Harrisburg harbinger

Wash Times ^ | 18 may 05 | Donald Lambro

[white trash redneck]

Republican National Chairman Ken Mehlman went to Harrisburg, Pa., last week to raise money for a city councilman's re-election campaign -- an event he believes could help change the face of American politics for years to come.

Mr. Mehlman's trip to the Pennsylvania state capital was largely overlooked by the news media, but not by savvy Democratic strategists, who saw the trip as having the potential seeds of their party's decline.

[white trash redneck]

The full story describes how Mehlman attended the public announcement that a leading black Harrisburg PA RAT city councilman was switching parties. He voted for Kerry and describes himself as a "progressive Republican."

Exactly what the GOP needs - another RINO, in the mold of Snowe, Collins, Chaffee, Voinovich, Hagel, Pataki, and McCain.

I have real concerns over the Republicans' outreach programs. They may pick up a black here or there. In doing so, however, are they also empowering a new group of "progressive Republicans," that is, RINOs, who will

a) not attract all that many black voters since they'll still be seen as sell-outs;

b) will weaken the GOP since they are RINOs, willing to sell out conservatives on issues like affirmative action, RKBA, etc.; and

c) be much more difficult to attack as RINOs since they're black, and of course we must be so careful not to offend them.

[LS]

Hmmm. Except if you attract 4-5% of these, it's hard to say it's not having an impact on blacks (which the last election clearly showed was not true), and, as they used to say of the budget, "a million here, a million there, and pretty soon you're talking real numbers," or, in this case, voters.

[sgtbono2002]

I read the article , it states he turned Republican in March after some good thought on the mistakes he amde by voting for Kerry. That doesnt sound like a RINO to me. IOts sounds like someone who is starting to think for himself instead of following blindly. Thats a Republican trait.

[LS]

And, despite what some ultras here think, RINO doesn't mean the same thing everywhere. Arnold is a "RINO" on abortion, but has been pretty conservative on taxes and illegals; Voino, despite being an ass, had a TERRIFIC pro-life voting record, pro-tax-cut voting record, voted FOR ANWAR, voted to convict Clinton, etc.

Give me a RINO any day who spouts all over the news but who then VOTES with me over a so-called "conservative" who quietly votes against me on key issues, as the Libertarian congressman from Texas occasionally does.

[Liz]

Let us not forget that the first thing Ken Mehmlan did as the new RNC chair was to hand-pick Joann Davidson---a radical pro-abortionist---to co-chair the RNC.

These two make one false move on the Repubs pro-life agenda and I guarantee they will be looking for new jobs..... in Afghanistan.

And now there's this talk that devout Dumbocrats ----radical pro-abort opportunistic groups who smell Republican victory -----are coming on board the Republican party. Many savvy Repubs years ago predicted these pro-abort squatters would being their foul nest into the party.

Pro-life conservatives need to be aware that the post-election "Uriah Heep Factor" is kicking in big time.

Conservatives know the "Uriah Heeps" are out there plotting and planning to co-opt the 2004 conservative victory for their own hidden agendas.

The Uriah Heeps of the world would manhandle the social conservative victory----and dilute the presidential mandate conferred on Mr Bush by proto-conservatives----for their own self-serving agendas.

Charles Dickens' Uriah Heep character was notorious for wielding undue influence, a bounder who was always planning and plotting, ingratiating himself into the confidence of others. Uriah Heep was obsequious, manipulative, and wormed his way into positions of influence. Uriah was a consummate con man, and not to be trusted.

Translated into the language of the popular culture, the Uriah Heeps would position themselves as amenable to conservative qualities of faith and compassion, but are insincere in these feelings, using conservatives and our issues only to advance their own agendas and ambitions.

They have smelled the power of conservatives, and now these Uriah Heeps grow in their desire to exercise control over the Bush agenda, and over conservatives.

The Uriah Heeps of the world with their vulgar sense of entitlement feed on the victories of others. They become more and more power-hungry and will deploy their self-serving strategies to selfish purposes. We need to watch out, for they will bring more harm to conservative interests, to the rights of the unborn, religious freedom, the restoration of American culture, and so on.

At their very core, the Uriah Heeps evince an elitist, unmitigated contempt for Christian conservatives, and all they stand for. They hold their noses in the presence of the conservatives they loathe, in order to co-opt conservatives for their own self-serving purposes.

In this moment of triumph, Christians are aware of whom they serve and watch carefully to see if promises made to them are empty.

There are those in the party who coyly speak the conservative language to appeal to Christian values, but who are not believers, just latter-day Uriah Heeps.

[KeyWest]

I live in Maine, where we have two RINO senators. According to you, we do not need them, but then we would have two very left wing dems. I do not like their votes some of the time but do most of the time.

A little history. The dems once had a big tent and ran the country for 40 years until they became one track and threw out people like Zell Miller. Now, with their small tent, they do not control much of anything and are on their way to oblivion, unless they can control the courts or decide to change. The pubs are the ones that allow different views and let them into the debate. My Senators lose on most all the social issues but they do get to be heard and present their views. So they will stay pubs and vote for the war and economic issues but not social (abortion mostly).

I may not like it, but in a State that is mostly dem, we are lucky to have even them, as bad as they might be as pubs.

The two reps we have are both dems and march in lockstep with the party. We are losing two major military installations and they cannot do anything to stop it. Nor can the RINOs, because they have lost their capital with the other pubs and the dems will not support them.

[Amalie]

I agree with what you state about the GOP Senators from Maine - I would rather have them on the GOP side of the roster, with us part of the time, than against us ALL of the time. We do have a litmus test; we call it "conservatism." As a result, it doesn't mean we would never vote for anyone but GOP members, and we conservatives should not expect all GOP members (some who are not fully conservative) to be in lockstep. Like many, I do wish they would learn to recognize that they have no friends on the other side of the aisle.

Of course it makes sense the Dems will not break ranks on some of this stuff; they have nothing to lose. However, it is to their shame that they have silenced all alternative voices within their ranks. So, if we want to move on the conservative agenda, we must work in '06 to keep and gain seats; the DEMS will have a much harder time making trouble when there are 60-plus GOP senators, even if some of them are RINOs.

[nothingnew]

...Christians are aware of whom they serve and watch carefully to see if promises made to them are empty.

Excellent reply. The gift of discernment is just that, a gift from him. All one needs to do to earn that gift is open oneself to His grace.

Thanks for a great reply.

FMCDH(BITS)

[Wallace T.]

Ron Paul is weak on foreign policy matters, but he is strongly pro-free market and an advocate of the strict construction of the Constitution under the doctrine of original intent. He is a social conservative, but unlike some social conservatives, he does not see Federal intervention as a cure for moral problems. I don't care for his foreign policy views and I am strongly pro-Bush in the War on Terror. However, his voting record and political stances on most matters are far better than those of Giuliani, Schwarzenegger, Romney, or McCain.

[white trash redneck]

It's the conservatives who provide the footsoldiers for the Republicans - the people who work on campaigns, make calls, walk precincts, etc. They have the passion - who ever heard of a passionate moderate?

The party has a fine line to walk. They have to have a big enough tent to attract more voters than the RATs, yet they have to be concerned about turning off those conservatives whose grassroots efforts were so effective in increasing the turnout for the President last November.

I do agree with you that in most situations, a RINO is better than a RAT.