Can Republicans win by opposing Obama?

[stevedeshazer]

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE62Q0AN20100327

(Reuters) - Can Republicans ride all the way to Election Day in November by opposing most of President Barack Obama's major policies? So far they are sticking with this strategy.

<snip>

After voting solidly against Obama's healthcare overhaul, Republicans are also poised to oppose other big-ticket items on the Democrats' agenda, including energy legislation and a rewriting of immigration laws.

Their opposition is helping feed accusations from Democrats that Republicans are standing in the way of progress as the "party of No."

<snip>

'SAYING 'NO' IS PLENTY'

Voters in these so-called off-year elections, in which a presidential election is not being held, are often overwhelmingly from the base of each party, meaning conservatives for the Republicans and liberals for the Democrats.

And conservatives, if nothing else, are energized to turn out and vote.

"For the Republican base, which is energized, saying 'No' is plenty," said Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia political science professor.

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Who else thinks they've completely underestimated the damage they have caused to their own credibility?

This is their strategy? Wow.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. I suspect they've invested so much in saying NO that they

can't back away from it.

They're stuck.

Or else they're so deluded that they actually believe their own bullshit.

I don't know!

:shrug:

[Cosmocat]

8. B ...

They have LONG passed the point where they believe their own bullshit ...

LONG ...

They are going to make gains, again, the Ds are overextended after the presidential, they hold too many R leaning and toss up districts, and there are too many weak D senators up who are going to lose their jobs ...

It is going to be like any other midterm after a presidential - the president's party won't have max turnout like it did for the presidential, the opposition party is throwing a fit ...

It WILL NOT be as signficant as the Rs or MSM will WANT it to be, but even if they only get one total seat, the media WILL portray it as "backlash" or whatever against BO ...

But to answer the OP, just running around like children and shouting no, then at the last moment throwing to together the "Contract for America part 9" is not going to be enough to do as well as they might do if they actually had an interest in running the country ...

[SwampG8r]

2. saying no wont cut it

they need to start coming up with serious policy alternatives or the public will not be able to see them as effective
they are their own worst enemy frankly because many dem seats are being held in close districts and many could be voted out with a tiny shift in numbers
it would better behoove them to issue their own policy views and then work to effect as many as possible so as to have an actual record of accomplishments to show voters
all they did in health care was vote no
very little of the bill was written by the GOP members
at their insistence mind you
instead of engaging the opposition party and negotiating the issues
which in my opinion we would have all been the better for as the bill we would have gotten with a more cooperative atmosphere would likely have been more palatable

[Monk06]

3. Obama is going to stump Dem congressmen and women like it was a presidential election

The Rs are selling Repeal Obamacare but
they have no leader. Gramps, Caribou Barbie, Mittens
and Orangeman are all they have. And each of them
has a personal political agenda, their own political
survival. Come the primaries the Rs will be eating
each other alive.

The Rs are going to lose big time in Nov IMO

[pundaint]

4. Not until 2012

[DFLforever]

5. I think they're gong to find out the hard way

that they'd better have a Plan B when they're up against Pres Obama.

It doesn't look as if they have one now.

[Kdillard]

6. Yes if Dems get complacent and Indies decide to vote with them.

[mucifer]

7. what's really scary is not getting the Russia nuclear arms treaty passed because they are babies.

[quaker bill]

9. If the economy turns

they will lose. They have misread the last election results and the current polls. Republicans would like to believe that the last election was lost because they did not sufficiently inspire their base. The evidence for this is unfortunately limited to non-existant. Mcsame / Failin got just as many republican votes here as George W. Bush got in 2004, even a few more. Obama / Biden got around 85,000 more votes than Kerry / Edwards. There is no evidence locally that the republican base "did not show up at the polls", as the change in vote totals closely followed registration changes in the run up to the election. Democrats our registered republicans with new voters by a 5:1 ratio, which then simply showed up in the results.

There is little evidence, all the shouting and brick throwing aside, that republicans have expanded their base. They have energized it, but in ways that are so over the top that it will likely cost them votes. Having 40 percent of those who show up at the polls very angry and energized does not a victory make.