Opinion: Republicans need to wake up, and so does the electorate

In a column for the Hartford Courant last week, Colin McEnroe described Connecticut Republicans as “torpid and lazy,” with “no instinct for the jugular,” and after watching some of the coverage of the convention from last weekend, I think he’s at least partly right.

But it isn’t laziness — maybe overly cautious, or fearful. Losing elections will do that to you. But unless Republicans get over that and inject some passion and aggressiveness into their approach, they will stay out of statewide office and in the minority in the statehouse.

I don’t think the answer, however, is that the Republicans need to act more like the Democrats, which is what former governor, and former Republican, Lowell Weicker seems to think.

And while yes, Republicans do need to do more to attract a diverse slate of candidates, like McEnroe suggests, they also need to reassert that conservative values like fiscal restraint, limited government, and personal responsibility have a place here in Connecticut.

Suzanne Bates is a writer living in South Windsor with her family. While traveling across the country as an Air Force spouse, she worked for news organizations including the Associated Press, the New Hampshire Union Leader, and Good Morning America Weekend. She recently completed a research fellowship at the Yankee Institute. Follow her on Twitter @suzebates.

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