Almost without exception, I have....

given everyone the same Christmas gift as last year.  Nothing.  My family doesn't exchange gifts and the few friends I'm close enough with where we might exchange gifts choose not to.  It's fine.  But I'm feeling generous today and so I'm going to give a gift to one group.  I have a Christmas present for the Republican Party.  I doubt they'll pay attention to, or use this gift but I'm going to give it freely anyway.

I'm going to identify the biggest problems that Republicans had in the recent presidential election and what will undoubtedly be the biggest obstacles they will face in the 2014 Congressional elections and the next Presidential election in 2016.  They are, in no particular order:

Rush Limbaugh
Bill O'Reilly
Sean Hannity
Mark Levin
Glenn Beck
Larry Elder

Why am I assigning blame for the failure of the Republican party to be competitive in the most recent Presidential election and for their failure to regain control of the Senate when it was theirs for the taking?  Because the power structure within the party has allowed talk show hosts to do the party's branding for them.  Allowing them to set the party's agenda.  The people who should be leading the party aren't doing so.  Quick.  Without research, name the chairman of the Republican Party.  Can't, can you.  Quick.  Name the man he replaced as chairman of the Republican Party.  Can't, can you.  Would you believe me if I told you that the man who was elected as the party's chair in 2008 was the first ever African-American chair of the Republican Party?  It's true.

As long as Republicans let talk-show hosts set the party's agenda, and its branding, it will continue to suffer setback after setback.

Then there's the party's other set of problems.  Again, in no particular order they are:

Evangelical Christians
The Tea Party
Republican Politicians whose brains occasionally vapor-lock.

The "religious right" may get out and vote but the party's platform and agenda can't cater to every single one of their issues and have any prayer (pun intended) of garnering a majority of the vote anywhere outside of heavily gerrymandered districts.  A candidate in a Republican primary who espouses opposition to abortion rights and/or same-sex marriage may win the primary, but unless their party is in the majority within the block of registered voters who can elect them, they are doomed to fail.  It's time to recognize that those issues aren't as critical as issues like the public debt, the budget deficit and our sputtering economy.  What good is continuing to prevent abortions and stopping gays from marrying when the nation is going bankrupt? 

Not to mention there are a lot of Republicans who aren't opposed to abortion rights or same-sex marriage.  I'd be one of them if I hadn't departed the party in disgust some time ago.  But I'm not and I won't be again until I see a sea-change in the party's direction.  Even then I'll probably remain an independent.

So there's your gift, Republican Party.  Take the power of branding and agenda setting away from those talking heads, and focus on critical issues and you might do well in upcoming elections.  Merry Christmas.

Cool.  I didn't even have to wrap the one gift I gave this year.