I'm not sure how but I have somehow managed to get myself on the illustrious Heritage Foundation's email list at work. I get some pretty ridiculous stuff from them from time to time but today's email was particularly obnoxious. Yet, at the same time, it was quite interesting.
The subject of the email is "Heritage Foundation Survey: How Has President Obama Governed?"
Sounds innocuous enough, right? But this is the Heritage Foundation after all and I simply knew there was going to be something less innocent behind the curtain so I clicked the "How is the President Governing - Take the Poll" link.
What I found is that the Heritage Foundation has given up hope of returning control of the country to conservatives for another ten years. A decade in the political minority.
Here are the questions they asked in their survey. By the way, you can click the link and take it yourself, if you wish. You will have to provide a "name" and "email address". Also be aware that there are a couple of questions for which there is no "liberal" answer and that you will then be asked to contribute money. Heh.
Here's the poll along with my answers:
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The Heritage Foundation's Survey on the Obama Agenda
Your answers to this important survey will help America's leading conservative policy organization further develop our response to the liberal agenda promoted by the administration and Congress. And it will allow us to refine Leadership for America, our ten-year campaign to get the nation back on track through a return to sound, conservative principles.
Survey Questions
Question 1. How do you think President Barack Obama is governing?
● as a moderate, trying to unite Americans
O as a radical, moving America to the left
O moderate in some areas, radical in others
Question 2. Are you worried that the left will make good on its threats against conservative speech?
O Yes
● No
O Undecided
Question 3. Do you believe the left presents a threat to our national security?
O Yes
● No
O Undecided
Question 4. Do you think leftists in and outside of Congress will succeed in prosecuting Bush administration officials for "war crimes"?
● Yes
O No
O Undecided
Question 5. Do you think leftist policies are putting our free-market economic system in danger?
O Yes
● No
O Undecided
Question 6. What do you think are the most important issues for conservatives to focus on in the coming year? (You may check more than one.)
O blocking confirmation of radical judges
O blocking leftist attempts to weaken our national security
O promoting free-market solutions to our economic problems
O preventing liberals from raising taxes
O preventing a government takeover of our health care
O stopping amnesty for illegal aliens
O preserving free speech for conservatives
● promoting a strong effort in the war on Islamist terrorism
O protecting traditional marriage
O blocking measures that give labor unions massive power
O producing more oil, gas, and nuclear power
Question 7. From which media do you get most of your news? (You may check more than one.)
O The TV networks
O Cable news stations
O Newspapers
O Magazines
● Radio news
O Radio Talk Shows
● The Internet
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There's an interesting bit tucked away in that introductory paragraph:
...this important survey will help America's leading conservative policy organization further develop our response to the liberal agenda promoted by the administration and Congress. And it will allow us to refine Leadership for America, our ten-year campaign to get the nation back on track through a return to sound, conservative principles.
Ten years? Ooo, that's a lofty goal! Assuming Barack Obama wins the White House for another term, he's outta there in, what? 7½ years? But the conservative leadership at the Heritage Foundation appears to have given up any hope of regaining control until over two years after that. In the meantime, there are multiple Congressional seats to fight for, a number of gubernatorial elections and, of course, local and state races from Alaska to Florida, from Southern California to Maine. All of these appear to be written off by the Heritage Foundation, at least for the next ten years.
A couple of other observations about the poll:
First, I had no idea that liberals are making "threats against conservative speech" (question #2.) I don't recall seeing any real call for re-upping the so-called "Fairness Doctrine" and, outside of a few nutcase talk show hosts who have made direct threats of violence against others, nobody is trying to shut the "conservative speech" down. The fact is, while the conservatives may "own" the radio waves (and Fox "News", of course), radio is largely a thing of the past and, today, the internet is where people are turning. And if anyone knows how solidly the left dominates the internets, it Kossacks.
Second, question #6 is particularly telling in terms of where the Heritage Foundation sees its path in the coming decade. Look at that list again:
- blocking confirmation of radical judges
- blocking leftist attempts to weaken our national security
- promoting free-market solutions to our economic problems
- preventing liberals from raising taxes
- preventing a government takeover of our health care
- stopping amnesty for illegal aliens
- preserving free speech for conservatives
- promoting a strong effort in the war on Islamist terrorism
- protecting traditional marriage
- blocking measures that give labor unions massive power
- producing more oil, gas, and nuclear power
See anything new there? See any "new directions" or new approaches from what the GOP and conservatives in general have been doing for the past decade? No. They are simply going to keep doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result and we all know what that means.
I guess I take solace in the fact that very serious Heritage Foundation has pasted on a smile and resigned itself to the margins for another decade. When one looks at the issues they believe to be the top of their list, it's clear that their strategy is one of "doing more of the same stuff that failed in the recent past, just doing more of it". Combine that with a parade of leaders like Governors Bobby Jindal, John Ensign, Mark Sanford and Sarah Palin and Congress members like Michelle Bachman, Ted Stevens, and Peter King and this whole "get the nation back on track through a return to sound, conservative principles" in ten years thing starts to sound a little bit ambitious.
I'm just sayin'...