National Council for a ‘New America’ should listen to the unheard
It has occured to me that this listening tour is completely misdirected. These well meaning Republican politicians are wasting time listening to people they have already heard from, when they could be taking this opportunity to hear from constituencies that actually are not a big enough part of the party.
It is an interesting tactic, taken right out of the Hillary Clinton playbook. However, it was used successfully there because Hillary was ‘listening’ to people she had not been living with or serving before. In that situation, listening is preferable to talking, and coming off as though you know better.
The ‘New America’ listening tour fails in this aspect. The problem is the group involved in the tour is listening to people they already hear from. Their first meeting, in Arlington, could not have been a bigger waste of time. The people in the crowd included a plethora of Washington movers and shakers whose opinions are quite easy to find.
BUT this effort could be a tremendous tool if it was aimed at the right target. Since the election loss, there have been many minority leaders urging Republicans to get involved in their communities. There has also been a tremendous amount of lip service paid to appealing to younger voters. However, very few demonstrable actions have been taken in this regard. A listening tour that went around to minority groups, and churches, and/or colleges and youth organizations would have been a great first step in an effort to get involved in those communities.
Imagine if they took the time to listen to African-American churchgoers in DC on the school choice issue? They could actually use the media attention they are getting to shine light on one of President Obama’s failures, instead of giving the press the anti-Reagan soundbite they so desired (way to go Bush III).
Unfortunately, these Republican leaders seem to think the key decision in moving forward is figuring out whether the platform should be more conservative or moderate. When the real challenge is bringing the values that made this country great to a wider spectrum of Americans.