Republican strategist, Ford O’Connell advise the GOP to ‘End the Reagan fetish’
A new book from former John McCain campaign worker, Ford O’Connell has ruffled some feathers in the Grand Old Party with the release of his new book, “Hail Mary: The 10-Step Playbook for Republican Recovery”.
In his book, O’Connell looks at the fall of the Republican Party and ten very specific pieces of advise for the revitalizing the party.
Clearly, the one that will draw the most ire is Rule #1–“Ronald Reagan is dead. Accept it.”
Forget Ronald Reagan? The whole GOP establishment and conservative talk radio and Fox News must be ready to go after O’Connell with pitchforks and torches.
To them, Reagan is the most important figure for current conservatives to emulate, to idolize. Forget Ronald Reagan?
Related story: How conservative was Ronald Reagan? ‘Not very’ says one scholar
“The Reagan fixation is a drag on the future success of the GOP at the national level. It undermines the candidates because it becomes a crutch for their inability to articulate an actual agenda or a forward-looking vision,” he writes.
Blasphemy?
In addition to Rule #1, O’Connell recommends other areas of change for the Republican Party, to include “Hug the Gays’ and reaching out to other media besides Fox.
What do Amazon reviewers say about O’Connell’s book?
One reviewer who gave the book 5 stars wrote:
Big fan of the book and the long overdue advice it offers. Great outline for a definite winning GOP strategy. I was impressed with how solid the author’s research and stats were and at how valuable his timely advice is on so many different topics. The book definitely pushes Republicans out of their comfort zone — ex. “Reagan is dead. Accept it.” with some tough love this losing team needs to hear. This author is one of few with the guts to say it, and as a result he literally wrote the playbook the Republican team so desperately needs to read.
A 1 star reviewer wasn’t nearly as kind:
Mr. O’Connell, what you’ve written is one of the most insanely idiotic things I’ve ever read. At no point in your rambling, incoherent book was there anything that could even be considered a rational thought. Everyone on the internet is now dumber for having read it. I award you one star, and may God have mercy on your soul.
