Are Republicans "Looking Towards the Future" or the past?

The sorry post-election state of the Republican Party is captured by David Brooks in his New York Times column today. The "Traditionalists," who believe their party lost so big because it strayed from bright red values, will come out on top during in-between election jockeying, Brooks says resignedly. It'll be an indeterminate period of time, he says, before the "Reformers" "build new institutions, new structures and new ideas, and the cycle of conservative ascendance will begin again."

Conservative blogger Hugh Hewitt thinks Brooks' assessment is too Beltway-centric and elitist, and therefore "can't drive a movement or a party."

Jonah Goldberg offers his view in his Los Angeles Times column, "Was George W. Bush a conservative President?"

It will be interesting to see what comes out of the Republican Governors Association meeting this week in Miami. Will there be a healthy debate about ideas -- or will the meeting be dominated by the incandescent Gov. Sarah Palin, who will be on the panel "Looking Towards the Future"?