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Moderate Republicans crashing the tea party
http://washingtontimes.com ^ | February 11, 2010 | By Valerie Richardson

Posted on 02/10/2010 9:04:45 PM PST by Maelstorm

"Tea party" Republicans aren't the only candidates poised to make inroads this year - moderate Republicans are surging from Illinois to California, and in several instances proving they can best tea-party-powered conservatives at the polls.

Take the Illinois Republican Senate primary: Patrick Hughes, a developer and political newcomer, seemed to have the wind at his back as a staunch fiscal conservative and favorite of the tea party movement. His chief rival, Rep. Mark Kirk, was routinely blasted as a RINO - Republican in Name Only - for his more moderate record, which includes votes for cap-and-trade emissions legislation and the bank bailouts.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...


TOPICS:
KEYWORDS: 2010midterms; il201; kirk; liberal; markkirk; patrickhughes; rinos; teaparty
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To: Maelstorm
With Obama so far to the left, even the RINO's end up on our side. Just yesterday, Obama's Craig Becker nomination to the National Labor Relations Board was rebuffed by 41 united Republicans. Olympia Snowe was voted with the GOP, and we didn't even have to sweat it.

The only RINO infuriating us now is Grahamnesty on Cap & Tax, and even he was a veritable lion against Obamacare.

21 posted on 02/10/2010 9:47:47 PM PST by Plutarch
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To: Lucius Cornelius Sulla

He did not have it locked. He won because he refused to even debate. He was a coward establishment candidate. We could still elect a conservative/libertarian. A good third party could win the race in Illinois with two leftist candidates running tearing into each other.


22 posted on 02/10/2010 9:50:03 PM PST by Maelstorm (We are umbilicaled to a parasitic beast that feeds off one man so to enslave another to dependency.)
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To: WilliamofCarmichael
Californian here and I agree with your post!

McClintock, now in Congress, would have been the Man. Too many voters went for Arnold's glamorous image. Silly women and young guys who idolized him.

Remember Bill Simon? Son of SecTreasury under Nixon, I think. Lost because he was nearly invisible. If he is like his father, he would have been great. We would not be in this mess IMO.

23 posted on 02/10/2010 9:52:50 PM PST by molybdenum ((Yes I posted this masterpeace))
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To: Will88; Maelstorm; patriot preacher
"...finding the most conservative candidates with good chances to win. And then financial support for promising candidates can come from activists all over the US.

I believe Warner Todd Huston of Chicago touched on the biggest obstacle for the Tea Parties concerning campaigns with multiple contenders... as was the case in Illinois.

Illinois Shows Limitations of Tea Party Movement

24 posted on 02/10/2010 9:53:55 PM PST by loboinok (Gun control is hitting what you aim at!)
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To: Maelstorm

Agreed, conservative candidates aren’t going to be anointed. They still need to earn the nomination and likewise, we have to outwork the other campaigns.


25 posted on 02/10/2010 9:55:16 PM PST by upsdriver
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To: WilliamofCarmichael

Exactly that is a perfect example. I don’t know when we will learn but there is nothing gained by electing a person who is not even as conservative as some Democrats as a Republican. The political nay-saying of individuals who go on about how conservatives can’t win and that we gotta take whatever rich guy or party insider guy that we are handed just because there is an ‘R’ beside their name will lead us to our doom if we allow them because they don’t really want small government they want the old status quo of slowly but surely growing government. They think they can tame the beast and whip it into shape and make it “efficient” and bend it to their administrative will which seeks to mold and control the people just the same.


26 posted on 02/10/2010 9:55:34 PM PST by Maelstorm (We are umbilicaled to a parasitic beast that feeds off one man so to enslave another to dependency.)
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To: Maelstorm

You have to cut Kirk some slack. He represented a limousine liberal district that was very difficult for a Republican to win in. He was as conservative as he could be in that district. I don’t expect him to take all the same positions as a senator as he took as a congressman from the North Shore.

He is a fiscal conservative, he is against the healthcare plan, he is against card check and he is strong on defense and terrorism. He is ten times better than Obama’s buddy Giannoulias. It would be stupid to let the perfect be the enemy of the good.


27 posted on 02/10/2010 9:59:20 PM PST by Inyokern
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To: Prokopton

I know what I think of it. She called it, “the cause”. Deceptive...


28 posted on 02/10/2010 9:59:23 PM PST by molybdenum ((Yes I posted this masterpeace))
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To: patriot preacher

Do you realize that every candidate out there, conservative or otherwise is a RINO? Name any candidate and someone is going to call him/her a RINO.


29 posted on 02/10/2010 9:59:25 PM PST by upsdriver
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To: Maelstorm

No we don’t.


30 posted on 02/10/2010 10:00:49 PM PST by freekitty (Give me back my conservative vote; then find me a real conservative to vote for)
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To: wardaddy

Moderates at the Tea Party Nation banquet/convention?

No didn’t meet any of those though my attendance was just at my table in that ballroom during Sarah Palin’s speech.

But if we can go by the reactions to every word Sarah spoke...I would say, um, no moderates AT ALL in that room!!! LOL.

Oh but there were a few libbers - the PRESS!!! And the plants the leftists put at the tables down front which cspan gave close ups of during Sarah’s speech - showing them unsmiling and somber (while the rest of the 1100 in attendance were going wild with enthusiasm).

Ohaha is turning lots of (former) moderates and (former) liberals even into rabid Tea Party / conservative Activists - by the tonload!!!

So, of course there will be occasional defeats. You can’t win them all.

But not to worry. God is at work in mysterious ways His wonders to perform....including reducing the leftists/moderates to the tiniest minority in this nation ever!


31 posted on 02/10/2010 10:22:51 PM PST by Freedom'sWorthIt
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To: Maelstorm
Scott wasn't perceived as a doctrinaire conservative, because he calls himself pro-choice. The Dems couldn't attack him on that, so they tried to connect him to the 'failed policies of Bush/Cheney". I guess folks didn't think those previous 8 years were so bad in retrospect. Yes, he's a fiscal conservative, but MA has a history of electing folks who are fiscal conservatives, yet squishy on the social or moral issues.

I was mainly talking about the folks who some Tea Party folks are pushing, strong conservatives on both the fiscal and social issues. They won't be elected in places like IL and MA, even though in both places, as in other states in the Northeast, there are folks who don't consider themselves liberals, but who seem to vote that way in national elections.

Mainly this year, I believe folks will be looking for candidates who will toe the fiscal conservative line, and the social conservatism may not be as important as it has been in the past. Certainly Independents generally feel that way. Folks want to get the economy going again, and the only way to do that is going to be by injecting some common sense into Congress in the form of newly elected members. If we can get good conservatives through the primary process, all the better!

32 posted on 02/10/2010 10:23:54 PM PST by SuziQ
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To: molybdenum

Ha ha ha. Your post is very funny. LOL.


33 posted on 02/10/2010 10:24:00 PM PST by Freedom'sWorthIt
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To: WilliamofCarmichael

Not to worry. The times in which we find ourselves are quite unique, I believe. The Tea Party movement is also unique.

The “powers that be” - the elected officials who care only about getting into power or staying in power - either to push their leftist lunacy or to enrich themselves and their friends or to max out on the perks they get from being in power - well - these “powers” are literally “on the run”.

They see the Tea Party movement and simply are driving either to intense fear or hatred or both.

And they cannot hide their real selves - not in this day and time of FR, Drudge, Breitbart, Malkin, Fox, ETc ETc ETc.

Does not mean there will be no mistakes made and no attempts to hijack the movement made.

Of course not.

But, as Sarah Palin UNDERSTANDS - the movement is about the cause - the cause is restoring our Republic to its founding principles in order to save this nation and to preserve our freedoms for ourselves and our posterity - as God gives us grace to do so.

The cause is greater than any one election/race and greater than any one person.

Which in itself is what drives the other side bonkers!!!

Doncha just love it?


34 posted on 02/10/2010 10:29:47 PM PST by Freedom'sWorthIt
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To: Prokopton

I live in AZ and I don’t think the Palin endorsement is going to mean much. we all know why she did it..we all know who she really wants...


35 posted on 02/10/2010 10:55:40 PM PST by Hildy
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To: Freedom'sWorthIt
Well I don't see anything all that funny in it, all I see is some rambling sentences and a question I asked the stormy one who hasn't answered me yet.

Was falling asleep but made some coffee with a little rum in it so not exacttly wideawake but feel better.

I would think that Illinois would be a much harder state to get a conservative in office than even Mass. Scott Brown was outspoken, made things clear to the people, 30 years in National Guard, mod-conservative appealed to them. His good clean looks didn't hurt him, he seems healthy & intelligent and sinsere. His apponent's atrocious record brought her down. I 'd guess the catalyst came when he said, "It's not Kennedy's seat--it's the People's." He won.

I don't know much about Mark Kirk except a flaming lib...so I guess if he is elected, then the people will work all the harder for other conservative candidates . And state by state they will win, lose some, win in another state. Until we outnumber the libs. It seems to be working.

So what is so dang funny?

36 posted on 02/10/2010 11:02:33 PM PST by molybdenum ((Yes I posted this masterpeace))
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To: molybdenum

What is funny is that what you posted is so ridiculous for whatever reason.....(and I truly don’t mean to bash but if it comes across that way - you’re right it is late and while I don’t have any rum or want any - maybe a little snack would perk me up...who knows....)

I was at the Tea Party Nation conference/banquet and heard Sarah Palin’s speech in person and viewed the rest of the convention by way of PJTV.com.

First there were at least 1000 people in that ballroom for her speech, not 600.

An attendee could either pay for the whole weekend (but these tickets were sold out when I finally became aware that there was a chance I could attend) - OR pay for just the banquet. Which is what I did. AND IT WAS THE BEST MONEY I HAVE SPENT IN MANY YEARS!

And, every single person in the room - except for the press who hate her guts - were in total unanimous and enthusiastic (understatement) agreement with EVERY WORD SHE SAID!

One thing she said was that this “movement” is not about any one person (nor any one “Tea Party” group).

It is, how can I explain - A MOVEMENT, A CAUSE, SOMETHING BIGGER THAN INDIVIDUALS AND BIGGER THAN INDIVIDUAL GROUPS.

SIGH

If you did not hear/see her speech - go to cspan.org or pjtv.com and watch it again in full and maybe you will understand what I am talking about.

If that doesn’t help you, I would suggest that perhaps you have an agenda other than what most in the Tea Party movement have. Maybe that’s just a temporary situation for you - pending more education. Or maybe you have a vested interest in seeing that the Tea Party movement fail.

I have no idea which it is for you.

Good luck.


37 posted on 02/10/2010 11:13:25 PM PST by Freedom'sWorthIt
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To: Freedom'sWorthIt
Agenda? The same as any true conservative!

I can't seem to figure out this Phillips, no one mentions him, people don't know if he has plans to set himself up as the leader of the movement; worst of all, they wonder if the 'rats and RINOs are trying to divide and conquer.

Yes, the cause is big, enormous if you will; and it won't be won in a day. It took years to sink to this level and it will takes many years to struggle out of it. So, Freedom you make your conjectures about me, confusion reigns IMO & Ill keep trying to sort it out. The very worst that could happen is for someone to break up the movement. I don't trust certain people who may just want a piece of the action--the world's full of them. To say I want it to fail, that is an insult.

Right now we should be wondering what Iran is up to, it sounds ominous.

38 posted on 02/11/2010 12:22:28 AM PST by molybdenum ((Yes I posted this masterpeace))
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To: wardaddy; Maelstorm; Freedom'sWorthIt; seekthetruth
In one of the breakout sessions there were a bunch of people from Illinois and the discussion turned to the Senate race. The consensus was that the Tea Parties and other conservative interests got involved too late.
Hughes was coming on strong but ran out of time. The day after the vote there were 142,000 on the web site offering help and money. I think I remember (could be wrong) that he only lost by 50,000 votes.
39 posted on 02/11/2010 3:56:59 AM PST by Recon Dad ( USMC SSgt Patrick O - 3rd Afghanistan Deployment - Day 114)
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To: molybdenum
600 people attended? Paid Sarah Palin 100K...which she placed in her PAC to be distributed to —whom? Maelstorm, do you have any answers to any of this worrisome stuff?

Yes there were 600 people there for the Convention and a couple of hundred additional for the banquet. There has already been posts on FR showing where Sarah Palin has doled out money to numerous conservative candidates across the country.
I have no reason to doubt Judson Phillips until someone prove he's a phony, until then he ran a great event that brought real tea party folks together for an informative event.

40 posted on 02/11/2010 4:06:40 AM PST by Recon Dad ( USMC SSgt Patrick O - 3rd Afghanistan Deployment - Day 114)
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