Posted on 10/15/2002 2:15:07 PM PDT by EternalVigilance
Mike Connolly Daily Mail Staff
Tuesday October 15, 2002; 11:00 AM
Not even the Republican Senatorial Committee thinks Jay Wolfe can unseat incumbent Democrat Jay Rockefeller in the West Virginia Senate race.
The committee can give Wolfe, 47, up to $202,000 to help his campaign. So far, they haven't given him a dime and the election is only three weeks away.
But Wolfe isn't complaining too much. He knows he is a long shot to beat Rockefeller.
"I guess I understand it," Wolfe said about the committee. "When I got into it, I didn't ask them if I should. I really didn't expect them to help me much."
So the Wolf Summit resident will try to beat an incumbent three-term senator from one of the wealthiest families in America with $100,000 and almost no name recognition.
But Wolfe is confident. He's challenged some tough politicians before and even won once.
With no money from the state Republican committee, Wolfe beat 14-year Legislature veteran Gino Colombo in 1986 to win a seat in the state Senate.
Two years later he ran against Sen. Robert Byrd for a seat in the U.S. Senate and lost by a considerable margin.
"Most people don't even remember that I ran," Wolfe said, but he also reminded the Daily Mail's editorial board Monday that he got 35 percent of the vote against Byrd -- which is better than most people can do against West Virginia's senior senator.
This year, even as his own party dismisses him as running a lost cause, Wolfe is confident he can win. Wolfe says that Rockefeller's assumed easy victory is the exact reason he will pull off an upset. He is concentrating his efforts on getting state Republicans out to vote.
He hopes that Democrats, certain of a Rockefeller victory, will stay home Nov. 5.
"The conventional wisdom says Rockefeller will win," he said. "I don't think he is nearly as well loved as Robert Byrd is. I think he is vulnerable."
A key plank in Wolfe's plan is pointing out how different he is than Rockefeller. He calls Rockefeller "a typical tax-and-spend liberal." Wolfe, a Baptist deacon at Clarksburg Baptist Church, is a fiscal and social conservative.
"Government needs to do as much as possible to get out of people's lives," Wolfe said.
He is staunchly pro-life, opposes the "radical homosexual agenda" and wants to take funding away from museums and theater groups that produce "pornography."
"I believe there is a war in this country right now over morals," Wolfe said.
When it comes to taxes, Wolfe has a plan to radically revamp the federal tax system.
If Wolfe were elected, he would work to abolish all federal income taxes including Social Security and Medicare deductions. To replace the tax base, he would create a national retail sales tax somewhere between 20 percent and 30 percent. Wolfe claims his plan would be revenue neutral and would stimulate the American economy.
"It would help our industrial base," Wolfe said. "We could become again the industrial giant that we used to be."
Wolfe also supports President Bush's plan for a war in Iraq, has the backing of the NRA when it comes to gun control and wants to cut taxes.
He is very clear about what he wants to do. Now all he has to do is pull off a seemingly impossible upset. But recent history seems to favor a Republican underdog in West Virginia.
"Nobody gave Bush a chance to win in this state in 2000 either," Wolfe said with a smile.
Writer Mike Connolly can be reached at 348-4806
I'm tapped out with sending $ to Thune and Talent. I'm also working to turn out our vote in Texas!!!!
We have huge signs going up at every major intersection, and near the entrances to every Walmart, that say:
NRA RATING:
ROCKEFELLER 'F'
WOLFE 'A'
Believe me, the pro-gun forces are working their hearts out for Jay Wolfe.
Van and weasel phil are tied according to latest polls. Some one broke into weasel's campaign office, UNLOCKED and rifled desks, pilferd a computer, and weasel wants to blame Van and his people.
Rapidity is the essence of war. Take advantage of the enemy's unreadiness, make your way by unexpected routes, and attack unguarded spots.
-Sun Tzu
Godspeed!
Great advice---thanks for the input and the prayers.
Those signs should be effective for gun enthusiasts. I still think you should get some people (attractive young ladies work best!)to pass out the flyers comparing Rockefeller/Jay. They can stand at the entrance/exit from WALMART. Have them wear T-SHIRTS that read "THANKS" in big letters, then they can say "Thanks for shopping at WALMART, don't forget to vote on election day." or something. The "THANKS" on the T-Shirts will make most people curious enough to stop on their own.
Don't forget the grocery stores, they may have "OFFICIAL" policies against distributing political literature, etc, but practically speaking, it's up to the mgr whose on duty when you get there.
I've done my fair shair of petition circulating, and most of it was done at grocery stores. If you're nice, and make sure the mgr know that you will be only offering info to people ON THEIR WAY OUT, and WITHOUT ANY HARRASSING, etc...they're usually fine with it.
Because liberal morons like my parents, who live in Beaverton, keep voting them into office!!
I know I should be the ever-loving son, but my mother makes Barbra Streisand sound reasonable!
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