Run a Democrat Against a Psuedo-Democrat and the Democrat Will Win

I will always be very proud to have worked for Senator Herman E. Talmadge of Georgia. He was recognized, even by his ideological opponents, as a brilliant, principled legislator, of considerable power and influence, who in a quiet, gentlemanly way, defended the Constitution, the principles of small, efficient, republican government, low taxes, balanced budgets, freedom and common sense. He even returned a significant percentage of campaign contributions to donors after his reelection campaigns. He left office the year Ronald Reagan became President, but having worked for Senator Talmadge, it was easy for this former Democrat to support Ronald Reagan and eventually become a Reagan Republican, because that great President espoused everything Herman E. Talmadge had stood for over the course of twenty-four years in the United States Senate.

In this interview made long after he retired, Senator Talmadge reflects on party rules that force Democrats to run so far to the left to get their party's nomination, they become unacceptable to the general electorate in November. That has generally been the pattern since 1972. In contrast, the Republican Party has met with success by putting forward conservatives much more in line with middle America. But will that be the case if the Republican Party nominates a man who has consistently used the rhetoric of the Left to attack the Republican Party, has toyed with the idea of changing his party affiliation and serving as John Kerry's running mate, and has routinely defied his Republican colleagues and crossed the aisle to cosponsor the legislative priorities of the most liberal Democrats?

When given a choice between a liberal Democrat and a liberal Republican promising "less of the same," conservative Republicans and independents will stay home and the Democrat will win.

The Republican Party lost its ideological way during the Bush years. If political disaster is needed to recover bedrock principles and purpose, we could not do better than John McCain to drag all but our very best candidates down to defeat.