I read your post twice ...

... and typically I would find this maddening, but I believe your last was a result of a single stream of consciousness, and perhaps you didn't mean to suggest such a clear contradiction as you were searching for names to fill the GOP 2012 presidential ticket list. Nonetheless ...

First of all, I dare say that Limbaugh, Beck & Hannity are more "mainstream" than the press which currently carry that label. Beck, at 5pm Eastern on Fox, garners a larger audience than the entire prime time MSNBC line up. Add O'Reilly and just the 2 of them have more viewers than MSNBC & CNN combined during prime time. Were I a national candidate I dare say going where those record numbers are is at the very least closer to the mainstream then the Obama administration.

But here's my bigger beef - within the same posting you suggest that running a arch-typical "Reagan conservative" is the surest way to alienate mainstream voters, yet you note the historical fact that Reagan won a historic landslide Electoral College victory. You see my point?

CLEARLY what we need from the GOP is exactly a Reagan Conservative. This is NOT to mean that he or she need prosecute the exact same case against big government that Ronnie did. The Department of Education was brought about by the Carter administration. In the 1980 race it was the latest, clear example of a federal government growing out of control. The more apt comparison for a 2012 Reagan-esque argument would be against Obama-care. Now in truth, would "Ryan" like to see the Ed Dept eviscerated? Yes. But for 2012 that is a back burner, deep tissue (if you will) issue, at best. And that is exactly what I meant about the GOP (& by extension their presidential candidate) recognizing they have some basic political elements working in their favor these next 2 cycles. Obama has provided a nearly unprecedented explosion in the growth of government, intrusion into the private sector, and peace time (or any time at this point) deficits. Basic, common sense conservatism, dare I say "kitchen table" (to borrow a Reagan-era spawned phrase) conservatism is more than adequate to carry the day.

Let me put it another way - if you put Reagan against Obama in 2012, especially with the wide array of fleshy, meaty issues Obama has served up for a genuine conservative to run against, does Reagan not win? America, in poll after poll, identifies itself as "conservative" rather than "liberal" at a 2 to 1 margin. I believe at its' core America still is conservative (just look at the majority opposition against Obama-care, cap and trade, bail outs, etc), She need only to be given a choice of bold, contrasting ideas, rather then pail pastels (I'm going for as many Regan paraphrases as possible).

And in that vain, I will offer whom, at the moment, I think would be effective - Newt Gingrich. And in a funny way, he can run on the legacy of the booming 90's.

But whomever it is would do well to run as the arch-typical Reagan Conservative. Ask the people if they're better off then they were 4 years ago. Ask them if they'd like a second Carter administration. At no other time in the last 16 years has it been more apt to offer a Reagan style parody - "The scariest words in the English language are: I'm from the government, and I'm here to help." Make it clear that government has ceased wearing the striped shirt of referee and have put on a jersey, wreaking havoc playing around in the private market, etc, etc, etc.

The key - and this is absolutely crucial - to winning "moderate" votes is to offer that clear, concise difference, rather then a hodge-podge of watered down, quasi-conservative messages that get lost in translation. THAT clear conservative choice is how Reagan won moderate Democrats. It is a glowing road map for victory. It is time to reassert basic, unyielding, conservative principles. I am SO SICK, to be honest, of conservatives whom think it wise not to advocate "what they really believe" in public, fearing the rest of the nation will think them "too conservative", when Reagan demonstrated clearly that the opposite tact works!! The particular issues have changed - the 2012 candidate needn't refight the Dept of Ed, but rather Obama-care - but the road map to victory has not: clear, unapologetic conservative ideals. And the reason they work - low taxes, less government intrusion, etc - is because those ideals have a proven track record of success and are inherently attractive to Americans. The only thing lacking is someone to effectively communicate those ideals. But don't confuse the GOP's inability to find an effective Reagan-messenger with the idea that Reagan-conservatives don't have an effective message.