Garden State Patriot

Great news today for conservatives. Dede Scozzafava is suspending her campaign.

Scozzafava suspends campaign
By Tony Romm – 10/31/09 10:37 AM ET
State Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava (R) announced on Saturday she would suspend her campaign to fill former Rep. John McHugh’s open House seat, citing dismal poll numbers just days before the much-hyped special election.
Her exit from the race offers serious momentum to Doug Hoffman, the Conservative Party candidate who has stolen from Scozzafava a slew of important GOP endorsements and donations in recent weeks.

“Today, I again seek to act for the good of our community,” Scozzafava wrote in a letter to supporters, obtained by the Watertown Daily Times. “It is increasingly clear that pressure is mounting on many of my supporters to shift their support. Consequently, I hereby release those individuals who have endorsed and supported my campaign to transfer their support as they see fit to do so.”

“I am and have always been a proud Republican,” Scozzafava added. “It is my hope that with my actions today, my party will emerge stronger and our district and our nation can take an important step towards restoring the enduring strength and economic prosperity that has defined us for generations.”

This is also a victory of the conservative blogosphere which exposed Scozzafava and put the pressure on for her to step aside..

This is cross-posted at Conservatives with Attitude!

Michael Illions was one of many bloggers today across the right-wing spectrum to call for Dede Scozzafava to withdraw from the NY District 23 House race. The movement to call for Scozzafava’s withdrawal, though, started brewing earlier this week.  Here’s a little background.

Over at NRO, Jim Geraghty did a piece on the NY-23 House race on Monday in the Campaign Spot. In that piece, Geraghty contended that conservatives ought not fault the NRCC and RNC for supporting a Republican chosen by the local party.

This is not a defense of Scozzafava. I’m just saying it’s a contradiction if a conservative denounces the National Republican Senatorial Committee, when it backs Charlie Crist over Marco Rubio and Arlen Specter over Pat Toomey (yeah, that one went well), for not letting Republican grassroots have their say, and then denounces the NRCC and RNC when they try to help Scozzafava win. In this case, the NRCC and RNC are backing the choice of the local party, after the choice has been finalized. It may be a lousy choice, but you rarely if ever see national parties overruling the selection of local parties; once you open that door, you face the question of how often these national committees get to exercise a veto over the local parties’ selection.

Two days later, though, Geraghty changed his tune after Scozzafava had a run-in with Weekly Standard reporter John McCormack. Geraghty explains:

Earlier this week, I was noting that it was unrealistic for conservatives to expect national Republican committees, like the RNC and National Republican Congressional Committee, to do anything but back the Republican in New York’s special congressional election.

But the situation has changed.

It’s not just the inanity of Dede Scozzafava’s campaign calling the cops on a reporter; it’s doubling down and calling McCormack a liar. With audiotape now exposing the Scozzafava campaign as the liar in their account of the candidate’s interaction with John McCormack, it’s a different ballgame. I’m actually finding myself driven to a position beyond the editors.

It’s time for the NRCC and RNC to cut their ties, and more. It’s embarrassing enough when a candidate won’t answer reasonable questions from reasonable press and her campaign attempts to smear them in order to cover up their mess. Forwarding McCormack’s e-mails to Talking Points Memo just shows how upside-down the Scozzafava campaign is.

The time has come for the RNC and NRCC to ask for their money back. This goes well beyond any reasonable difference on policy. There’s room in the party for pro-choice Republicans and pro-gay-marriage Republicans and maybe even the odd pro-card-check Republican. But not this kind of arrogance, this kind of clumsy dishonesty, this kind of reckless hostility to a reporter and a publication that need not be an enemy.

The RNC and NRCC are better than the Scozzafava campaign. It’s time for them to demonstrate that they know how a candidate and her staff are supposed to react when asked a question, and to show that Scozzafava’s team’s behavior is just not acceptable.

Well, this represented the last straw for many in the right-wing blogosphere, prompting several sites this morning, starting with Red County, Red State and the American Spectator (Quinn Hilyer), to call for Scozzafava to withdraw. Red County, in particular, led the way on this starting with a post this morning from Joshua Sharf. A flurry of posts followed on Red County including here, here, here and here.

Red State and the American Spectator were also among the first to call for Scozzafava’s withdrawal. From there, the calls for withdrawal spread quickly. As Michael mentioned, all of the following outlets also joined the bandwagon: RightWingNews.com. Andrew Breitbart’s BigGovernment.com. The Washington Examiner. The Washington Times. Michelle Malkin also got on board.

All of this goes to show just how powerful this medium called blogging has become; and how bloggers, when working in concert, can affect change. In the past, a candidate like Scozzafava would have flown well under the radar. Her views not known to the rest of us until well after the horse was out of the barn. Now, we have the power to fight back when our party puts forth wholly unworthy candidates who do not uphold any of the core values the party stands for.

One can only hope that Mrs. Scozzafava now does the right thing and steps aside. In fact, that would be the only way to show any last bit of true allegiance to the party whose banner she now is running under.

As a conservative, we are accustomed to the Left hurling vicious, one-liner attacks our way.

Sexist. Homophobe. Racist.

These are always the default arguments for Leftists bereft of any logical thought and an inability to put forth a coherent counterpoint to conservative views.

However, I have to admit. The one attack that irks me most is being called racist, for nothing could be further from the truth. Nothing. Nor is it true of most people I have conversed with in my life who share similar views. Conservatism, as it were, is a color-blind ideology.

Thus, when someone like Alicia Menendez, daughter of our fair Senator Bob Menendez, pens an article baselessly accusing Republicans of not caring about Latinos I can’t help but be angered. Not just as a conservative, but as an American who wants nothing but prosperity for all citizens.

You see, the real race-baiters are people like Alicia Menendez who do not treat people as individuals. Rather, Menendez prefers to segment us into groups and then pit us against one another; all, of course, with one aim - gaining political power.

For demogogues like Miss Menendez, pointing to the widespread appointments of Hispanics throughout the Bush Administration will not matter. Pointing to the appointment of Alberto Gonzales as the first ever Attorney General, fruitless.

You see, to Miss Menendez, GOPers are anti-Latino if they do not send a representative to a meeting held by the controversial group La Raza; a group that favors open borders and amnesty and consists of Mexicans who believe that the Southwest territory rightfully belongs to Mexico. And, of course, no such current attack is complete without a mention of Sonia Sotomayor.

This inability (or unwillingness) to connect with Latino voters brings back sweet, sweet memories of 2008, when right-wing extremists alienated Hispanics by pulling the GOP rhetoric to the right on immigration. Last fall, the contenders for the Republican Presidential nomination, save John McCain, all declined invitations to a Univision-sponsored presidential debate. Here we are, a year later, and the GOP is still turning down invites.

I’m a progressive Latina—I should be throwing a fiesta, right? Democrats have an opportunity to lock-down the fastest-growing, most brand-loyal group in the country and Republicans aren’t even trying to compete. On paper, it’s great.

But regardless of which party Latino voters show up for on election day, our community needs Democratic and Republican lawmakers to care about our issues the other 364 days of the year. And if the GOP cannot get it together enough to send a high-profile representative to one of the largest gatherings of Latino leaders in the country, what should we expect when comprehensive immigration reform hits the House floor? More of the same rhetoric? Another no-show?

Just as the story of Sonia Sotomayor, a Puerto Rican, overlaps with the story of so many Americans, the concerns of Hispanic-Americans are shared by much of the country. When a community who voted for health care reform, economic revival and comprehensive immigration reform is ignored, we are all ignored.

That’s bad for Latinos, it’s bad for immigrants, and it’s bad for America.

Somehow, I’m sure, Democrat opposition to Miguel Estrada was not ‘anti-Latino’ in Miss Menendez’ mind. Another fact to be ignored in the quest for political power.

All of this would be of little consequence if this tactic were not effective. Unfortunately, all too many Leftists seem to buy into it hook, line and sinker. Ergo, you see vicious comments from her readers such as…

The problem is not that the Republicans don’t care about Latinos. The problem is they consider Latinos to be sub-human law breakers and either dislike or actively hate them.

Its not just Latinos that the GOP hates, they also hate blacks, gays, Arabs, Muslims, Canadians, Europeans (especially the French), Asians, and liberals. Did I leave anyone out? That’s basically the whole world and 70% of America that they hate. GOPers are one sad pathetic, bigoted, racist hate filled group of people.

The republicans and especially those like buchanan, limbaugh, hannity, coulter, and beck firmly believe that white people are superior to people of color – any color. They are terrified of losing their presumed preeminent position and therefore spew anger, hate, and racism. They have not yet come to grips with the declining demographics of the GOP base.

…to name a few.

Miss Menendez, let me tell you this. What is bad for America is not that the GOP doesn’t address La Raza. It’s not that Republicans or conservatives oppose your socialist agenda. What is bad for America is when you accuse fellow Americans of not caring a whit for their brethren, without possibly knowing what is in their hearts. What is bad for America – truly bad for America – is when people like you attempt to stoke the fires of race in order to promote your agenda.  For so doing, you ought to be utterly and unabashedly ashamed of yourself.

Cross-posted at Conservatives with Attitude!

Yesterday, the destructive, job-killing Waxman-Markey C(r)ap and Trade bill passed the House. While numerous Democrats broke ranks to oppose this bad legislation, it passed with some Republican support. That support, unfortunately, came from three so-called Republicans right here in New Jersey. Their names? Leonard Lance, Chris Smith and Frank LoBiondo.

Their votes in favor of this bill represent nothing less than a betrayal of Republican principles. Waxman-Markey, as I have pointed out previously, is a repressive tax for Americans. It will impact everything we produce and result in lost jobs and higher energy bills to the tune of up to $3,000 a year for the average family.

Lance, LoBiondo and Smith have now elevated themselves to the same level as Arlen Specter. Their votes are no less a betrayal as Specter’s was for the Porkulous bill.

As such, each of these Congressmen now no longer deserve our support. Each of them needs to be primaried out. Republicans need to send a strong and clear message that on certain issues you must toe the line and breaking ranks will not be tolerated. If you are a constitutent in the districts represented by these Congressmen make no mistake, they have not represented you, let alone this state and our nation. They need to be voted out.

I, for one, will do all I can to see that that is exactly what happens next year.

Colin Powell appeared on Face the Nation today and, among other things, reacted to comments made last week by Dick Cheney while, typically, calling for expanding the party’s base. Here is the interview in full.

Let’s make no mistake. Colin Powell is an American hero and success story. His accomplishments serving his country are beyond admirable. Unfortunately, his credibility as a Republican is little. He has never run for office and compiled a record of legislative or executive accomplishments. He has not done anything to help the party win elections as far as I can recall. When he was Secretary of State under ‘W’ he was known more for being a voice of opposition in the administration. But now somehow we should listen to him when it comes to rebuilding our party?

For argument’s sake, let’s accept Powell’s premise. RINOs like Powell like to use rhetoric about expanding the party’s base and being a big tent. Shouldn’t they then be asked to provide us with a plan on how to do so? However, they NEVER say what they mean by that. They never lay out a road map for it.

Shouldn’t RINOs also then be asked to provide evidence that moderating the party’s stances will actually be effective and also be able to point to the successes of moderates in the party? This, too, never occurs.

Powell points to his previous votes for Republican candidates over the years. That may be well and good. But as in the world of sports, one has to ask “what have you done for me lately?” Last time I checked, Colin Powell was endorsing and voting for a Democrat for President. Can someone please tell me how this helps build the Republican Party? Couple this with Powell’s unfounded criticism of the party moving too far right and, in my mind, he has undermined any credibility he has as a Republican.

John McCain represented the EXACT kind of candidate Powell suggests the party needs and he publicly shunned him in favor of the most left-wing candidate in the nation’s history. Party building indeed.

(more…)

Laura Ingraham interviewed turncoat Arlen Specter on her radio show and it became a bit confrontational. Thought you’d want to hear it.

http://mofopolitics.com/ingraham-specter.mp3

As far as I’m concerned, Specter, Snowe and Collins have all gone too far. I’d personally like the party to throw them out, but at the least they should be primaried out. Their betrayal will not be forgotten.

With the past 2 elections having been downright disasters for the Republican Party, conservatives and moderates have been in a bit of a fight for the party’s soul and it’s future direction.

As a conservative, I firmly believe the party is best served when it stays true to conservative principles – and that acting like Democrats leads to our defeat. At the same time, I still welcome people like Rudy Giuliani in our “Big Tent.”

However, in my opinion, fiscal conservatism ought be a common denominator between the moderates and conservatives. In fact, violating fiscal conservatism is one of the key reasons for our losses in the past 2 cycles. That’s what makes the actions of Senators Specter, Nelson and Collins completely unforgiveable. As the party is just now attempting to get back to basics, these Senators are acting in the very fashion that has decimated the “Republican brand.”

Now, I think it is time to say enough is enough. If this bill passes due to their actions, then each of them deserved to be tossed out. This is even an opportunity for Michael Steele, the new RNC Chair, to make a clear statement: There are some things that we will not tolerate as Republicans and reckless spending is right at the top of the list.

The RNC ought to threaten not give a dime to any of these Senators the next time they are up for re-election. No one in the party should give them a dime either. They shouldn’t get one vote in their primaries.

These actions are not fitting of anyone who has an (R) come after their names. If you can’t hold the line on a monstrosity like this then we don’t want you in the party.

Cross-posted at Conservatives with Attitude!

ABC is reporting that New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg could be tapped as Obama’s Commerce Secretary on Monday. If he takes the job it will open up his senate seat, which would be filled by Democratic Governor John Lynch. Lynch would most assuredly fill the position with another Democrat giving the Democrats a filibuster-proof Senate unless Norm Coleman somehow wins in Minnesota.

Judd Gregg Could Be Picked for Commerce as Soon as Monday
January 31, 2009 11:48 AM

An Obama administration official tells ABC News that Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., is now the leading candidate for Commerce Secretary and could be announced as soon as Monday.

Gregg would be at least the third Republican to join the Obama administration, joining the ranks of Transportation Secretary and former GOP congressman Ray LaHood and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. (The political party of National Security Advisor and retired Army General Jim Jones is unclear, though he is a longtime friend of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and appeared at a McCain campaign event.)

Gregg’s announcement, while making the Obama administration more bipartisan, would likely have the opposite effect on the U.S. Senate. New Hampshire’s Democratic governor John Lynch could appoint a Democrat to replace Gregg, thus delivering to Democrats their elusive 60-vote majority, empowering them to stave off Republican filibusters.

Gregg, a former governor, is up for re-election in 2010 in a state that has been trending Democratic for the last few years.

This would be the ultimate backstabbing of his own party if Gregg takes the job. It’s time to get on the horn and start e-mailing Gregg’s office to tell him to stay put and not to sell out his own party!!

http://gregg.senate.gov/public/

Washington
393 Russell Senate Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
(202) 224-3324

Berlin
60 Pleasant Street
Berlin, NH 03570
(603) 752-2604

Concord
125 North Main Street
Concord, NH 03301
(603) 225-7115

Manchester
41 Hooksett Road
Manchester, NH 03104
(603) 622-7979

Portsmouth
16 Pease Boulevard
Portsmouth, NH 03801
(603) 431-2171

UPDATE: I tried calling Gregg’s Washington office. Mailbox is already full. Sent an e-mail through his web site.

Here’s some more info from freerepublic.com: http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/juddgregg/index?tab=articles

Tis a new day for the Republican Party. Former Maryland Lt. Governor Michael Steele, after 6 rounds of voting, survived and emerged as the newest RNC Chairman.

Chairman Steele will have his work cut out for him, but I feel he is capable and that the party is in good hands. Interestingly, this means for the first time in the nation’s history both major political parties are led by black men. Now, if only the MSM would celebrate this ascension to leadership as much as The Messiah’s.

Here is Mr. Steele’s acceptance speech.

And here is his plan for the party entitled ‘Blueprint for Tomorow.’

Blueprint Chapter1

The National Press Club will be hosting a forum for the 6 candidates for the RNC Chairmanship. Obviously, with the Democrats holding all 3 branches for the next 2 years, the RNC Chairman will be the face of the party and his/her agenda will be critical for reshaping the party’s future.

The forum will be held on Monday at 1pm and will be televised by C-Span. So, get your DVR’s warmed up!