Posted on 01/29/2014 5:48:03 AM PST by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
With control of the U.S. Senate up for grabs this November, a single seat may determine who has the majority. That’s why Republicans should find it disconcerting that two of their establishment lions have broken ranks and are backing Democratic candidates in competitive races.
The latest apostate is former senator John Warner of Virginia, who announced this week he is backing incumbent Democratic senator Mark Warner for reelection. He is thus giving the back of his hand to former RNC chairman Ed Gillespie, a former George W. Bush adviser, who has a decent shot at winning and is no wild-eyed radical. Last year, Warner also endorsed the Georgia candidacy of Michelle Nunn, a Democrat, who is the daughter of former senator Sam Nunn, with whom Warner served in the Senate. He even attended a fundraiser on her behalf. Georgia Republicans who find themselves defending an open Senate seat in Georgia are furious since the Warner support allows Nunn to position herself as a bipartisan moderate.
Nor is Warner the only problem ex-senator the GOP has to contend with as it strives to assemble a team capable of winning a Senate majority. Former senator Richard Lugar of Indiana, who lost his Senate GOP primary in 2012 to conservative Richard Mourdock and then declined to endorse him, has also endorsed Nunn and had his political PAC send her the maximum $5,000 contribution. Nunn praised Lugar for his “collaborative approach” and pledged to “follow this legacy in the U.S. Senate.”
Somehow I doubt that Michelle Nunn will be caught giving large donations to candidates of the opposite party if she is elected to the Senate. “Collaboration” only goes so far.
Tea-party Republicans are always being urged to become better team players, and not to risk electoral defeat by challenging incumbent GOP Republicans. It’s true that in 2012 Republicans such as Todd Akin in Missouri and Mourdock in Indiana were flawed candidates and cost the GOP those Senate seats (although Akin was not the favored candidate of tea-party groups in the primary). But establishment Republicans such as Representatives Denny Rehberg in Montana and Rick Berg in North Dakota managed to somehow lose Senate races in states that were easily carried by Mitt Romney. It would be best if both tea-party and establishment Republicans paid more attention to the viability of their candidates and made some compromises. But so far it seems all of the compromising is being asked of tea-party forces and very little is expected from the GOP establishment.
These treasonous slimes can be appropriately called Capos along with RATs and RINOs, IMO.
.......AND.........would NEVER support or contribute to a Republican.....
We really saw the teams align when Palin emerged, as GOP columnists went for Obama.
We learned that Santorum had not only been supporting Arlen Specter his entire career, and in 2004, but we learned that he was supporting him in 2010, until Specter finally had to switch parties to end Santorum’s support for him.
We also know that the 2012 GOP presidential candidate (Romney) had not voted for Reagan, had left the GOP, and actually became a democrat supporter and fund raiser and democrat voter, and even a fund raiser for Planned Parenthood, not returning to the GOP until Reagan’s veep was defeated (rejoining October, 1993).
We see that many republicans are really enemy agents.
The GOP does not stand for anything other than governing. Therefore the elites have no loyalty. Lugar and Warner are really no different than other turncoats - Jeffords, Chaffee, and Specter. They do what is expedient.
If the Republicans win the Senate it would not surprise me if we have a repeat of 2001 when Jim Jeffords switched to independent and began caucusing with the Democrats to break the 50/50 tie in the Senate. If the Republicans end up with a 51 seat majority after the 2014 elections, Reid and Obama will be promising the wobbliest RINO’s all sorts of perks to come to their side or minimally switch to independent and caucus with the Dems. McCain would probably switch in a heartbeat if the media insiders quietly whispered to him he would no longer be on the Sunday talk show circuit unless he did the right thing and switched parties. Graham would likely follow his master. Susan Collins is another Republican, from a Democrat state, who could switch.
Until the party has an ideology and vision all of its members subscribe to it will be vulnerable to defection. Contrast today’s wobbly GOP with the Democrats. The elite power structure in the Dem party is 100% committed to the socialist state. Its members vote in lock step on every issue. They are true believers with a passion for forcing their vision on the country.
Most of today’s GOP leaders are a bunch of country clabbers who just want to get along. They have no vision, no passion, and no desire for a fight. For them, it is enough to enjoy the perks and not make waves. Notice the last GOP president had no stomach for a fight against his opposition. Better to get along and lose than to fight and save the country. He and his family continue to be silent while the country goes to hell.
We are living through the consequences of the behavior.
When has John Warner endorsed any Republican other than himself? I would think that the late Elizabeth Taylor endorsed more Republicans than John Warner did.
You told it like it is, but the American people won’t listen.
Warner won in 1978 and hardly had opposition thereafter.
I'm afraid you are too generous. "Many" should be "Most".
Remember the caller for the RINOs is likely so uninformed as to not know what a RINO is.
People in TX still stand with Cornball. Can someone explain why? Is it just lack of knowledge, or is it something sinister among the grass roots? Or is it just thinking that only Cornball can “win”.
With “Republicans” like that, who needs Democrats? Just ONE MORE reason to primary RINO’s. RINO’s will stab you in the back repeatedly.
John Warner beat the other Warner by about one percent in his last race, primarily because voters like me refused to vote for him after he had screwed Ollie North by convincing Marshmallow Coleman to run as an independent.
VA has been hopelessly leftist for a long time now.
They were commie RATS then! They just found the opportunity to come out of the closet.
Todd Akin was NOT a Tea party candidate!!!!
The tea Party supported John Brunner(sp)and Sara Steelman.
Not even an eyebrow-raiser, eh? STALINISM!
Ed Gillespie spoke tonight at the Fairfax County Republican Committee January meeting. He sounds like a pretty solid conservative to me. The strategy is to tie Mark Warner’s 97% ultra-liberal voting record to Obama’s unpopularity. For the Senate to be flipped in November, Ed Gillespie has to win. I hope any right-of-center voters will stick together for a change.
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