Republicans keep losing ground in America’s cities because they refuse to match Democrats’ most basic tactic: paying people to do the work, argues conservative columnist Alicia Colon in a blistering post-election analysis for American Thinker.
Writing from Staten Island’s sole Democratic-leaning district, Colon — a former Republican keynote speaker raised in Spanish Harlem — says the party’s defeat in the 2026 midterms reflects a decades-old blind spot. ‘Democrats pay for boots on the ground. Republicans expect volunteers. Why do we lose? Duh, duh, duh,’ she writes.
The Invisible GOP
Colon’s critique stems from childhood memories of Democratic storefronts solving neighborhood problems in 1970s Harlem, contrasted with today’s Staten Island, where GOP candidates skip campaigning in her North Shore district despite its winnable margins. She describes Democratic operatives in her precinct as mercenaries rather than ideologues: ‘They could care less about what’s good for the city. They are paid, period.’
A Maverick’s Warning
The column revisits Colon’s first GOP speech in 1998, when she warned state politicians about ceding urban organizing to Democrats. Nearly 30 years later, she argues little has changed — even as the party enjoys support from ‘the richest man in the world,’ an apparent reference to Elon Musk. ‘Until Republican leadership grow a pair,’ she quips, ‘not much will change.’
2026’s Bleak Aftermath
Colon frames the midterms’ ‘blue tsunami’ as a victory for forces seeking to ‘destroy’ America, comparing progressive urban politicians to anti-government protesters in Europe. Her prescription? Hoping Trump maintains morale among MAGA voters and that border policies reverse course. But the essay’s sharpest takeaway remains its simplest: In politics, unpaid passion loses to paid professionals every time.
Source: www.americanthinker.com — https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/11/why-we-lost/