Seth Lipsky's August 20 New York Post column headlined "Optimism: The GOP's Missing Ingredient" is resonating again, months after it originally appeared.
We had mentioned here back on October 1 that at least two of the Republican Party's 2016 presidential contenders seemed to have taken the column's message on board. Senator Ted Cruz, in his remarks to the 2014 Values Voter Summit that won him the straw poll there (and that are worth a look for other reasons, too), said, "I'm optimistic because of you. I'm optimistic because I believe in the American people." And Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin told Robert Draper of GQ (link via Politico Playbook): "One of the problems I see with Republicans nationally — well, three. … They're always against Obama, so they're not optimistic. I try to be optimistic and visionary."
The latest development involves a third possible Republican presidential contender for 2016, a former governor of Florida, Jeb Bush. Jeb Bush's brother George W. Bush was on "Face The Nation" over the weekend. According to Mike Allen's Politico Playbook, George W. Bush said of Jeb: "He'd be a great president. And the country could use an optimistic view like his."
As the last post on the topic here at FutureOfCapitalism observed, there is a difference between a candidate merely expressing optimism, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, a candidate actually articulating a policy vision that makes voters share that optimism. But just getting the "optimism" issue on the radar screen counts as progress. At least that's my own optimistic view of it.