Good Advice

Jack Kelly reminds Republicans of the way out of the electoral wilderness:

Republicans should retain their social conservatism and regain their economic conservatism. But the conservatism that wins elections is a conservatism of optimism and inclusion, not doom, gloom and ethnic division. Republicans will not regain their majority without fidelity to Ronald Reagan's principles. But they may need Mr. Reagan's attitude even more.

Principles and attitude are equally important. It's like substance and procedure when it comes to the law. Even just laws are worthless if there are no meaningful procedural guarantees; all the procedural guarantees in the world, however, don't matter if the underlying substance of the law is tyrannical or unjust.

Same is true here. The sunniest disposition ultimately means little without some real principles. But given the anti-conservative bent of most of the MSM, even the best conservative principles need to be presented in an optimistic, open-hearted fashion.