Sep 13 2010
Will Tea Party Have Upset In DE, Or Will Far Right Fail Again?
Public Policy Polling is out with a poll showing a nail-biter in the GOP primary in DE for VP Biden’s Senate seat. PPP has Christine O’Donnell – easily the worst candidate the Tea Party has promoted this year (outside a string of really good candidates) – leading Mike Castle 47-44%. This is within the margin of error, so turn out is key and who knows what it will be.
PPP was the only organization to detect Senator Lisa Murkowski’s troubles in her GOP Alaska primary, which she lost to a Tea Party candidate. But you can easily miss the intensity of the independents and center right in a state like DE. The dynamics are just not the same. And pollsters can easily miss the fact the Tea Party has a very small, but intense far right component to it, which makes it appear to be farther right than it really is.
O’Donnell is a true disaster, and goes to show that all political movements and parties have a range of supporters and candidates – from the abysmal to the inspiring. The Tea Party is no different. O’Donnell has some serious issues with the truth, issues with being a role model and issues with being someone you would trust your kids with for 10 minutes. While she may have some gems of sanity here and there, the total package is lacking. It is more a sign how small the conservative movement has become in deep blue states, distilled down to the far right crowd which do not represent the broader American electorate.
We shall see tomorrow if America’s priority is to throw the Dems our or to elect the most unelectable candidate in the nation simply because she is further right of the stronger GOP candidate on a handful of issues. Sadly, we see the right wing zealots raising their intolerant voices again as the would rather see radical conservative lose control of the US Senate to the dems than see a center-right conservative vote in a new GOP Senate Majority Leader. Clearly, there are those on the right who are really just the mirror image of the far left. They are creating a rift in the movement to unseat the Democrats this year, and as usual are out hunting RINOS. Pathetic.
An O’Donnell win would damage the Tea Party across the country, so don’t think the damage could be limited to DE. Someone as shaky as O’Donnell could cause a lot of doubt and loss of support for reasonable candidates in NV, CO, PA, etc. Remember, We The People recently fired the GOP from Congress in the last two elections, they are not swarming to the right out of inspiration. Jim DeMint may get his impotent rump party, pure and ineffective due to its small size (and yes, in politics size counts).
I have  my doubts O’Donnell will win in tomorrow’s primary. Pollsters have not been able to demonstrate any accuracy this season, though PPP has done it on occasion. Whatever the result, it is the way our democracy works so we will accept the decisions of the people of DE. Even if that decisions is just as horrendous as the decisions good Americans made in 2006 and 2008. After all, if conservatives are not for democracy then they are simply pretend conservatives.
Update: Jim Geraghty at NRO has a good round up of the fault lines being established thanks to the far right slamming people who disagree with them – just like liberals do.
http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/110/house/2/votes/401/
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll401.xml
So which one would you vote for?
while 23 republicans voted for the above bill, including Ron Paul, CK may end up being a dummy after all.
This whole battle in Delaware doesn’t bode well for anyone.
If you think that a social conservative, who after all are in the extreme minority and have no power, and will still have no meaningful power to implement their social agendas even if elected, are more dangerous than the Marxists who are now in power, or the ‘moderates’ who would abet their statist goals, then I would submit that your priorities are mis-guided.
The issues here are very clear. You either understand and believe that a major change in the direction of the country must be executed, or you support the expansion of the state that has been going on for decades, implicitly. You can’t have it both ways, because the left will overcome you if you try. If we don’t stop the state, masterbation and anything else you do will be the province of the state. Let’s get our boogeymen straight here.
I have seen totalitarianism on the ground. Too few have, and too few understand the stakes. I get a kick out of folks who get all riled up about the ‘far right’, and the ‘religious right’, and who sell themselves as conservatives, all the while making choices that further the statist direction, and have no clue of the destination they are enabling.
‘Sullied in some way’ ? Lol…. yes, sullied in that they are taking away our freedom and our future, in too many cases. It is a fool’s game to think you can elect a statist apologist and retain your freedom and prosperity. It is absolutely simple and clear.
So Obama had no experience to become our US President and he’s turning out to be one of the worse Presidents in history…
Christine has no or little experience. She made serious mistakes in her past and has been proven to lie (but don’t everyone lie?). Can you trust her?
Castle has a record and we know him and his record better. We know that we cannot trust him.
Coons? No trust in him either.
I’d rather position the Senate that would prevent Obama from getting re-nominated for 2012.
Today, the media and Bret’s All-Star panel indicated that the WH won against Boehner as Boehner fell into the trap. I think that Obama’s plan backfired on him.
“To all the doom & gloom folks panicking over Castle in typical far right hysterics, I would take Castle’s word over the babblings of unknown O’Donnell any day of the week.”
Kind of lonely out on that limb by yourself, AJ? And in your own house with your loyal friends no less. What, did a conservative take your parking spot today and you’re having a temper tantrum at the “far right” again?
Maybe Castle can vote to try Bush and Cheney for war crimes again? Will that make you happy? If that’s a middle of the roader (ie, fence sitter) as you seem to think we can do without him.
And you wouldn’t want him either, that is unless you think there’s some far right winger boogie man out there that could take his place…
http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/politics/NRA-Edorses-ODonnell-in-Delaware-102689359.html
Anyone willing to take guns from law abiding citizens is willing to take anything else they possess!
The second amendment secures all others and without it tyranny is at the doorstep with very little to stop it!
The Fox panel got it wrong on DE and they got it wrong on Boehner.
Boehner avoided the trap of voting against middle class tax cuts for the vast majority of the voting public by saying he would vote for them but raising taxes on ANYONE in this economy will further hurt it, but if thats’ all the Dems will give he would vote for it. It was a trap he turned back on the class warfare queens.
Others had better wake up and see it!
Oh, and AJ, those “far right wingers” are going to save your A** this November.
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/delaware-senate-race-kamikaze-republican-tea-party/story?id=11627467
“Rep. Mike Castle is considered a slam dunk to capture Joe Biden’s old Senate seat. Castle is a pro-abortion rights, pro-gun control Republican who often works with Democrats. Those traits have helped make him the most popular Republican in a state that leans heavily Democratic; Castle has twice been elected governor and was elected as Delaware’s sole representative in the House nine times. ”
Oh yeah, he sounds like a good Republican don’t ya think?
From Jonas:
“WWS, I agree with most of your comments.
I’d like to know too, just what ‘far right’ is.
Are those the folks who believe that the government is a fundamentally dangerous entity only to be tolerated for the few uses to which it is uniquely suited ?
Are those the folks who believe that the constitution is the best construct yet devised for limiting government and maximizing individual freedom and potential, and thereby the common good as well ?
Are those the folks who believe that the closer to a ‘free market’ economy we can get, the greater our freedom and prosperity will be ?
Are those the folks who believe in a government of laws and not of men ?
Are those the folks who perceive threats to our national security realistically and intend to take appropriate actions to defend ourselves ?
Are those the folks who did not need to ‘give Obama several months’ because orientation and intentions were perfectly clear all along for those with the education and experience to see ?
Sure would like to know exactly who these ‘far right’ folks are.
Seem pretty dangerous to me. I just have trouble picking them out from the average concerned citizen possessed of eyes and a reasonably functional brain.”
I consider most of above make up conservativism or the so-called “far right”. But I sure would like to know what “far right” mean.
My hope for repealing ObamaCare actually lies with the Court, not the Legislature. The odds are much better than you may think, because the Dem’s made a huge mistake when they passed the bill.
They left out the Severance Clause. Almost all Federal Legislation contains this simple clause, which says that if one part of a bill is found unconstitutional the rest of the bill will be “severed” and will still continue in force.
This didn’t get put into Obamacare – lots of speculation as to why, all the way from idiotic mistake to intentional suicide pill. Either way, if any part of Obamacare is found unconstitutional (like the Mandate) then ALL of it will fall.
A good, lengthy explanation here: (they credit the absence to Scott Brown’s unexpected election)
http://www.americanthinker.com/2010/09/obamacares_fatal_flaw_1.html
Kudos to AG Cuccinelli of Virginia for working overtime to drive this point home! My bet is that he ends up victorious, and that Obama learns a hard lesson about why it’s a stupid move to ridicule the Supreme Court Justices in public.
AJ, as a fellow supporter of George W. Bush, this should be UNACCEPTABLE:
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll401.xml
The voting rolls for the bill to impeach Bush in ’08. Guess who voted YES?
UN.ACCEPTABLE. This is disgusting and now I am adamant that this guy should NOT BE REWARDED for this.
I am not happy with either candidate. O’Donnell’s working for a non-profit while using that organization’s facilities to run a side for-profit business, and then trying to sue them when they found out about it and demoted her for it claiming gender discrimination is a pretty bad omen for the sort of person we are dealing with. And I won’t even get into her college stuff.
Castle is a jellyfish but at least everyone knows he is a jellyfish. Delaware has the choice of a jellyfish or an eel for the Republican primary.
I am not sure I like either choice.
whippet,
The last thing I need or want is right winger idiots trying to save my ass.
LOL! Delusional, just like the dems. And just as incompetent!
Later dude.
Don’t worry, Whippet. It is pretty clear to most of the rest of us who the ‘delusional idiot’ actually is. It is the person who first used the terms ‘delusional’ and ‘idiot’ in this thread, and who has suffered loss of respect here today.
As for Castle voting in favor to impeach Bush, I see that some conservative bloggers have explained away this vote with excuses. Check Powerlineblog.
Jonas,
Whippet is an arrogant ass who comes on my blog to insult me and gets what they deserve. The labels are accurate to a ‘T’. Now you will note something interesting that happens here. When I slam the arrogant far right, who moan and whine about RINOs and Squishes and evil ‘moderates’, a lot of people come out of the closet and get on my case for being too hard on them. The don the label themselves – I do not name a single name.
These same legends in their own minds then move on to insult me as a squish, RINO, etc. I am an independent – I can’t even be a RINO! So while I never once called them out by name, they insult me directly and then act all hurt. Pathetic.
So if anyone decides on their own to be a far right elitists without me making any direct accusations, that is not MY fault. And since you have also come out of the closet to claim YOU are a delusional idiot, don’t whine to me about it. I never called you one.
LOL! And that is where the ‘idiot’ part may actually fit. fI people would stop insulting fellow Americans because they disagree politically (as opposed to noting they are acting stupidly) the liberals would be extinct and this nation would be marching along a right of center conservative path.
Doc Zero over at Hot Air has the best summary of the race today I’ve seen so far:
http://hotair.com/greenroom/archives/2010/09/14/swords-of-delaware/
He comes down on the side of voting for Castle, but he treats all sides fairly and explains all the varying positions and dilemma’s this election holds.
And I was flattered to see that, even though in the end he doesn’t agree with the idea, he does agree that my argument vis a vis the Senate this time around would indeed be the best tactical approach towards taking back the Presidency in 2012. (His argument would be that we can win it back without going to that extreme)
here’s an excerpt:
“I don’t find either of these viewpoints dishonest or foolish. Intelligent arguments have been made for both. I also understand why so many people are getting worked up over this conflict. Every shift in balance is alarming when you’re perched on the edge of a cliff. To overcome the massive inertia of the system that produced Barack Obama as our national undertaker, we’ve got to play a perfect game for the next couple of years. There is little margin for error available to individual candidates, the Republican Party, or the conservative movement. People start screaming when they’re watching you defuse the deficit bomb, and they think you’re about to cut the wrong wire.
I’m not from Delaware, so I have no vote to cast tomorrow night. If I did, I would find myself reluctantly persuaded by the argument for Castle. It’s a pity O’Donnell isn’t a better candidate, and Delaware isn’t an easier state to win over. Good Republican leadership in the Senate should be able to keep Castle on board for the really important votes, and he might just be the leverage that puts the Senate into their hands. The damage being done to the country by Obama is so horrific that I can’t consign us to another two years, if the chance exists for a fully Republican Congress to slam on the brakes… even if leaving a divided Senate under nominal Democrat control until 2012 might be tactically preferable for the next Presidential campaign.”
WWS,
I am not saying there is no logic in wanting the most conservative electable (to a point – no Mark Levins please). But what I find hilarious is the idea O’Donnell is some PROVEN paragon of conservative virtue.
In fact, she acts more like a poseur who says anything she thinks will get her ahead. Her exaggerations alone should tell people she may not be who she claims to be.
This is all about projection. People like Palin have looked into O’Donnell’s eyes and found a pure conservative.
Rubbish. People have assumed the Tea Party is the 2nd coming and can do no wrong. The list of excellent candidates is long and admirable. The fact they picked a lemon in DE is not the end of the world.
Geez.
If I was voting today (and of course I’m not) I would probably make my decision in the same way that Doc Zero has in that article I linked. He came down, reluctantly, for Castle. I’ve never thought that O’Donnell was electable, and in the end Castle is marginally better than Coons. But it’s a close call, and Ed Morrissey, someone else I always read and respect, has come out in favor of O’Donnell today. http://hotair.com/archives/2010/09/14/decision-day-in-delaware/
tonite’s results will be “interesting”, to say the least.
It is worth remembering that the biggest burden Castle has to carry are the political ghosts of Jim Jeffords, Lincoln Chaffee, Arlen Specter, and Charlie Crist – all supposedly solid, “moderate” Republicans who stabbed the GOP in the back as soon as it suited them. Maybe he hasn’t done anything to forfeit the voters trust yet, but they sure have, and Castle has been tone-deaf not to realize that to a lot of people he looks like just another joker in the deck. He could have been using this summer to counteract that notion, but instead he’s been contemptuous of even making the effort – hence the reason he’s in trouble today. If he does lose, he has no one to blame but himself, since this could easily have been avoided with just a little bit of effort on his part.
WWS, I agree – not an easy choice. Sort of like backing McCain over Obama. Now we know why you have to make choices you rather not, simply because perfection was not on the list of choices.
Also, don’t confuse people consumed by power (Crist, Jeffords, Specter) with people who have been loyal GOP caucus members (Snowe, McCain, etc). Those people were not RINOs or moderates, they wanted to keep or enhance their personal power.
Politics had nothing to do with those people.