First Karl Rove says they need to tone down the crazy, now FastCompany has jumped into to try and save the Republican Party from itself with some comprehensive branding advice (that I hope nobody listens to).
…the nickname “Grand Old Party,” given to the party back in 1888, needs to be revisited. “Grand” is a word no one still alive uses today unless they are referring to a type of piano and “Old” is a negative perception the party needs to move away from. It’s time to either drop the nickname or replace it. Since the acronym “GOP” is used by the party as its site address and, by itself, has no inherent negative attributes, one option to explore is to change what the acronym stands for.
Energy giant BP did this when it changed what “BP” stood for from “British Petroleum” to “Beyond Petroleum” to signify their move into alternative energy sources. The party could do the same, perhaps changing the “GOP” acronym meaning from “Grand Old Party” to a more positive “Growth and Opportunity Party” that fits with the proposed brand promise.