Too Much OLD in GOP

Just for a change of pace, I'm going to put aside my distaste for the liberals and focus on my distaste for the GOP.

After working for the party on the McCain campaign, I have realized that there are just as many issues on the Right side of the ticket. One major problem I've noticed is the Republican Party image. It's stale. It's stuffy. It's old.

From what I gather from friends and other students at Marquette, the GOP is out of touch and has nothing to offer to young people. This is a serious problem, considering that we are the future of both parties. I've heard that a person tends to stick with the party they vote for their first time at the polls. If that's the case, then conservatives in my age braquet are in serious trouble. Not many of us were NObama's this year, which means that when we get to be "real" grown-ups, we're going to have another issue of democratic dominance in the government.

The GOP needs a facelift. It needs to let go of the reigns a little bit and allow new ideas to flow through its veins. During the McCain election, I often felt frustrated because I was under-utilized. There were many young conservatives working with the staffers and the national campaigners, and they dismissed our ideas at times as if we were nothing but children. What amazes me is that we were older than some of the people on staff, and they were set in the ways of the party. They didn't seem to have the drive to reform or prosper. Instead, they wanted to play by the rules and accept the old ways of the old party.

A perfect example from the recent campaign is the phone banking. It makes me ill to think of all the phone calls I made. Chances are, if you live anywhere in the great state of Wisconsin, I've spoken with you on the telephone about John McCain. The phone calling itself wasn't necessarily the problem, but the way it was conducted. Early on, during the summer months when campaigning wasn't such a life or death situation for the volunteer centers, the survey calls we made were dandy. People responded pleasantly and some were near giddy to have their opinions heard. As the campaign became heated, as there was news coverage flooding the tv, and it was coming down to the wire- the calls became redundant. I looked over our lists and recognized names. I constantly had the feeling that I had called a certain house before. Lo and behold, yes! I have called this house. Families weren't afraid to let me know that either. It was tough to make those calls. I felt like a telemarketer. I used to hate answering my phone when those people called, and it was sickening to know that I became that person I hated.

The GOP needs to revamp their phone calling system. It needs to find alternate ways to reach families other than flooding their phone lines. This is the age of the internet. You know, the internet... have you heard of it, grandpa? Obviously, the internet opens up new opportunities that traditional campaign methods don't allow. Since my main point is youth involvement in the GOP, I'll throw this out there. AIM campaigns? What young person these days doesn't go on Instant Messenger? Hardly any that I know. Younger members of the GOP would serve a greater purpose if they took a break off the phones and spent an hour or so chatting to local kids online. The internet also allows mass emails, instant connections to anywhere you need to get a message out, and it saves a lot of money.

The internet isn't the only way to maximize on young conservative workers. This will sound like a no-brainer, but I feel compelled to mention it. Young people know other young people. Wow... really? The McCain campaign loved to stress the fact that young people worked on the campaign for free, whereas the Obama young volunteers had to be paid. To be honest, I think that's probably fabricated. I have to give the Obama kids credit, they were constantly running around the Marquette campus being annoying, which is exactly what the McCain kids should have been doing. They had gaudy poster boards, they wore Obama's face on their t-shirts, and they shouted at people. I would never shout at anyone... but you get my drift. They were young people excited about a youthful candidate. They got other young people excited. They were successful. The fact is, no matter how many pins I had on my bag or stickers on my notebooks... pins and stickers can't make up for a loud, annoying voice.

Obama's campaign took their youth following and put them to work on college campuses and in the midst of busy downtown areas. Did McCain's campaign do that? No. At least not in the Milwaukee area. I went to UWM once and Marquette once. ONCE. During the entire campaign. We should have been staples on campus, being just as annoying and twice as loud as the Obama fraeks.

Another thing. Young people have fresh ideas. It's okay to listen once in a while. Hey, You! With the elephant pin... did you catch that last thing?

Attention GOP: I am a young person. I have talents that you can use. I have friends who are also young and have different sets of talents. If you put us in a room, give us some resources and some responsibility, we can help you win elections.

The concept is so simple. Use what you have to help you win. Young people are the key to a successful party. Whether you're talking about a specific campaign or not, young people are of critical importance in a politcal party because they are the future leaders, future polticians, future media personalities. Raw talent and ideas can be groomed into something great.

So hey, old farts of the GOP... I'm here. I have friends. We all have ideas and are willing to work. Get off the rocker, put down the scotch, and utilize your most important assets.