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Should Conservatives Create the Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness Party?
If a rump Le-Pen-style Republican Party emerges (oozes out?) after this election, freedom-loving Americans like me will knock the dust of the GOP off our sandals and start anew. What would be a good name for the next conservative party?
I know it’s long but what about the Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness Party?
We could trade the “Republicans” label for “Pursuers” or “Lifers”? What about “Liberals”? This LLPH Party could be the official name and use “Liberty Party” for short and then go about reclaiming and rehabilitating the (classical) “Liberal” label.
Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?
Published in General
Do we really need a party any more?
I say that Trump has proved something important … Trump has barely given lip service to the party, and has spent little money on party infrastructure … but he’s been competitive anyway. Or at least, his weakness is in his own character, not in anything related to party. I’d say that the GOP has meant fairly little in this election.
Parties solve two problems: media attention and ground game infrastructure.
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If a new party can’t compete, why bother? We’re better off with individual candidates who can be promoted in other ways.
If the folks who want to destroy the Republican Party are successful, then the new party that will arise will be called the Socialist Party. The next election will be between Elizabeth Warren (S) and Tim Kaine (D). There will be some small fringe party of people who care about liberty, but since they care even more about having no “establishment,” no “elites,” no “donor class,” no “pundit class,” and especially no principles, they will also have no electoral success. If they ever do manage to elect, say, a Congressman, they will immediately turn on him for having sold out to the “establishment” because he didn’t manage immediately to repeal Hillarycare single-payer, pay off the 40 trillion dollar national debt, and deport all 30 million illegal aliens.
If you are one of those who is cheerleading for the destruction of the GOP, that is what you are working toward. Forgive me if I can’t wish you the best.
I’ve thought that too.
Branding matters. At this point, the terms conservative and liberal have been too well defined (if incorrectly) by popular culture, and an obvious conservative party branding itself as the liberal party (however accurate) would probably not take hold.
And while I like the LLAPOH idea, I’m not sure that it snaps from a marketing perspective. A little too long and unweildy. And what do we call ourselves? I’m a Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happinessitarian? Yesh.
Why not revive the Liberty Party, a defunct 1800s relic that was pro-abolition and pro-constitution? Failing that, why not bring back the Anti-Nebraska Party? It sounds like fun, and it would confuse our enemies.
I know some people are cheering on the GOPs destruction, but not many (outside the Dems and progressives, of course). I think we would rather try to save the party, along with its histories and traditions, but the differences may turn out to be irreconcilable. I am NeverTrump both because of the man and his most popular positions. I cannot belong to a party that chooses political and economic isolationism.
Hop,
I agree with you. Liberal has far too many negative connotations. The highest intellectual scholars & historians can get with the conservative theme of Liberal but that won’t cut it. I think Liberty is at the root of what we want. I think the Global Governance Gang, the Soft-Marxists, and the Neo-Fascists won’t be able to come along for the ride. Meanwhile, the average Joe & Jill in the street will get it immediately.
Regards,
Jim
Why not the Retreat Party? No confidence we can win the battle for conservative policies within a Trump administration. Then no confidence we can win the battle for conservative ideals within the most conservative party in modern American history. But full of confidence that once freed of any practicable connection to the levers of power in most townships, counties and states, we will become a saving remnant under a new brand.
Hey, anything that gets you through election night. All four of the candidates I’m working for are looking at big wins in purple states, and I can’t bring myself to attend any election night parties. Going to start up the woodsplitter at 7pm and hope to be done after 3am.
Next day, the fight starts within the Republican Party to make it the conservative liberty party it needs to be.
Trump was a half black swan (sounds like a dish from The Freshman) who has ridden on typically commendable (but dangerous) instincts for party solidarity, teamwork and combativeness from June-November.
Leaving this party to that man is just cowardly.
LLAPH Party?
This analysis seems severely limited to the presidential election. There are hundreds of other elections going on where the GOP is very relevant.
Locally? The local party is relevant only because of pure voter ignorance. Voters only notice two things: party affiliation and whether the incumbent is running. They don’t know anything about individual candidates, unless their incumbent was accused of a major crime. Other than that, they default to their usual party pick.
Which means that if a candidate simply identified himself as a conservative on the ballot, he will have gained as much credibility as if he had identified himself as a Republican.
I honestly doubt that parties carry as much weight as they (for self-serving reasons) assure us that they do.
I only know about one state, but in that one there is grassroots work being done on those very things. They are not ready to go public yet, but there may well be sufficient dissatisfaction with state level party organization to effect serious change. I bet the same thing is in process in some other states.
“Oozes”?
I’d be happy to belong to the Founders’ Party, but it would be immediately called the Slaveholding Founders’ Party by the Left.
Live Long, And Prosper Highly.
Or, Life, Liberty, And the Pursuit of Happiness. I forgot which.
Eric Hines
Nothing keeps us from morphing the Democratic Party name into the Progressive Jim Crow Party. We have to stop shying away from back alley knife fights.
Eric Hines
I like the name Liberal Party. It’ll make smoke come out of their ears.
We on the right really have to learn to use language better.
I like Liberty Party or Liberal Party. The problem with the first one is that there’s no good way to refer to the people who belong to it: Libertines? That has a whole different meaning. Let’s go with option #2 and start taking back that very important word.
Party name? I dunno. But it’s a great band name. The new party’s theme song could be TPOH’s biggest hit: “I’m An Adult Now.”
I like “the Abolition Party.” So much to abolish; so little time.
I will join as soon as the platform clarifies that the word happiness that was used in the declaration is not the same word “Happiness” that we use today. That it was used in a specific sense that means something much closer to what we refer to happenstance or fortunes (otherwise known as property or stuff with a little livelihood mixed in)
Until then, I have no interest in such a creature; for you see: we are all liberty-loving. Even my deeply communist(they would never describe themselves as such) family loves their liberty. (whatever that means)
…”the pursuit of happiness” comes from Locke as well.
@stsalieriericcook – I do appreciate your allustion to the specialized description I’ve seen before; but i believe that these explanations fall short, in a very particular way.
Here is a snippet from a very google-able 1768 English language dictionary. Note the use of the word fortune to define happiness. It was very well understood to mean what i would phrase today as what fortunes would belie you; or, what happenstance you may find yourself. It had very deep ties to property that we no longer understand. As with so many things that I have come to understand via Publius’ and Brutus’ various exchanges; I suspect that this change in understanding of our founding era may be not totally accidental.
But, what do i know? Very little.
What can I prove ? Nothing. Especially with Comey in charge ;-)
How about the Freedom and Federalism Party. The FFP. I like alliteration and it’s easy to rhyme in songs.
We also have a folksy song.
You give voters much less credit than I do. And I think there is a lot more significance to having the (R) by your name on a ballot than simple self-identification. Parties are coalition builders, fundraisers, communication devices, etc. Are you just throwing that all out the window?
People on average aren’t nationalist (in the best sense of nationalism). What I love about the founding the fathers is that there entire deal was about the best thing for the nation. Hence the term, nationalist.