Somewhere along the road to a "permanent majority," the Republican Revolution of 1994 went off track. For several years, we had confidence in our convictions and trusted that the American people would reward our efforts. And they did.

But today, my Republican friends in Congress stand on the precipice of an electoral rout. Even the best-case scenarios suggest wafer-thin majorities and a legislative agenda in disarray. House speaker-in-waiting Nancy Pelosi has begun her transition planning.

Where did the revolution go astray? How did we go from the big ideas and vision of 1994 to the cheap political point-scoring on meaningless wedge issues of today -- from passing welfare reform and limited government to banning horse meat and same-sex marriage?

The answer is simple: Republican lawmakers forgot the party's principles, became enamored with power and position and began putting politics over policy. Now, the Democrats are reaping the rewards of our neglect -- and we have no one to blame but ourselves.

Spending is out of control. Rather than rolling back government, we have a new $1.2 trillion Medicare prescription drug benefit and non-defense discretionary spending is growing twice as fast as it had in the Clinton administration.

Social Security is collapsing while rogue nations are going nuclear and the Middle East is more combustible than ever. Yet Republican lawmakers have taken up such issues as flag burning, Terri Schiavo and same-sex marriage.

If Democrats take control of Congress on Nov. 7, they will form an accidental majority. They are not succeeding because of their principles or policy proposals but simply because they have kept their heads down. Republicans, fearful of taking on big tasks and challenges, may be defeated in one week by a party that offers nothing on the key issues of our day.

How can the Republicans respond?

The leadership must remember that the modern conservative movement is a fusion of social and fiscal conservatives united in their belief in limited government. The likely Republican losses in next week's elections will not constitute a repudiation of the conservative legacy that drove the Reagan presidency and created the Contract With America. To the contrary, it would represent a rejection of Big Government Conservatism.

When we get back to being the party of limited government, putting a national agenda ahead of parochial short-term politics, we will again be a party that the American voters will trust to deal with the serious challenges facing our nation.

Dick Armey, the House majority leader from 1995 to 2003, is chairman of the Freedom Works think tank.