Posted on 05/06/2010 1:34:08 PM PDT by CounterCounterCulture
Washington (CNN) Sarah Palin broke ranks with the conservative movement on Thursday and endorsed former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina in California's Republican Senate primary, prompting a flurry of criticism from many of her loyal supporters.
After Palin announced the endorsement on her Facebook page, a number of her followers questioned why she would side with Fiorina instead of the more conservative candidate in the race, Assemblyman Chuck DeVore.
DeVore has the backing of several leading voices in the conservative movement, including Sen. Jim DeMint, RedState.com editor Erick Erickson and the Tea Party Express.
Though a handful of readers agreed with Palin's decision, most were upset.
"This is very, very disappointing," Rick Sheridan, one of her supporters, posted on Palin's page. "Sarah, you've got to be more careful. This woman does not represent conservative values. And the choice is so clear. Serious damage to your base here."
"Wow, Sarah...I'm saddened and shocked by your decision to endorse Carly Fiorina," commented another backer, Jennifer Goode. "Had you done your research, you would have found that Chuck DeVore is the ONLY true conservative in the California Senate race."
(Excerpt) Read more at politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com ...
don’t know don’t care. i do not worship at the temple of palin. i don’t give a flip who endorses whom. i decide for myself which candidate best represents my values and beliefs and i do not wait for some politician to tell me who that might be.
So, which is it? Is she someone who mostly supports conservative viewpoints, but lacks a political record, or is she a RINO (someone who mostly DOESN'T support conservative viewpoints, yet bears an (R) by her name)
You've staked out ground on both sides of the line. Which one are you going to stick with?
I have shown her to be somebody who cannot be trusted. That isn’t a conservative value.
Put this in your pie and smoke it.
Sarah a fan of Kleins not a snowball chance in h*ll.
From the Hannity interview last week.
HANNITY: You have Joe Klein, prominent writer, prominent news magazine, actually saying that you were rubbing right up to being close to seditious from TIME magazine, Joe Klein. . . . Look, I know youre used to the attacks. Seditious? That is a serious charge. And I wanted to give you an opportunity, . . . to get your reaction.
PALIN: Yes, what a piece of work that Mr. Klein is for the piece that he wrote. That is something else.
You know you would hope that the powers that be at a, quote, unquote, reputable organization like TIME magazine that they would hold their employee and I assume that Mr. Klein gets paid for the columns that he writes that they would hold their employee accountable and they would actually ask him what is it that I or others in the conservative movement have said that would rise to the level of this inciting of violence and revolt and all these other things that evidently he claims.
For them to allow things like that to be printed just really discredits TIME magazine and other organizations that would allow that kind of rhetoric and false reporting, misreporting. Theyre lies
You've done no such thing. You've shown her to be a politician.
Can you name any other politicians who don't compliment their opponents sometimes, or skirt difficult questions, or answer questions in diplomatic ambiguity?
Even the best politicians have done all those things from time to time, Reagan included. It's part of the gig.
I think Carly deserves the benefit of the doubt, without question. She says the right things so far, and I think it's lunacy to believe she would be worse than a hardcore Democrat.
You tell me I am clueless in stating that a conservative can't get elected in CA, then you prove my point by explaining that the CA GOP prevents conservatives from getting elected.
Again, to all of you telling us that CA will elect conservatives, give us an example.
Speak for yourself. I still like Sarah just fine.
While 300,000 of us on FR argue about whether she is doing the right thing or wrong thing, here or there, many millions outside of FR are supporting her, and watching for her every next move. She is leading. She is setting the course.
Lets shake it up in California! (Updated).
Yesterday at 12:32pm
Id like to tell you about a Commonsense Conservative running for office in California this year. She grew up in a modest home with a school teacher dad, worked her way through several colleges, and then entered an arena where few women had tread. Through a combination of hard work, perseverance, and common sense, she proved the naysayers wrong to reach the top of her field, where she led with distinction facing hard truths, making tough decisions, and showing real leadership through a rocky transition period. Where others had failed, her company had weathered the storm and settled on a stronger new foundation.
Her name is Carly Fiorina, and Im proud to endorse her for U.S. Senate.
Carly is the Commonsense Conservative that California needs and our country could sure use in these trying times. Most importantly, shes running for the right reasons. She has an understanding that is sorely lacking in D.C. Shes not a career politician. Shes a businesswoman who has run a major corporation. She knows how to really incentivize job creation. Her fiscal conservatism is rooted in real life experience. She knows that when government grows, the private sector shrinks under the burden of debt and deficits. We can trust Carly to do the right thing for Americas economy and to make the principled decisions she has throughout her professional career.
Please consider that Carly is the conservative who has the potential to beat Californias liberal senator, Barbara Boxer, in November. Im a huge proponent of contested primaries, so Im glad to see the contest in Californias GOP, but I support Carly as she fights through a tough primary against a liberal member of the GOP who seems to bear almost no difference to Boxer, one of the most leftwing members of the Senate. Carly needs our support in this crucial election year when we have a real chance of putting an end to the Pelosi/Reid Big Government agenda.
I hope youll join me in supporting Carly. Visit her website here, and follow her on Facebook and Twitter. Read up on her positions and plans to help get us on the right track.
California is still Reagan Country, and Carly promises her Reagan Conservative values will be put to good use for her state and for our great nation. Shaking it up in California is long overdue. Lets help Carly do it!
- Sarah Palin
Update: Id like to add a few things about my Carly endorsement because some reaction right out of the chute calls for more information:
Carly has been endorsed by the National Right to Life, the California Pro-Life Council, and the Susan B. Anthony List. She is pro-life, pro-traditional marriage, pro-military, and pro-strict border security and against amnesty. She is against Obamacare and will vote to repeal it and prevent the government takeover of private companies and industries. Carly is also a strong supporter of the Second Amendment. Like me, she is a member of the NRA, has a 100% NRA rating, and she and her husband are gun owners. She is pro-energy development and believes as I do in an all-of-the-above approach to energy independence. She is against cap and tax. And most importantly, Carly is the only conservative in the race who can beat Barbara Boxer. Thats no RINO. Thats a winner.
- Sarah Palin
You are right. Her endorsement won’t matter much.
Interesting thoughts...and it could be true.
“She has consistently proven that the naysayers are wrong.”
And you, my friend, are in the la la land of denial. IMO, what so many of her supporters fail to see is that the inability or refusal to see the truth, HER truth, has gone beyond devotion and become comparable to an almost manic addiction. Frankly, I wouldn’t care, except the longer folks stay in the addiction, the more likely we are going to end up, last minute, with another McCain.
You have a very odd sense of principle. Regardless, I never said that I’m not going to vote for her; I just said her ever more frequent RINO-like endorsements and odd speeches are a vote-killer. She’s not at the point where I won’t vote, but I am getting more and more retrospective about why I made my mind up about her so early.
It is not a matter of principle but of pragmatic reality. California is a prize that can be won. Having the backing of power and money is helpful.
To rely on powerless California conservatives is not as helpful as powerful moderates.
She might enlist the support of Meg Whitman also and that makes a very powerful trifecta.
I have a tendency to mix Meg and Carley up as to who is running for what, but know that my desires for more conservative candidates aside, There is no conservative I know with the wherewithal to get elected in California.
I don't mean to be flippant, but I'm not sure that winning this prize would be beneficial. I'd morelike think it equivalent to getting a very bad case of genital Herpes, myself. You may have a personal stake in California, but I don't and many in this country don't either. It is a bloated, socialist, rabid liberal-governed state that operates beyond all reason, all the while expecting the FED to bail them out. Give it back to Mexico as far as I'm concerned.
Your factual description had one very major omission......55 electoral votes. California can go to hell as far as I’m concerned but Sarah could certainly use the 55 electoral votes.
By the way, what is a gaffer? My knowledge id deficient
I very very much sympathize with your feelings on accomodating a less-than-optimum would-be conservative. It's just a bit too much to swallow, personally.
A gaffer has two meanings: an electrician on a movie set,or just an 'old fart'....I guess you could consider me at least partially qualifying on both of those. (I was once an a Class III licensed electrician but no movie experience. I am, however, a cantakerous old fart..... More importantly, I chose it because it is very very easy to type with just your left hand.....
“California is a prize that can be won”
And according to that idea we “won” by electing Arnold. You better stick to Tennessee politics.
If you followed the thread, you would know that the prize reference was to Sarah winning the 55 electoral votes. The votes are the prize.
California is a liberal basket case and will not appreciably change enough to ever be considered conservative. Also, remember that the Terminator had at least one accomplishment......he won.
Sarah Palin Endorses Carly Fiorina in California
Posts about Sarah Palin from May 1, 2010 to present ...
March 5, 2010
Fellow Conservatives:
This November, California will have an opportunity to call Barbara Boxer home and send a new conservative leader to the United States Senate. That new leader is Carly Fiorina. We are proud to endorse her as a fellow conservative who has real-¬‐world business experience and the guts and moxie to take on Barbara Boxer and win.
Carly is not a Washington insider. She is a proven business leader who understands the economy and advocates a strong national defense. And, she is a tough fiscal and social conservative who:
Democrats fear Carly more than any other candidate in the Republican primary. Thats why Barbara Boxer has been using Carlys name in fundraising letters for nearly two years, while the California Democratic Party employs two full-time staffers to follow Carly around the state, and why numerous union-funded groups have launched independent expenditure efforts attacking her.
Carly Fiorina worked her way through undergraduate and graduate school, majoring in medieval history at Stanford University and earning two graduate business degrees from the University of Maryland and MIT. A self-made woman, Carly started her business career as a secretary and went on to become the first and, to date, the only woman to lead a Fortune 20 company, serving as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Hewlett-Packard Company. Most recently, Carly served on the Defense Business Board advising the U.S. Secretary of Defense on overall management of the department and as Director of Business Executives for National Security.
As conservative leaders in the United States Senate, we know you can count on the principled leadership of Carly Fiorina. We are confident that she will stand with us and stand up for you against the liberal special interests that have kept Barbara Boxer in Washington for almost 28 years.
This is a golden opportunity for the people of the Golden State to come together to elect Carly to represent them in the United States Senate. Please join us in supporting Carlys campaign.
Sincerely,
TOM COBURN, M.D.
U.S. Senator (R-OK)
JAMES INHOFE
U.S. Senator (R-OK)
JON KYL
U.S. Senator (R-AZ)
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