Who's In Charge?
Sharon Grigsby, in The Dallas Morning News Opinion blog, asks the question, but doesn't answer it. Who's in charge of the GOP? Rush Limbaugh or Michael Steele. In fact, neither is in charge. The GOP is leaderless. Several people are jockeying for position.
Limbaugh is the most visible pretender to the throne, stirring up the base and condemning anyone who even thinks of compromise. Sarah Palin probably wants to ride his coattails the 2012 GOP nomination. Michael Steele is trying to rein in Limbaugh to keep him from running away from the field and dominating party politics all by himself for four years. (Meanwhile, the Democrats are encouraging the GOP to allow exactly that to happen.) Bobby Jindal is being thrust out front perhaps to save the party from Palin. Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee are hanging around, hoping to score on the rebound. New Gingrich doesn't seem to have given up his dreams. I don't see a moderate in the bunch, which makes it hard for them to draw distinctions between themselves. It also means that they are all going for the same 15-20% of the electorate that constitutes the Republican base, dragging the party ever rightward in the process. It's still early, but the signs are not good for 2012. I'd have to say the chances are growing that a Barry Goldwater will emerge. The true believers will cheer. The party as a whole will crash and burn. From the ashes who knows what will arise.
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