This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Nov. 13, 2012 - An open letter to Mitch McConnell, John Boehner, Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, et al:
Nov. 6 is still ringing in my ears. I just heard John on television. His speech sounded like every other speech since your deal with Obama collapsed. Your party, and your presidential candidate just got wacked by the guy Mitch vowed to keep a one termer!
A changing electorate, the remnant of nut bags in your chamber and lousy candidates have cost you the support of moderate Republicans like me for the second general election in a row.
Todd Akin! Really?
Get your act together and relegate the wing nuts to Fox News. Condemn them to obscurity -- or I’m not coming back.
Live in my memory is the time my district was represented by Tom Curtis. He was a fiscal conservative. He had no known social agenda. If any party hack attempted to get him to sign a pledge or submit to a litmus test, he would have decked them.
Mitch, I remember you from when I worked for Ford and “41.” I met you when I worked for the White House advance office, headed by Red Caveney. You may not remember me, but I know you remember Red, as he went on to head the American Petroleum Institute.
You are a bright guy who has the Tea Party ruining your moral compass. Start doing your job. How did allowing the wing nuts to knock off Lugar work out for you? How many of you guys showed up to help him?
You have one more midterm and one more general election to change direction or the GOP will be the name of a new species of fish. Any of you guys take Spanish? Any of you guys ask your wives and or girl friends or both what they think of your stupid platform positions on women?
How about the notion of telling “The Donald” or any other Birther to peddle their crap elsewhere? Hell, even McCain stood up for the president.
While you’re at it, how did the efforts to suppress the vote in the African-American community work for you?
What about supporting a real Fix the Debt movement? Stop calling everyone in a high tax bracket “a job creator.” Tell Rove to take his money and donate it to a charity.
Religious belief is to be applauded, not worn on your sleeve. Stop pandering.
When you get a guy like Jon Huntsman, thank your stars. He is quality, bright and electable. His record of public service is impeccable. He had an 80 percent approval rating when he resigned as governor of Utah to serve as ambassador to China. That service under a Democratic president disqualified him?
Like Romney he was a Mormon, and he has a higher net worth. He doesn’t act like it. He is a great speaker, a true student of geopolitics, and has a sense of humor.
But Michele Bachmann got more votes in your primaries. Why? If you don’t like what having 400 debates does to your candidates, stop having them.
What I’m suggesting is not new or unique. If you want guys like me back, best take heed. I’m really getting comfortable where I am politically. It really helps to have this president, who is impossible not to like. If the next Democratic candidate is solid, and if you haven’t cleaned up the GOP to a real party, I will no longer care what you do.
Warmest personal regards,
John Levis is an investment banker.