Occasionally, the posts might be speculative or only partially correct -- and once in a while even profane. But Erickson and his band of bloggers generally get the drift of where things are headed politically long before the established news organizations, which are largely bound by tradition to get hard-and-fast confirmations before publishing stories.
The impact that sites like RedState and people like Erickson will have on the next Republican presidential contest cannot be underestimated. It's true that much of what his websites cover might seem to be inside baseball and doesn't necessarily impact the broader public. (As a pollster, I can tell you that little of anything moves public opinion these days!) Yet the political players that help shape policy and the direction of the conservative movement follow his every word.
Erickson and his conservative brethren are the next generation of Republicans. Essentially, they want one thing: genuine Republicans as their candidates and elected officials. They are neither cowered by nor tolerant of the silk-stocking establishment GOP that says what conservative voters want to hear, only to join in on big government spending sprees once elected.
Erickson and his ilk want elected officials who aren't in it for the perks. They comprise a sophisticated new wave of Republicans that is replacing those of us who in 1980 were the ground troops in what became the Reagan Revolution and, by 1994, the operatives that helped Gingrich and his fellow Republicans take over the U.S. House.
Yes, these new "journalists" will likely have to be a bit more circumspect in what they write and how they express themselves. (Unfiltered words can get you in a libel suit quickly.) From what I've seen, though, Erickson is becoming increasingly savvy without losing the punch and the fire that makes his web creation so noteworthy.
My guess is that by the next presidential election, when conservatives, Republicans and Libertarians all check their usual well-established news and opinion sites every day (or every hour), they will have added to that list RedState and the opinions of Erick Erickson. He looks to be to be one of the next generation of true Republicans to whom the torch has been passed. Let's hope he uses that influence wisely and gets a very confused Republican Party turned around.