Reid Questioned Photos Of Vet Doing Job In Iraq...
Posted on 02/17/2006 9:36:29 AM PST by Reagan Man
Iraqi veteran Paul Hackett, an anti-war Democrat, and reality met a bitter end this week in Ohio. After receiving every indication that he would get little support in his bid for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate, Hackett dropped from the race, leaving Congressman Sherrod Brown as the likely nominee to challenge Republican incumbent Mike DeWine.
Party leaders attempted to “persuade” Hackett to instead run a rematch for the House seat he narrowly lost in a special election last year. Although party leaders claimed it was an attempt to place as many competitive races on the ballot as possible, their message was simple: drop from the primary. Knowing full well that he would never get the media attention, campaign stumps from party leaders, or financial support that he received back in October, Hackett declined to enter a House contest that would undoubtedly end in a big defeat.
That Hackett was pressured out of the primary as the Democratic establishment backed Congressman Sherrod Brown is not a surprise. A stint as a Milford City Councilman, a short spell in Iraq as a Marine reservist, and a lost bid for the U.S. Congress is the extent of Hackett’s resume. Charisma can only take a campaign so far, and party leaders recognized this. Brown, however, has been a staple in Ohio politics for over 30 years having served as an Ohio state representative, Secretary of State, and a U.S. Congressman. He at least knows what it is like to run in many races, statewide included, and win them.
But the Hackett fiasco, and his angry withdrawal, could have lasting implications for the Democratic Party in Ohio. When it became clear that Hackett was a one-time celebrity candidate – used in a House race that he could never win for publicity reasons – he left calling the actions of the establishment a “betrayal.”
The Democrats would have been better served to let Hackett compete for the nomination, win or lose, rather than to derail his campaign so far in advance. Hackett has apparently left politics for good, and may take his small but committed hardcore supporters with him. In the end, Brown would have been better served if he defeated Hackett squarely in the primary instead of seeing his only legitimate challenger forced out ahead of time.
Two months ago, Katherine Harris’s campaign for the U.S. Senate seat in Florida was tumbling downhill at full speed. Fundraising efforts were faltering, Republican leaders recruited around her or otherwise opposed her campaign, and she was trailing incumbent Democrat Bill Nelson by 23 points.
In my January 12 column, I noted that a lack of support from GOP heavy hitters including Jeb Bush, Elizabeth Dole, and many other Florida party leaders, was dooming her campaign. A Rasmussen Report poll at the time found that she had only 59% of the support from Florida Republicans.
Two weeks later, on January 21, the Republicans leaders finally came to her defense after being unsuccessful in finding a more “electable” Republican, and spoke out on her behalf during the state’s quarterly convention. Polling data released earlier this week, the first since the GOP finally backed Harris, has shown the bounce that I predicted she would get if and when her support came through.
Harris has turned her 23-point deficit into a much more manageable 9-point deficit, with the latest Rasmussen Report showing Nelson ahead 49% to 40%. Her support among Republicans has improved dramatically, jumping 18-points to where she now grabs 77% of GOP-voter support. That number will certainly climb as the campaign wears on with the support of popular Republican figures backing her, and she will need to pull in about 90% of Republican support come election time.
Ohio Voters Sound Off on DeWine
As I noted last week, Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH) is definitely not in the running to win “Conservative of the Year” honors given his various tendencies to annoy the party faithful, his membership in the “Gang of 14” included. I also figured that he would be a more satiable candidate than either Brown or Hackett would be, and Ohio voters sure had their opinions about the upcoming race.
Some highlights from Ohio voters, sent to me via e-mail:
“As for Senator DeWine, he is a disappointment. I’ll crawl on broken glass to vote for him over Brown or Mr. Hackett, they are ultra-libs. Ohio is very pro-life and pro-marriage and the evangelicals won’t desert Sen. DeWine, as long as he stays that way.
“I agree that DeWine is vulnerable. I intend to cast my vote against him and for his GOP challenger [in the primary]. You didn’t mention this guy and unfortunately I don’t remember his name.” My guess is you are referring to John Mitchel, retired Lt. Col. of the U.S. Air Force.
“To say I cannot stand DeWine is understatement. I hope he does lose… DeWine is a RINO end of story. I’d rather see the Democrat win because we at least know where they stand.”
“I hoped DeWine would have faced a serious conservative primary challenger to at least let him know that we are dissatisfied with his stances against conservative principles. We in Ohio have let him get away with too much for too long. I will vote for him, but reluctantly so.”
I saw Reid interviewed with Schumkie on his side, soon after Hackett dropped. He told a reporter that he didn't do anything to get this Hackett guy out. He's lying again huh?
Great pic! LMAO
Rush just said something about war atrocities being committed by this guy and it was caught on tape.
Yes. The final event that forced him out was Schumer cutting off his access to party money.
I wouldn't make that a blanket statement... I was not happy with WJC's endless Balkan policies - that in NO WAY was a criticism of the troops that he sent there.
And I'm certainly not going to question the patriotism of a man who re-enlisted to go into Iraq. He certainly knows things that I don't know, having been there and seen the "ground truth" through the eyes of a trained Marine.
That said, I found Hackett's tone particularly whiney - I mean, this is politics. If he's in a party that doesn't want him, he should run as an independent.
"In less than a minute Thursday afternoon, Virginia “Ginny” Schrader officially dropped her one month campaign for state Senate and endorsed Republicanturned-Democrat Andy Warren in his quest for the 8th District Congressional seat....... Schrader said she didn't endorse Patrick Murphy, 32, of Bristol Township, because he has lived in Bucks for only one year and, because of his age, lacked political “seasoning.”
Maybe they were afraid he's turn on them like he turned on his buddies before.
It makes no sense that you can come home and turn on your fellow soldiers. A lot of reservists turned out to be of questionable character and apparently thought the reserves were a free ride to college grants and nothing else. Virtually all of the whining we have heard has been from reservists and not regular Army, Marines and other full-time servicemen and women.
She has since toned down that line and says she is not focusing on education and health care.
She has since toned down that line and says she is NOW focusing on education and health care.
As i have said before, any military person who is a democrat has a Self Hate Complex. Hackett's whinning and slinging snot wont change that.
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