Posted on 07/04/2006 7:50:46 PM PDT by SmithL
Chattanooga -- It's possible that some Democratic voters could cross party lines and vote for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Bob Corker in the primary Aug. 3.
But that's not a possibility Corker's campaign is willing to discuss.
"Our efforts and energies are focused on taking Bob's message of using conservative principles to achieve positive results to Republican primary voters, getting their vote and ensuring that we will be the Republican nominee," campaign director Todd Womack said in a statement.
Corker is already trying to fight off accusations from his primary opponents — former congressmen Van Hilleary and Ed Bryant — that he's not conservative enough, so he can't risk openly courting Democratic voters.
Tennessee has an open primary, which means voters can cast a ballot in either party's primary.
Mark Byrnes, a Middle Tennessee State University political science professor, said crossover voting is possible Aug. 3 because Democrats Harold Ford Jr. and Phil Bredesen don't have serious competition to win the nominations for U.S. Senate and governor, respectively.
"It would be somewhat attractive for Democrats to vote in the Republican primary, to pick the least offensive candidate or sew mischief," Byrnes said.
Democrats could "sew mischief" by voting for the Republican candidate least likely to beat Ford in the general election. But it's hard for Democrats to say who that might be.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
I hate Corker's commercials!! When you have to start by saying you have conservative values, you know somethings wrong.
Therefore, logically, regardless of one's vote one is not crossing over.
al-AP's worry is that Algore's former base continues to dissolve as an inconvenient truth.
I've never understood that. Primaries are for parties and party members to select their candidates.
It's as bogus as the school district and judicial races we have around here in PA, where you can run in both party primaries and get the nomination as both a DemocRat and Republican.
How the heck am I supposed to know who's really a DemocRat and who's really a Republican? When I don't know much about a candidate, the only thing I can fall back on is party affiliation (DemocRat = no vote - even if it was my mom running).
One way is to visit your local Republican headquarters and get to know the people working there. If there is any Rats amoung the canidates they should know about them.
I really don't see the problem with Mr Corker. This sounds like a campaign by Bryant/Hilleary to paint him as a democrat in hiding in order to discredit him. I want someone who will vote conservative, no doubt, but I havent seen anything that tells me that he wouldnt except what his opponents say. And yes, his commercials trying to drive home the "conservative" theme bother me about him too.
This is not good. We got four weeks to the primary and Corker is in good shape to win the primary.
I'm with you. He's blown his opportunity to make a good first impression on me.
It's not good publicity for Corker if the other party regards him as the easiest to beat.
I looked at the websites of the 4 candidates. Ford's has a link to a column by an LA Times writer who talks about his chance to become the first black senator from Tennessee since Reconstruction. Idiot. Only one Southern state, Mississippi, had any black senators during Reconstruction.
Spock just called me back - it's illogical.
TN is a transition state. It used to be blue but it has turned red in spite of Algore.
I met Corker once, and observed him from a distance. He did not make a good impression. He was very full of himself, constantly talking while saying nothing. He kept calling my niece over for "talks", simply because she was the focus of the event and the news people were following her everywhere.
I also read somewhere (probably here in FReepers) that in the past, he has supported and voted for democrats.
Personally, I'm for Hilleary, as I met him years ago and was very impressed. He's a genuine conversative with high moral values. Admittedly, I don't know anything about Bryant, so I can't speak for him, but I'd take either candidate over Corker.
It's all those educated Michiganders moving into Tennessee for the Jobs voting Republican and teaching the rebels to do the same.
It's all those educated Michiganders moving into Tennessee for the Jobs voting Republican and teaching the rebels to do the same.
Why? Shouldn't our politicians proclaim out loud, and frequently, that conservative values are desirable?
The other way to do it, is have the Party "caucus", select nominee, and tell the public to go to hell. Right Ethyl?????
I was worried that this might happen. "Chattanooga Chafee" Corker pulling a "Michigan McCain" to thieve the GOP primary using the rodents. Forget primary runoffs, maybe we should go right back to a caucus system for nominating our people. That way you have to put your money where your mouth is and stand up and be counted without 'Rat interlopers having a vote.
Let them cross over. I voted for Dean in 04 lol. Jr will lose to any one of the Republican candidates. I still don't understand why he's running. The only effect it has is giving his representatives seat to someone else
As a man sews, so does he also rip? This is another one I'll file under "Spellcheck is next to useless."
Amazingly the headline in The Jackson Sun is Democrats may cross over in primary to 'sew mischief', so not only did the AP writer Bill Poovey (any relation to Lou Ann?) get his homonyms confused in the article, The Jackson Sun's poor little headline writer didn't even notice the problem.
FWIW, we TN Republicans cross party lines all the time to slant the dem primary vote towards the most ridiculous available candidate. I've never seen the media report on that phenomenon! This reporter acts like its something the dems just recently thought up.
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