Republicans come into the new year down, but not out.
Stoic Republicans huddled together at the Hyatt-Regency in Irvine on election night, rallying themselves for at least two years “in the wilderness” of American politics.
Scott Baugh, Chairman of the Republican Party of Orange County, told the crowd, “When Barack Obama and the Democrats are right, we will support them, but when Barack Obama and the Democrats are not right, we will offer a positive alternative that stands up for families and taxpayers.”
Baugh closed by saying, “To all the Democrats who won, including Barack Obama, we say lease, don’t buy, because in two years the Republican party will be back.”
The overwhelming Republican defeat on Tuesday (losing six Senate seats, 17 House seats, and the presidency) didn’t come as a surprise to attendees of the ironically-named “Victory 08 Election Night Party.” “I came here to commiserate with my friends,” one attendee said.
Yet, despite the changing national winds, Orange County, “The Most Republican County in America,” managed to re-elect Congressman Dana Rohrabacher on Tuesday, against a challenger Baugh called “a liberal, Democrat, communist, not-nice lady.”
Vitriol against the now-dominant Democrats was surpassed only by anger at Republican leadership of the past few years.
Rohrabacher, who supported Mitt Romney in the primaries, railed against the “elistist” policies of George Bush, Karl Rove, and John McCain. “This administration, and McCain, did not represent the heart and soul of the Republican party,” he said.
He called party leadership “half-hearted,” and criticized McCain for not taking on illegal immigration in this election cycle. “Do not despair,” he told his constituents, “tonight’s rout was not a rejection of fundamental Republican principles or values. It was a rejection of our Republican leadership.”
He accused the Republicans of “paying lipservice to fundamental values and fundamental issues,” including illegal immigration, which he has been a vocal critic of throughout his career, and also the “one-way free trade policy” with China. “If we are on the side of the American people, why are we ignoring one of the most important issues to the well-being of our fellow citizens?” He asked.
The Republican throw-down was peppered with encouragement to the crowd that the times are a-changin’, and the future of the party is the future of the country. “We have to talk about what we’re going to do to save America,” Rohrabacher insisted.
Scott Baugh of the Cali GOP
“If we don’t face reality, we are going to see, not only our party not go anywhere, but our country and our fellow countrymen suffer greatly,” he said. In response to a question about the statement, he specified that “the very far-left policies of Obama are going to cause great problems for our country, and his national security policies will put us in jeopardy.”
Then again, he also said that it was a mistake to nominate George W. Bush “the first time.”
Rohrabacher’s message to the party was hopeful. He ended his speech by saying, “We are the heart and soul of the Republican party… and we are going to save America from the road they have put us on.”
Tags: election 08, gop, Orange County, rohrabacher