In a memo to Republican National Committee chairman Mike Duncan on Wednesday, the RNC’s director of strategy, Bill Steiner, trumpeted the GOP’s positive results following Tuesday’s elections. Jim Geraghty covers a similar topic on National Review Online. Perhaps all the happy talk seems off-base because I live in Virginia, where Republicans were trounced. Regardless, I’m not seeing what all the excitement is about.

The RNC memo covers Bobby Jindal’s victory in Louisiana along with other statewide gains; Haley Barbour’s re-election in Mississippi and the coattails that helped other candidates; two statewide officeholders in Kentucky; the rejection of Democrat-backed ballot initiatives in Oregon and New Jersey; the election of Republican mayors in Indianapolis, Charlotte and Manchester, N.H.; and finally, Jim Ogonowski’s strong showing but losing bid in Massachusetts’ 5th District.

It certainly sounds impressive. But aside from Jindal’s win and the upset victory in Indianapolis, I’m not exactly seeing how these results translate into a good things for the GOP in 2008. After all, the RNC glossed over the two major setbacks on Tuesday — the loss of the governor’s mansion in Kentucky and the Virginia Senate. At the same time, I’m not sure anyone is surprised by Barbour’s victory in bright-red Mississippi. Ballot initiatives aren’t exactly the best barometers either.

Instead of gloating, I’d rather see the RNC use its resources to recruit candidates and raise money — two areas where Democrats are significantly outpacing the GOP. As The Hill reported this week, the National Republican Congressional Committee has failed to find challengers to run against easy Democrat targets. The National Republican Senatorial Committee, on the other hand, hasn’t come close to keeping pace with its Democrat counterpart in terms of fundraising.

And more to the point, small wins in Charlotte and Manchester are meaningless if Republicans on Capitol Hill continue to behave like drunken sailors spending taxpayers’ money. For a party that’s supposed to be committed to fiscal restraint, it was shocking to see 138 Republicans defy President Bush and override his veto on a pork-filled water projects bill. Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott was so bold that he quipped, “When I was asked would it be sustained, I said, ‘Probably not.’ When I was asked how I would vote, I said I’d vote to override.”

If Republicans are serious about making gains in 2008, it’ll start by returning to their roots and standing firm for conservative principles. To win at the ballot box, the GOP needs to show some courage on Capitol Hill.