Jindal: GOP Needs to 'Stop Being the Stupid Party'

Tell us how you really feel, Bobby Jindal. The Louisiana governor let loose on his own team in a Politico interview yesterday, saying that Republicans need to "stop being the stupid party." Jindal says Republicans need to stop sneering at intellectuals, and get some real policy in the place of "bumper-sticker slogans." "We've had enough of this dumbed-down conservatism. We need to stop being simplistic, and … we need to stop insulting the intelligence of voters."

He also said the GOP needed to be more populist. "We’ve got to make sure that we are not the party of big business, big banks, big Wall Street bailouts, big corporate loopholes, big anything," he said. He said he didn't support tax rate increases, but did back closing loopholes, and supported Dodd-Frank and other financial reforms. He said the party should stick by its positions on social issues, but soften its tone, decrying the "offensive, bizarre comments" that hurt the GOP in this election cycle. Jindal is taking the reins of the Republican Governors' Association this week; he was mum on whether he would run for president in 2016. (More Bobby Jindal stories.)