Republicans need more, not fewer, fanatics to win elections

Forget what the mushy and muddling Republican leadership keeps telling you.

For years, I've said if Republicans are going to start winning elections again, and turn the tide against the Democrats' remake of America, Republicans need fanatics, not moderates.

There's a piece of analytical research out of Rensselear Polytechnic Institute from 2011 that jives with my theory:  Social Consensus Through the Influence of Committed Minorities.

The study suggests a committed 10 percent minority has the power to sway an entire population if unwavering determination is shown by the core advocacy group.

The study is briefly discussed in this 2011 post at Freakonomics.

Think about it. Since 2006, Democrats have embraced their party's most radical elements - and the energy translates into a winning Democratic Party. Similarly, in 2010, when conservatives were fired up in opposition to the passage of Obamacare, an fanatical grassroots powered the GOP to victory in the House of Representatives, and in state legislatures across the country.

By 2012, the GOP's more moderate forces re-exerted their influence, and there's no such thing as a fanatical moderate. So the more radical, committed Dems pushed voters to deliver a second term to Barack Obama.

As it stands right now, Republican leaders appear eager to repeat the mistakes of 2008 and 2012 again in 2014. Conservatives have between now and the primaries to flaunt their fanaticism - and save the party from another compromising debacle.


Note: Don Dickinson brought the Renssalear study to the table on today's Don and Doug program. If I recall, our discussion starts about 25 minutes into the program (available here).