Moderate GOP

Columnist : L. Henry

Lowman S. Henry

Prescription for Failure

Two developments in recent weeks illustrate the Republican Party’s lagging fortunes in the Keystone State – and the reason behind its fall from political dominance. One was comments by U.S. Senator Arlen Specter to a Pittsburgh newspaper wherein he opined that the Republican Party in Pennsylvania has not become a conservative party, and the other a new Quinnipiac University poll showing the public not holding Governor Ed Rendell accountable for the recent budget crisis.

The Quinnipiac University poll found Governor Ed Rendell’s job approval ratings holding steady above the 50% level (53% to be exact), while the public has a dim view of the legislature. The General Assembly’s statewide job approval rating is just 30%. A certain amount of this can be chalked up to the bully pulpit any governor occupies. But Rendell’s ongoing ability to escape blame for debacles such as the pay raise, last winter’s failure to keep interstate highways open during a snowstorm, and the recent budget mess, speak to the continued failure of GOP leadership in Pennsylvania to effectively articulate an alternate vision of government.

This is nothing new. When the GOP held control of both houses of the General Assembly it simply abandoned long-standing Republican principles and gave Rendell whatever he wanted. Then, the party nominated an unprepared candidate for governor who was unable to take advantage of the historic anti-incumbent wave which was sweeping across the state.

In the wake of last November’s electoral debacle, legislative Republicans – particularly in the House of Representatives – have lacked leadership, vision, and cohesion. Former House Speaker John Perzel, who caused the collapse of the House Republican majority, is spending every waking hour trying to get back into power. Republican Leader Sam Smith is the most clueless politician since Ross Perot’s hapless running mate Admiral James Stockdale asked “Why am I here?” during a national debate. Younger, more dynamic leadership is taking shape beneath the surface, but has yet to have much of an impact.

Meanwhile, over in the Senate, current leadership took control after a battle for the top slot, President Pro Tempore, was decided by a single vote. To the degree there is any Republican leadership in state government, it has come from the Senate. But, even there, after a lengthy budget battle senators caved in and approved a state budget that significantly exceeded the rate of inflation. Again, they missed the opportunity to draw a bold and distinct difference with the Democrat governor.

While legislative Republicans meander in the wilderness, the rest of the party continues to struggle. The party’s formerly formidable electoral apparatus lay in ruins after the November election, and new party chairman Rob Gleason has been preoccupied with putting the pieces back together. The good news for the GOP is that Gleason is a time-tested master at organization. But, the job he faces is so large it will leave him precious little time to set the party’s overall agenda.

That task suffered a set-back last week when U.S. Senator Arlen Specter claimed the state GOP had not moved as far to the Right as the national party, and was more moderate. In the process, he offended anew the party’s conservative base which already sees little difference between Republicans and Democrats. GOP candidates cannot win without conservative votes, so Specter only dug the hole deeper.

The fact is the official party apparatus in Pennsylvania continues to be dominated by Specter-style moderates, while the base of the party’s voters is significantly more conservative and in line with the national GOP. The state party’s failure to reflect its base has cost it its once pre-eminent position in Pennsylvania politics.

Clear evidence of that divide was illustrated by two recent events. Empty chairs dominated the June meeting of the Republican State Committee in Hershey as a gathering intended to be a revival was met with indifference by many members; conversely enthusiastic conservatives turned out in record numbers for the spring Pennsylvania Leadership Conference to hear such luminaries as Laura Ingraham, Newt Gingrich, and Pat Toomey.

As the Post-Gazette article pointed out, aside from Specter, the last time a liberal Republican won statewide in Pennsylvania dates back to 1988 when U.S. Senator John Heinz was re-elected. Clearly liberal Republicanism has been out of style in Penn’s Woods for quite some time.

And that won’t change until and unless the Pennsylvania Republican Party’s official apparatus and elected officials in the legislature begin to reflect the predominantly conservative views of its members.