John Fund gives another example of just how out of ideas the Republicans are. He runs through the standard formula detailing the recent special election losses, etc. And then he provides the prescription for success in the fall.

With John McCain at best an even bet to win the White House, Republicans may enter the fall homestretch with the prospect of losing the White House and sinking much further into minority status. It would be better if congressional Republicans finally decided to adopt a coherent message and a bold reform program for this fall’s elections. But an alternative may be to emulate their 1996 success and make a direct appeal to voters to keep power divided so that Democrats once again don’t have a blank check.

That’s right, while it would be ideal for the party to adopt a bold reform message, they can alternatively go to the American people and ask them to vote against the Democrats to keep the government divided. ‘Please don’t let the country be united, vote for us.’ That’s what John Fund wants to use against the Politics of Hope. And what about that bold reform package?

Although congressional Republicans have many gripes about John McCain, they would do well to embrace some aspects of his record: his pledge to veto all earmark spending, his record of opposing corporate welfare, and his willingness to make bold free-market proposals to reform health care.

This is very weak tea. An end to earmark spending would be a bold move, but almost no one is going to believe it until they see it. Who votes on earmarks anyway? The voter that cares about earmarks, cares about the budget. But John McCain promises to keep taxes where they are or lower them while keeping our troops in Iraq through his whole first term. How is that going to help the budget?

As for opposing corporate welfare, I don’t think John McCain has a good record on that issue. But it is laughable to think that the Party of Corporate Welfare is suddenly going to change their ways. Favoring Corporate America is in the GOP’s DNA. And where would they get the money to fill their PACs?

And on the whole concept of ‘bold free-market proposals to reform health care’, the Republicans are not going to gain any traction on that whatsoever. Health care costs are skyrocketing at the same time as energy and food prices are going up. The price of higher education is insane. People do not want to hear about more corporate health insurance. They want coverage they can afford.

I keep reading these post-mortem articles about what the GOP needs to do, and they all share the same feature that they have no idea what to do. John McCain is running on more war, bigger deficits, and no help to the middle class. His idea of bold is merely admitting that Global Warming exists. He doesn’t even want a rape and incest exception to his ban on all abortions.

The problem with Republicans is that we’ve seen them in power and they don’t do what they say they will do. They’re awful at keeping us safe, their foreign policy is a disaster, they can’t balance the check book, they prey on pages, beat their mistresses, troll men’s lavatories for dates, and have secret second families. They haven’t overturned Roe v. Wade, they haven’t stopped gay marriage, they have done nothing to stop illegal immigration, they haven’t restored honor and dignity to the White House, and they have divided, not united, the country. They have failed at everything except letting the rich keep more of their money, slashing environmental regulation, and letting their buddies loot the treasury.

I don’t think more of McSame is going to be a winning argument in the fall.