What will happen to the Republican Party if Bush loses?

[coloradodem2005]

Will it crash with room for another party to displace it? Will it take on a different, more sane and humane form?

[jpgray]

1. See 1992 (nt)

[Blade]

2. Hopefully..

they'll disband and go cry in some corner like the little babies they are.

[alphafemale]

3. We also will have to take back at least one house of congress.

Or they will not change.

[impeach the gop]

4. They'll have to eat shit and die

n/t

[corporatewhore]

5. I think the repug party is already

falling apart.They have been the most radical party the dems have always adapted to the times.alot of repugs see that that the repugnican party needs to adapt as well (ie arnolds social liberal type) and another bunch of repugs are disgusted with bush because he increased the fed gov and gave it bill o' rights shreddin power .He also got us too "involved" internationally.

[TexasPatriot]

6. that really depends on who runs

if bush is running against a centrist who stays center and cant be painted left - he probably loses a lot of his base voters (who stay home) - but they dont really leave the party.
the end result would likely be a move to the right - the core would strengthen around candidates who were both socially and fiscally conservative.

but in some circles, we might see a reaction back toward Arnold... and if Arnold stood up and started doing the sorts of things he just pulled in Cali, he could practically re-energize the moderate republican wing of their party.

it could be interesting - would be a lot moreso if Arnold could run for prez. right now he's just a guarantee that no cali pub can run for president (and upset the Bushes long term plans)

[JailBush]

7. What will happen to the GOP if there's a revolution?

I can tell you what would happen if I became the next dictator - I'd take every member of Bush's administration and Congress into custody, try them with secret military tribunals and find about 95% of them guilty, after which they'd spend the rest of their days in Gitmo, Cuba. And I'm including Vichy Democrats.

I'd also move mountains to create a third and a FOURTH political party - but it wouldn't be the Green Party unless they cleaned up their act and did some growing up.

[PeakOil2008]

8. Hard to say...

It could possibly become much more Reactionary, under the leadership of a vile thug like Tom DeLay. But I think a Bush defeat may act as a "political barrier" of sorts, blocking against an open push further to the Right. Doing so couldn't do more to destroy the GOP's image by stark contrast to a Progressive Democratic administration. Even so, Bush's defeat in 2004 would be more of a temporary setback than a curtain call for the Republican Party.

My best guess is that the GOP would re-double its efforts to strengthen its hold on Congress and the state governments it presently controls, through redistricting and other methods. When all else fails, there's also the Corporate Propaganda Machine, ready to bash the Democrats at every turn, and influence the public opinion against the new President.

Of course, keep your eyes on Jeb... always. One way or another, he's the next Bush to run for office, in 2008.

[Lexingtonian]

9. they'll battle on for a while

Such a defeat is really only an expected symptom that the extremism and reactionary ideology they've run on are past their period of opportunity. The pre-Boomer generation (to whom the reactionary ideology of the present appeals) is starting to die out, only half the Boomers are with them. But they'll go on trying to exploit what power they have until it's wrested away from them. In '06 or '08 they should become the minority in all parts of the federal government and that then rapidly propagates down the food chain of political office.

There's going to be a Helpless Loss phase, then Denial, Anger, and Depression. And then Acceptance. Not all are going to make it to Acceptance, of course.

But yes, their Party is going to remoderate itself. (Bye bye social reactionaries in '06 and '08 and '10- they'll vanish from office and start dying out in the grassroots.) Its next incarnation is predictably all economic conservatism- resistance to deprivileging corporations and the subspecies of human being that thrive in them-, which should do well with Boomers and half of GenXers once the bulk of the social conservative baggage goes overboard. That formulation would be viable for almost a generation- a little shorter than the present version, which will get close to two.