|
There's an organization that is dedicated to uniting the
conservative movement and cementing the GOP majority for the
generation to come: the National Council for a Republican
Congress, or the NCRC.
The NCRC follows in the Reagan tradition, as a visit to their
site will demonstrate. (Indeed, Reagan’s legacy serves as a
reminder that politics can be the noblest of causes, as history
will prove one day.) I could discuss the specific
activities of the NCRC in greater detail, but that and other
information would be best examined by going to http://www.nationalcrc.org
(Please bookmark the site.) Instead, I would like to describe
the ethos and spirit that guides the NCRC, which is what makes
the group so important in the first place.
The NCRC was founded in 1993 by a group of Texans who
had the immediate goal of returning the GOP to conservative
hands. The NCRC played a role in doing just that in 1994;
however, the beliefs that guided the organization from its
inception speak to our nation’s history and destiny far more
than immediate political gains. The founding members of the
group agreed that the country’s move to the right was not
merely a consequence of liberal excesses, but also the result of
a renewed appreciation of the principles that guided our
Founding Fathers more than 200 years ago. In short, the NCRC saw
America’s highest and most enduring aspirations also embedded
in the best impulses of the conservative movement: a belief in
freedom tempered by responsibility, and a faith in a
monotheistic God and the human condition that makes all progress
possible and tyranny impossible.
From this perspective, it is easy to see why the NCRC has worked
to unite the conservative movement with the “grassroots” of
this country, and making them active participants in the
political process. When this happens with sufficient force,
there is no way that the liberal establishment can hope to
compete, because the will of the overall electorate is stronger
than any other political force combined.
I use the term “liberal establishment” for a very specific
reason. Liberals tend to see themselves as a champion of the
underdog and the downtrodden in our society, but the track
record of liberal policies in aiding those who are in need is so
counter-productive that I consider the previous assertion
axiomatic. Go to almost any public housing project in the
country, and you’ll see the consequences of a worldview that
views other human beings as objects to be molded instead of
spiritual, moral beings that require the freedom and opportunity
to succeed on their own terms. The liberal establishment, even
when guided with the best of intentions, is guilty of the former
worldview. I am disappointed, even angry, at what liberalism has
become in America: not so much because of its ideological
premises, but because it has become smug and complacent in its
worldview and message even as its failures become clearer every
day.
Liberalism is becoming less and less a set core of beliefs and
more and more an attitudinal stance, often directed against
conservatives. Liberals are increasingly defined less by what
they are for, and more by what they are against; they are guided
less by shared values than by mere self-interest. It is up to
the liberals to clean up their own house and return to
their better days, but I am convinced that won’t happen until
they are out of power for a long time. In the meantime, the
Republican Party, which is the only organization that can put
conservative principles in to action, must stand for certain
things in order to thrive. Indeed, if Republicans don’t do
certain things at this point in our nation’s history, nobody
else
will.
This is where the NCRC comes into play. At the organization’s
National General Meeting last month in Dallas, I saw the
potential of what can be done in the years to come because of
the enormous talent within the organization. The meeting also
reaffirmed many of the points I have referred to earlier in the
column.
Kerri Houston, the Leadership Committee Chairman and a
renowned public policy analyst for the American
Conservative Union, pointed out a major obstacle that exists
from creating an opportunity society. “The poor in this
country have no way to save for their own retirement, and they
don’t have the ability to pass on any of their lifetime
earnings to their children, and the Democrats are fighting tooth
and nail to keep it that way.” Bingo! The current status quo
for Social Security and taxes, or in many other issues, hurts
the poor the most, because it deprives them of the chance to
make significant economic advancements. This must change, and
only the Republicans will do so at this time.
The importance of reaching out to different communities not
traditionally represented by the Republican Party was also a
major theme discussed during the entire weekend. It is true that
many minority communities believe that the promise of
America has passed them by. Yet it is up to Republicans to heal
the breach, and not only for the good of Republicans at the
ballot box. At the present time, only one party represents
minority interests, and it does not have to do a good job in
order to maintain the status quo, which is an arrangement that
may prevent the bottom from falling out, but also chains entire
communities to their existing conditions. Republicans can become
a viable alternative, primarily by charging ahead and winning
this vote in minority communities one voter at a time,
by finding out what these voters want, and by giving it to them
in a way consistent with the core values of the party. By having
both major parties compete for their vote, the concerns of
minority voters will be far, far better represented as a
consequence.
This point was articulated eloquently by Susan Weddington, the
Republican Party Chairman of Texas. She outlined how the
Republican Party was the only party that represented the black
population in the aftermath of slavery, especially in her home
state, and how the party of freedom must recapture its
original zeal and devotion to the advancement of all men. “You
need to know the legacy that you have stepped into, and the
obligation to our past to grow this party…We need to go into
their communities and ask, ‘what can we do’? You will be
blessed and enriched by the experience.”
The intellectual diversity of the Republican is vast, and many
readers may have other aspirations tied to the Republican Party
as well. However, it is the party’s timeless values that make
its future’s success so important for our country. I urge any
sympathetic people to join the NCRC. As with everything else in
life, your experience in the NCRC will be what you make it, but
I believe your involvement will be
something you treasure. The NCRC will be expanding enormously in
the months and years to come, as will the opportunities for
those who give themselves to it.
To join the NCRC on a yearly basis, please go to http://www.nationalcrc.org/join.html.
The membership cost is $35.
To offer your services as a volunteer for our organization,
please contact William Metzger at [email protected]
If you have any questions for me, please do not hesitate to send
me an e-mail
|
Buy Books
Absolute Power: The Legacy of
Corruption in the Clinton-Reno Justice Department
by David Limbaugh
Unlimited Access: An FBI Agent
Inside the Clinton White House
by Gary Aldrich
Smashmouth: Two Years in the
Gutter with Al Gore and George W. Bush
by Dana Milbank
Reagan, In His Own Hand: The Writings of Ronald Reagan
That Reveal His Revolutionary Vision for America
Search
the Web for:
Ronald
Reagan
Bill
Clinton
Middle
East
MP3
Web Music
George
W. Bush
Saddam Hussein
Hillary Clinton
Presidential Pardon
Online Gambling
Auto Loans
Free Online Games
NFL
Nascar
Britney Spears
|
