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Why
did Barack Obama
win this
election?
There are many
theories that
attempt to
answer this
question; books
are being
written on the
topic as we go
to print.
Surely he is a
good speaker.
And clearly he
is a charismatic
figure, the
likes of which
we haven’t seen
at that level
since Reagan or
JFK. But Obama’s
victory went
beyond his
oratorical
skills or his
personality.
What won Obama
the election in
the final
analysis was
that he exuded
competence. Not
Michael
Dukakis-silly-looking-helmet-on-head
kind of
competence. But
the kind of
competence that
convinces people
that, if they
vote for him,
he’s going to
get the job
done.
It remains to be
seen whether
Obama will live
up to his
promise. But in
his basic pledge
– that of
delivering a
government that
is accountable
and responsive
to people’s
concerns – he
resembles not so
much Franklin D.
Roosevelt, whom
he has been
compared to in
several media
profiles, but
Dwight D.
Eisenhower.
The 34th
President has
become something
of a forgotten
figure when it
comes to
performance and
competence among
our Nation’s
chief
executives. In
this edition of
the Forum, we
take a look at
Eisenhower’s
record and his
approach to
governing. Our
intent is not to
compare him to
Barack Obama. It
is, rather, to
hold his
Presidency up as
an example for
Republicans to
look to and
learn from as
they seek to
reclaim all that
was lost this
past November,
and in the
elections of
2006.
It has indeed
been a long
spiral downward
for the GOP.
There is,
hopefully,
nowhere to go
but up. And as
every journey
needs a
guidepost, we
point to
Eisenhower as a
lodestar for
Republicans to
follow today. He
was, as Kasey
Pipes writes in
our feature
essay, a
pragmatic
warrior. And he
exuded, as
former
Congressman Tom
Davis alludes to
in our lead
piece, a form of
prudence in his
decisionmaking
that served the
country – and
the Republican
Party – well. In
short,
Eisenhower was
the kind of
leader for the
GOP to emulate
as it attempts
to dig itself
out of a hole
today.
We are pleased
to feature a
host of talented
writers and
leaders in this
edition – among
them
Intelligence
Committee
Ranking Member
Peter Hoekstra,
Maine Senator
Susan Collins,
Blue State/Red
Governor Jim
Douglas, and
former
Reagan/Nixon
speechwriter
Jeffrey Hart.
And don’t miss
Thaddeus
McCotter’s
description of
his dinner with
a friend. It
presents an
excellent
summation of the
challenges
facing
Republicans this
year, and is
also very likely
the first time
the phrase “spit
out a gnawed
crouton” has
ever been
printed in our
pages.
More
significantly,
it offers a
refreshing take
on this year’s
political
landscape, and
is the type of
nontraditional
messaging the
GOP will need as
it attempts to
gain traction,
and a foothold,
in the elections
of 2010.
We hope you
enjoy this
edition of the
Forum and
encourage you to
contact us at
editor@riponsociety.org
with any
thoughts you may
have.
Lou Zickar
Editor
The Ripon Forum
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