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Peggy Noonan, who famously predicted Romney would win based on the number of lawn signs she saw, has a cunning plan to revitalize the GOP.
Now's the time to put a dagger 'tween their teeth, wave a sword, grab a rope and swing aboard the enemy's galleon. Take the president's issues, steal them—they never belonged to him, they're yours!
And what issues would those be, Peg?
Republicans should go to the populist right on the issue of bank breakup. Too big to fail is too big to continue. The megabanks have too much power in Washington and too much weight within the financial system. People think the GOP is for the bankers. The GOP should upend this assumption. In this case good policy is good politics.
So, Republicans--who just hauled in record loot from Wall Street, still blame the financial crisis on the poors, voted en masse against Dodd-Frank, and hate financial regulation of any kind--will suddenly morph into Occupy Wall Street? Not bloody likely.
What else ya got, Peg?
Every individual in America making $400,000 a year or more just got a tax hike that was a blow to the gut. Regular working people are seeing their payroll deductions increase. But private-equity partners who make billions enjoy more favorable tax treatment. Their income is treated for tax purposes as a capital gain, so they're taxed at far lower rates. This is called the carried interest exemption, and everybody knows it's a big con.
The Republican Party should come out against it in a big way.
All Republicans care about, as they've proven again and again, is keeping taxes low for rich people. So this one's out, too.
Anything else?
If there are voices within the GOP that are for some part or parts of gun reform it would be good for them—and for the party—to come forward now. I love the Second Amendment and I'm not kidding, but I have to say tens of millions of assault weapons in the hands of gangbangers and unstable young men couldn't be what the Founders had in mind.
We need a little moderation here, a little give.
A) There are no voices within the GOP that want anything to do with gun safety regulations--and; B) there are no "moderates" in the party, period. Next.
Finally, Republicans should shock everyone, including themselves, by pushing for immigration reform—now.
Hilarious. The nativist Republican base, led by the likes of Michelle Malkin, screamed SHAMNESTY! when George W. Bush floated immigration reform -- so I'm sure they're going to reverse course on that with Obama in the White House.
Anyway, to summarize: all the GOP needs to do is break up the banks, raise taxes on rich people, and pass gun control and immigration reform.
John Boehner and Mitch McConnell will get right on that.