Dispense With the GOP Convention

John Seiler:

Here’s one way Republicans really can help California: Cancel their convention this weekend. Save the money and invest it in local businesses.

Or just go to local bars in their home districts and get drunk.

The entire California GOP is now “[expletive deleted] irrelevant,” to use a phrase Gov. Pete Wilson used in 1991 of party conservatives. That was when he was pushing his tax increase, which he got — surprise! — when a handful of Republican sellouts joined him.

Just as Arnold got a handful of sellouts for his 2009 tax increase. And just as Jerry Brown will get a handful of sellouts to put his tax increase on a June ballot.

Then there’s Proposition 25, which dropped to a majority from two-thirds the threshold in the Legislature for passing a budget. The GOP’s only “leverage” is that it still takes a two-thirds vote to raise taxes; hence the brief holdout before the sellout.

And it takes a two-thirds vote to eliminate redevelopment. But as Steven Greenhut just pointed out on our site, on redevelopment the GOP is on the wrong side. They’re continuing to back this abuse of government’s eminent domain powers and waste of $1.7 billion of the taxpayers’ money. Only one GOP’er voted against eminent domain, Chris Norby of Fullerton. (Kudos, Chris!)

It’s Democrats who are being realistic here. They know they’re in charge. They know cuts have to be made. So they’re dumping overboard their least-favored programs. They like redevelopment, but like it less than teacher salaries, government-worker pensions, etc. So, into the ocean it goes.

It’s Republicans who are living in a la-la land fantasy world, where tax increases can be prevented even as $1.7 billion is wasted on eminent domain.

Meanwhile, a new study found that Latinos continue to spurn GOP courting attempts. Some say it’s because of the GOP’s positions on immigration, such as supporting Prop. 187. But that was in 1994, 17 years ago. Republicans have groveled toward pro-immigration groups so much since then, the real reason is the groveling.

Remember Meg Whitman’s pathetic attempts to cozy up to Latinos last year? Nobody likes grovelers.

With Latinos soon to become a majority in the state, and increasing their electoral clout with every election, GOP hopes in California are hopeless.

The best thing would be for the party to dissolve itself. Like in one of those old Tarzan movies starring Johnny Weissmuller, they should all start moving to the elephant graveyard.

Democrats run everything anyway. Make it official.

March 18, 2011