Joe Duffy (JoeDuffy.net<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Many years ago I was a two-time executive board member of
\nthe North Fulton (GA) Young Republicans.
\n<\/span>I\u2019m no longer young. <\/span>As I got
\nolder, I preferred to describe my political beliefs aligned more with
\nconservative ideology than any political party. <\/p>\n

As I transitioned into a middle aged Republican, my eyes
\nwere opened to the fact that both parties are guilty of putting partisan needs
\nahead of the country\u2019s well being. <\/p>\n

I preferred to align myself with ideals. When my choice
\nlost, rather than proving I was smarter than those who voted for the winning
\ncandidate, I judged the elected official on performance and not which letter is
\nin parenthesis after his or her name. Conversely, when my chad hung for the
\nright person, blind defense of such elected official could not enter the
\nequation.<\/p>\n

So there you have my leanings on the table, but I honestly
\nbelieve I\u2019ve always had a political slant, yet never a bias. <\/p>\n

I generally have been pretty accurate predicting the
\noutcome of elections, my rooting interests never shading me.<\/p>\n

Most observers were shocked at the last major election. The
\nRepublican Party became the first since Franklin Roosevelt to win both the
\nWhite House and gain seats in both houses while already holding a majority.<\/p>\n

Mind you, I can\u2019t say I have the political handicapping
\nskills to match my sports prognostication abilities, but I foresaw the
\nDemocrats losing the last elections much more so than the Republicans \u201cwinning\u201d.<\/p>\n

Their Presidential frontrunner Howard Dean and lead attack
\ndog Tom Daschle rallied the far left but alienated the center\u2014the
\nundecided\u2014with melodramatic, Chicken Little, sky-is-falling rhetoric. <\/p>\n

Dean plummeted quickly in his party\u2019s own primaries and
\nDaschle, once unbeatable is now a private citizen thanks to a contingency that
\ntired of their refusal to keep the debate honest. George Soros, Hollywood<\/st1:place><\/st1:City>
\nand Air America<\/st1:place><\/st1:country-region>
\ncheered the venom and histrionics, while the undecided gave more power to an
\nunpopular majority party.<\/p>\n

Republicans clearly, two years later, are hell bent on
\nreturning the favor. The right wing counterparts to MoveOn.org, Al Franken and
\nthe incorrigibles have commandeered the party. <\/span>Republican insurgents such as Jerry Falwell<\/span>, Anne Coulter, and Michael Savage may feel
\ninvigorated by their party\u2019s Gambling Prohibition. But every survey I have ever
\nseen says that rank and file Americans believe in the right to bet five bucks
\non how many points will be scored on the Monday Night Football game.<\/p>\n

This political handicapper believes\u2014and with a
\nconservative slant at that\u2014the Republican Party\u2019s insistence on kowtowing the
\nright-wing fringe is a gamble that will fail miserably. <\/p>\n

Joe Duffy is CEO of
\n<\/b>OffshoreInsiders.com<\/span><\/a><\/span> <\/span>your source for free sports picks from the
\nnation\u2019s top handicappers as well as exclusive sports betting information. <\/span>\n<\/div>\n

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