Posted on 01/22/2010 10:14:43 PM PST by pissant
Scott Browns victory spoils a popular myth. Im not referring to the one about Teddy Kennedy as an indomitable force in Massachusetts, even from the grave. Yes, the Kennedy myth was rendered inoperative. But so was the fable about a death struggle pitting tea party populists and angry conservatives against moderates and the Republican hierarchy. That myth foresaw conservatives refusing to support candidates with even the slightest of moderate tendencies, dividing the party, and ruining its chances in the 2010 elections.
In Massachusetts, conservatives preferred victory to purity. Brown is not a social conservative. Hes pro-choice and, while supporting traditional marriage, believes states should be free to make their own laws in this area. Yet conservatives and tea partiers joined moderates and independents in the Brown coalition. They struggled, but it was against Democratic Senate candidate Martha Coakley and President Obama, not against each other.
This was actually one of the smaller manifestations of the Brown Effect. The bigger ones?
My, my, its a long list: an enormous psychological boost for Republicans of all stripes, a firm belief they can win anywhere, help in recruiting strong candidates and raising money for the midterms, the death of the Obama mystique, a critical 41st Republican vote in the Senate, and a stirring example of how to win.
There hasnt been a Senate triumph as significant since the victory of Democrat Harris Wofford over Republican Richard Thornburgh in the special election in Pennsylvania in 1991 presaged Bill Clintons win the next year.
(Excerpt) Read more at weeklystandard.com ...
Fred is reading this all wrong, as expected.
yes not GOP ....
Give it up, Fred. The electorate has discovered its power, and it doesn’t look like Lindsey Graham.
We held our noses and cheered on Brown. He has all kinds of RINO baggage that we’d rather do without, but was by far the best we could hope to get out of Massachusetts.
DOES ANYONE KNOW IF THIS IS TRUE????
JD Hayworth. That’s not what Arizona wants. He sounds conservative on the radio, but JD was one of the biggest spenders in Congress. In 2005 they passed a bill with 6,500 pork barrel earmarks worth more than $24 billion. JD voted for every one. He would be the wrong direction for Arizona. McCain is the right direction. Character matters.
It’s a political ad from a lying, confused RINO
I supported him to kill Obama’s bill.
Done.
Now I’m supporting people like Trakanian, Rubio, J.D. Hayworth. Anyone that isn’t the establishment’s choice.
Did McCain vote for the bill?
When you look up "RINO" in the dictionary, McCain's picture is there.
Right next to Newt Gingrich's.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find only things evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelogus
Yes, if you're here illegaly.
McCain's is condoning people breaking the law. He belongs in jail, not in the United States Senate.
This is not rocket science. There are laws in this country. They should be followed.
100% fiscal conservatism, 80% social conservatism. That’s what Reagan believed. We can disagree on 20% of the social issues and still be friends and allies.
“Character matters.”
And supporting amnesty for millions of ILLEGALS and expecting taxpayers to take on even more debt to support them says something about ones character.
There is one word that distinguishes Brown from Kerry: “Authenticity.”
I agree. Like it or not, the most successful candidate is fiscally conservative but reflects their voters' social views. I suspect the reason the GOP is winning is because the social and fiscal conservatives are so terrified of authoritarianism that social issues have been pushed to the back burner, thus truly uniting the party.
I am a prolifer . Scott Brown was a pro murderer of the unborn.
Taxes paying for abortions as included in the Death Care Bill have been stopped dead in their tracks.
I’ll take it.
Killing “Killer” Tiller has stopped him from pulling babies’ brains out of their skulls or smashing their preborn heads with a hammer. Yes it has stopped .
I’ll take both interruptions to baby killing.
I am not handed a clean cut; no strings attached victory.
The “Republican hierarchy”, especially the “bishops”, had NOTHING TO DO with the Brown victory.
I am very skeptical that the GOP, as presently constituted, is in any condition to take power from the collapsing Democrats.
A couple of things, though, are crystal clear.
1) The people have the power to change their government.
2) Since all 435 House members are up for reelection in November, this power has revolutionary implications.
3) A guy driving a truck can do better - a lot better - than the whole GOP structure.
4) If Sarah Palin wants to be President (I don’t know that she does), she has a very tough job in figuring out how much distance she wants to have from the Party.
5) If YOU want Sarah Palin to be President, you need to cut her some slack while she figures that out.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.