The Cowardly Elephant

"Expedience" is rapidly becoming the byword of the National Republican Party as the Party illustrates that it is happy to continue providing all the evidence we can stand that it is truly searching for it's soul. President Andrew Johnson spoke well when he said "Honest conviction is my courage; the Constitution is my guide." Unfortunately, for the Republican Party, principle is the foundation of conviction. There is a troubling lack of principle in the national leadership of the GOP today. Without principle there is no conviction and without conviction there is no courage and without courage, fear becomes the guide.

On Tuesday Florida Gov. Charlie Crist announced his run for US Senate in the 2010 mid-term election cycle. Within minutes thereafter the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), Texas Senator John Cornyn, endorsed Crist and threw the "full support" of the NRSC behind Crist. It was an act of expedience. To paraphrase the reason cited by Cornyn Crist has the best chance of winning. There was no discussion of Crist's value system or his position on issues. The main consideration was perceived electability.

On May 5th Marco Rubio, a Florida state rep from Miami, announced his bid for the same US Senate seat. The response from the NRSC was non committal. After Rubio's announcement last week Cornyn issued a statement on behalf of the NRSC that he did "not expect the NRSC to take sides" in the Florida primary. That position lasted until minutes after Crist officially joined the race. There is some debate as to whether the NRSC will financially support Crist in the primary race. But it is hard to imagine that the "full support" of the NRSC promised by Cornyn does not include "full support".

Unlike Crist, Rubio has a clearly identifiable set of core values; Conservative core values. There is no debate that Crist is a moderate. Crist supported the stimulus activities of the current administration and has gone to great lengths to alienate the conservative base of the Florida GOP. Crist holds the edge in recognition and has more appeal among the center of the electorate. Rubio is widely viewed as an electable candidate with greater support among republicans. So why is the NRSC supporting Crist over Rubio? Fear. The simple explanation for the national GOP gravitation towards Charlie Crist in Florida, and Tom Ridge in Pennsylvania is that the Party leadership is operating out of fear. They are listening to the voices described in the previous post and, in the absence of their own convictions, they are afraid to ignore them. The presence of fear is a clear indication of an absence of principle in the leadership of the Republican Party. Without courage the National GOP leadership will continue to seek the middle for it's perceived safety.

Marco Rubio has said that he is ready to "let the debate begin" with Crist over the direction the GOP should be going. The GOP should be helping candidates like Marco Rubio in Florida and Pat Toomey in Pennsylvania make the case for conservatism. The NRSC should be putting it's "full support" behind these candidates. If the Party is going to go on an expedition in search of it's principles, it would be a good idea for them to try talking to men that already have some.

As a Texan, I am deeply disappointed in John Cornyn's role in using the NRSC to actively oppose a conservative candidate in the Florida Senate race. Senator Cornyn is clearly the more conservative of our two Texas Senators, but in this case he has let us down. I will be contacting Sen. Cornyn's office to express my disappointment and encourage him to support conservative candidates through the NRSC. I would strongly encourage others to please do the same.