Senator Ted Cruz reads this blog?

Jeffrey Toobin spilled some New Yorker ink on Ted Cruz, and has this quote:

The chattering classes have consistently said, 'You crazy Republicans have to give up on what you believe and become more like Democrats.' And, I would note, every time Republicans do that we lose." Cruz then offered a short history of recent Presidential politics. Richard Nixon ran as a conservative, twice a winner; Gerald Ford, moderate, loser; Ronald Reagan, also twice a winner. "President George Herbert Walker Bush ran as a strong conservative, ran to continue the third term of Ronald Reagan, continue the Ronald Reagan revolution," Cruz went on. "Then he raised taxes and in '92 ran as an establishment moderate -- same candidate, two very different campaigns. First one won, second one lost. In 1996, you got Bob Dole; 2000 and 2004, you have George W. Bush; 2008, John McCain; 2012, Mitt Romney. And what does the entire D.C. Republican consulting class say? 'In 2016, we need another establishment moderate!' Hasn't worked in four decades. 'But next time will be the time!' "

Compare that to what I said a year ago in response to Stu Rothenberg's column that Republicans needed to nominate a "less ideological" and "more compromising" nominee:

[Nominating a moderate] is certainly conventional wisdom in Washington, DC, and has been for decades. But past results, while not necessarily indicative of future performance, completely belie Rothenberg's claim.

More ideological/less compromising nominees
Reagan 80
Reagan 84
Bush 88
W 2000
W 04

Less ideological/more compromising nominees
Ford 76
Bush 92
Dole 96
McCain 08
Romney 12

Res ipsa loquitur. In the past 40 years, it looks like the GOP only won when they did the opposite of what you want them to do, Stu.

You win by unifying the party, and for the last few decades it has been nominees from the country club wing of the party that have done so poorly at it.

Posted by Evan @ 06/23/14 03:31 PM

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Comments

Yeah, but what conservative activist hasn't said that?

I think there was even a Mallard Filmore comic on the topic...

Posted by Lawrence Person @ 06/25/14 12:28 PM

I thought it was pretty obvious that this post was a joke, but on rereading it..."oops."

Posted by Evan PvW @ 06/25/14 12:37 PM

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