out of this mess. The consistent stance for someone who truly believes in “fiscal conservatism and economic liberty” is to get out of the way and let the economy recover on its own. That’s not what’s going to happen. So if the economy recovers later this year, the Obama stimulus will get a lot of credit and the Republicans will lose ground. What’s interesting to ponder, though, is what happens if the economy keeps struggling even post stimulus. The Republican bet is that voters will then want a quick return to fiscal conservatism and deregulation. I’m not so sure that’ll be a winner.