WHY SAVE A MISTAKE:

Non-whites, lower-income workers, and those whose economic condition has necessitated welfare dependency at some time do not much trust Republicans, because they believe that Republicans do not have their interests are heart. Republicans have over the years given them some reason to believe that, too. But it shouldn't be too hard to look at a place such as Chicago and ask: "Does Rahm Emanuel really act in your interest?" The answer is obviously not. Crime, corruption, dysfunctional schools, unsatisfactory public services from transit to sanitation: There's a great deal of fertile ground for Republicans and conservatives there. Rudy Giuliani won in New York on a single issue -- crime -- and delivered on it. On a smaller scale, Rick Baker had a very good run as mayor of St. Petersburg, and won 90 percent of the vote in the city's low-income black precincts on his second go-round. 

In the long run, conservatives need the cities. And the cities need conservatives right now.

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