An ugly incident over the weekend provides a teachable moment for Republicans about the risk of trying to appeal to the fringe as they prepare for next year's elections.

Doug Lambert of Gilford is a conservative blogger who broadcasts a low-wattage AM radio show on Saturday mornings - think "Wayne's World" with a web cam. Lambert closed his show with a virulently anti-gay rant aimed at state Democratic Chairman Ray Buckley. Lambert called Buckley a "faggot" and, lest one be tempted to give the benefit of the doubt for a slip of the tongue, Lambert added, "That's right. I said it and I meant it."

Saturday was Buckley's birthday, and Lambert closed with, "Other than that, happy birthday Ray and many more - not."

There is no place for such language or such views in today's Republican Party, and as a leader in the party, it is part of my responsibility to condemn Lambert's comments publicly. That is the first purpose of this column.

I have a second purpose as well, and that is to warn other Republicans to resist the temptation to campaign to the fringe of our party. It's not a winning strategy.

Sadly, this was not an isolated incident for Lambert, whose chronic angry-at-everyone screeds have made him an isolated figure even among party activists. The only real surprise about the comments is that anyone was listening to notice he crossed the line. It's no accident that U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg and former U.S. senator John E. Sununu have never appeared on the show. Piqued, Lambert has used his forum to attack both Gregg and Sununu on a regular basis for being insufficiently conservative as he defines it. When Gregg and Sununu aren't good enough Republicans, that's a pretty extreme view.

Despite Lambert's extreme views, guests on Saturday's program included a Republican state senator and a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate. Although neither was present for the rant or the slur, both quickly issued press releases distancing themselves from the comments. Within hours, a Republican congressional candidate dropped Lambert from his list of local organizers.

All of this begs a basic question: Why on Earth were leading Republicans pandering on a fringe show with zero measurable audience in the first place? What were they thinking?

I get the politics of primaries. Candidates know that those who vote in primaries tilt toward the far right and the far left. So, they go on a show like Lambert's hoping primary voters are listening.

But these candidates have the math wrong. There are many more primary votes to be had among mainstream conservatives than there are among the fringe, no matter how vocal. The tip of the tail must not wag the dog. There are some votes a candidate can do without.

Then there's the general election. Winning candidates in New Hampshire get elected with the votes of independent-minded centrists. These voters, like mainstream Republicans, expect candidates to be civil, tolerant and inclusive. They are more open to candidates who are focused on fiscal issues than social issues. In short, the voters who will decide who wins next year's elections will vote for candidates who represent the opposite of Lambert.

After suffering through two brutal election cycles weighed down by the Bush administration's unpopularity, Republicans have reason for optimism about 2010. Let's not blow it by giving any more birthday presents like this to the Democrats.

(Fergus Cullen is a former chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party.)