Posted on 04/23/2004 10:04:50 AM PDT by Veritas_est
Pennsylvania: Fox News' Beltway Boys Predict Upset in PA Senate Race
Republican Assembly efforts noted
The popular weekly political talk show "Beltway Boys" on the Fox News Network predicted an upset win by conservative Congressman Pat Toomey against Incumbent RINO Senator Arlen Specter. To the surprise of many inside the Washington DC beltway, a solid pro-life Republican who will support President Bush in judicial nominations and in tax policy is on the verge of an upset victory over the liberal Senator who has fought the President on both crucial issues.
Despite the efforts by Specter to derail the President's nominees and his weakness on fiscal issues the President endorsed the re-election of Specter. If returned to office, Specter is poised to take the Chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee. While it would seem apparent that the White House would be better served by Toomey the endorsement is seen by many as an effort to limit the antagonism of what would ordinarily be a certain re-election of an incumbent.
In the past couple of weeks the relatively unknown Toomey has soared in the polls and should be well in the lead by Election Day if the current trends continue. While Toomey has motivated supporters and turnout by conservatives should be very good, Specter has resorted to desperate tactics by encouraging liberal Democrat union members to register to vote as Republicans promising that they can immediately return to the Democrat Party.
The efforts to get unashamed liberals to vote for Specter may have actually helped Toomey in his recent upswing in polling. Capitalizing among the bulk of the GOP being conservative Toomey has identified himself with "The Republican Wing of the Republican Party" which is the copywritten moniker of the National Federation of Republican Assemblies (NFRA) and the Pennsylvania Republican Assembly. The Republican Assembly group in Pennsylvania endorsed Toomey earlier this year and much of its leadership have been close to the campaign.
Republican Assemblies work to keep the GOP conservative by endorsing true conservatives prior to primary elections and then putting their vast volunteer network to work for those candidates.
Use of the phrase "The Republican Wing of the Republican Party" in the campaign and on the Fox News broadcast brought a flood of interest to the NFRA. NFRA President, Richard Engle said, "We are pleased that Cong. Toomey is using the phrase because it reflects the reason we are known by it." Engle continued, "If a non-member of a Republican Assembly or a candidate not endorsed by a state chapter were to use the phrase, well, they would get a call from our attorney. In this case it is very appropriate and we are very encouraged by the recent polling in Pennsylvania. I just hope that the trend continues and that the Pennsylvanians who have seen Sen. Specter as the obstructionist liberal that he is will stay motivated and vote for Cong. Toomey for US Senate.
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Primary Election day here in Pennsylvania is only three days away. What's he mean by current trends?
Last I heard, Toomey was three or four percentage points behind. But it took the last three months to get that close.
And to accomplish this task you support the man who Borked Bork?!? I'm speechless.
Some Republicans are just plain illogical.
You certainly are.
I have another name for you... but I won't use it.
You would rather lose the war as long as you got even with a general on your side that you don't like. Like most losers you would rather get even than win and would rather delude yourself than face the hard truth.
You are like nearly all members of the political fringe. You are into revenge and not victory. You are about teaching moderate Republicans a lesson. The lesson you teach is a Repulican who can win the nomintation can't be elected to office in the general election so why bother. Making the world safe for leftist victories is what you do.
When President Kerry turns the internet over to the UN and they make Free Republic illegal with an internet "fairness doctrine", don't forget to take credit for what you will have accomplished... Of course it will be illegal to take credit for your suppression of freedom on the net. You will just have to congratulate yourself in private.
Did you know that Kerry met with the head of the UN to discuss giving the UN control of the internet? But what do you care.... Spector will be gone...
That bucket won't hold water. It's not only full of holes, it doesn't even have a bottom in it.
I just hope the moderate (read liberal) and liberal read (socialist) branches of the Republican party get the message after this election cycle. When we run into trouble as a party is when our candidates run on a conservative platform (as Sphincter is trying to do now) and then govern like liberals and socialists (as Sphincter has been doing for years). RINOs are our biggest enemies.
I am in Georgia where our primary isn't until July 20th. After you true conservatives get Toomey elected in Pa. direct your eyes toward the south and help us elect Herman Cain to the US Senate. He is the candidate running on conservative common sense solutions for Georgia and the nation. He is another "come from behind" winner. Gaining ground on the self proclaimed leader of the pack daily.
BTWE, can I ask you for your take on a few dem races...will crazy Cynthia get her seat back..and will Majette get the Senate nomination?..I can envision Kery making a few stops in the south during the campaign..he has to show the flag , so to speak, and Atlanta will be one...so the image of Kerry and McKInney on the dias together is a great photo op, no?..he'l have to be asked if he repudiates her....and her comments....regards..
Here is the take of FR's resident out-of-the-closet-self-admitted-RINO. Your certitude that Toomey is a loser in the general and Specter a winner is misplaced IMO. There are a dearth of polls on that, and Toomey is no Scundler. He has great articulative skills. Specter meanwhile may suffer from the terminal ennui of the shopworn product. In addition, Pennsylvania tolerates conservatives more than anyplace else in the Northeast except perhaps New Hampshire. The odds of Specter winning the general might be slightly higher than Toomey's, but Specter is not a cinch, and Toomey I suspect would be in the hunt.
Toomey after all has prospered in a district that was about even between Gore and Bush, ie with not much of a partisan difference from the state as a whole, and with more RINO's/liberal Dems than the state has as a whole. That demonstrates considerable political skill.
Placing a bet that Toomey can replace Specter in the Senate if he wins the nomination has a higher expected payoff than playing the slots in Vegas.
Yes. Large-scale immigration is going to be the only thing that separates this country from the deflationary future that places like Europe and Japan are facing in the coming decades.
BASED ON WHAT?
Specter is having trouble winning his own party's nomination with the support of the President, the other senator, the state committee, and 24 years of incumbency and 15 million dollars.
Toomey, a virtual unknown is in a statistically even race with this 'unbeatable' 'powerful senior senator'. He did this raising about 3 million dollars and building a 'hugh and series' grassroots network. His name is becoming well known here and across the country.
People have seen the difference between a real republican and Arlen Specter and are supporting the real deal. This is already considered the most important race in the country and is the most watched. When he wins Tuesday, endorsements and money will be flowing in faster than can be counted.
Joe Hoeffel is also unknown outside his district, not having had the benefit of a primary challenge to drive that name recognition. They will also see a clear difference when compared to the old worn liberal mantra that the dems will drag out.
Last, but not least, a Toomey win will help Bush take PA in the fall because there will be a lot of energized Toomey voters going to the polls. These people will not be as likely to vote or to at least skip the races at the top of the ticket. This is what you will see if Specter wins because of Bush's support. If Specter would win now and in the fall, Bush's chances go down.
It looks like CT has some admirers. Not many. Not from PA. Not familiar with the state of politics in PA any more than CT and without any more relevence to this discussion than CT.
Some Republicans are just plain illogicalprincipled>.
I've corrected your premise and/or spelling.
While this is the most important race because of it's implications, it's not the ONLY race for the senate. The dems have to win 8 of their 10 seats (IIRC) that are open to take control of the senate again. It ain't gonna happen. Besides, it's better to have 52 pub senators and Kyl chairing the Judiciary Committee than to have 53 pub senators and Specter there to thwart the conservative judicial nominations (and be next in line for the Appropriations Committee).
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