Toomey/Specter: 10 POINT RACE!!! Toomey Gains Big Time!!!

Wall Street Journal's OpinionJournal's Political Diary ^ | March 15,2004 | Wall Street Journal's OpinionJournal's Political Diary

[GeneralHavoc]

The following is from OpinionJournal's Political Diary March 15,2004:

Conservative Challenger Gains On Liberal Specter

There is a reason that Pennsylvania GOP Senator Arlen Specter has been spending so much of his $9 million campaign kitty on ads attacking his conservative primary challenger, Rep. Pat Toomey: The April 27 race is surprisingly competitive. A new survey by the Polling Company finds Mr. Specter has only a 47% to 37% lead over Mr. Toomey, a surprisingly low figure for a four-term incumbent. The survey roughly mirrors a Quinnipiac poll last month that found that only 49% of Republicans believe Mr. Specter deserves re-election.

Aware of his reputation as a liberal leaning senator, Mr. Specter has gone on the attack and begun questioning Mr. Toomey's conservative credentials. One ad accused Mr. Toomey of being pro-gambling and against abstinence education. Mr. Toomey says he voted in favor of a bill doubling money for abstinence education, but against a later amendment that would have provided even more funding for the cause. As for the pro-gambling charge, Mr. Toomey says the ad completely distorts a warning he made about state officials "getting addicted to this new source of revenue" if they legalized slot machines at racetracks.

The race has become a classic confrontation between liberal and conservative Republicans. While Mr. Specter is favored, conservative grass-roots activists are effectively targeting Mr. Specter as an obstacle to lower federal spending and tort reform. The race will only heat up between now and next month's primary and should start gathering national media attention.

[ex-snook]

WHY DOES BUSH WHITE HOUSE CRITICIZE KERRY AND SUPPORT SPECTER WHEN THEY VOTE 70% THE SAME!!

Arlen Specter and John Kerry: Two Liberal Peas in the Same Pod

Club for Growth Lauches TV Ad Campaign Comparing Record of Two U.S. Senators

Washington, D.C.—The Club for Growth, one of the nation’s leading free-market political advocacy organizations, has launched a new television ad campaign that shows the voting similarities of four-term Republican Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania and liberal Democrat John Kerry, the likely Democrat presidential nominee.

Showing still photos of Senator Kerry, the narrator says: “He voted for eight (8) huge tax hikes. He supports greedy trial lawyers instead of doctors on legal reform. He’s blocked school choice education programs. And he’s rated one of the Senate’s most wasteful spenders. John Kerry? No. Arlen Specter. Fact is, nearly 70% of the time, Specter and Kerry voted the same way. And that makes Arlen Specter 100% too liberal.”

“The people of Pennsylvania need to see how liberal Arlen Specter truly is,” said Club for Growth president Stephen Moore. “John Kerry is the model of modern-day liberalism and Specter appears to be his shadow. It is no surprise that National Review labeled Arlen Specter ‘the worst Republican Senator.’”

The television ad will begin running February 12, 2004 on select broadcast stations and on cable news channels statewide. The Club for Growth has budgeted over $150,000 for this phase of the ad campaign. The ad was produced by Warfield & Company.

The Club for Growth was founded in 1999 as a nationwide political membership organization dedicated to advancing public policies that promote economic growth. The organization’s PAC forwards campaign contributions from its members to the most free-market oriented candidates in targeted congressional and other races. In the 2000 election cycle the Club for Growth spent $2.4 million and its PAC helped elect 10 new Republicans to Congress. The Club for Growth has grown ten-fold since the 2000 election cycle and the Club and its members raised or donated over $10 million and its PAC helped elect seventeen new Members of Congress in the 2002 election cycle.

[GeneralHavoc]

You are incorrect, Bushbacker.

Hoeffel is an unelectable and unimpressive lefty who has no shot of winning the Senate seat against Toomey, who represents a Democrat district in Allentown.

Specter would lose the seat to Hoeffel since so many conservatives will simply not vote for Specter.

Having a liberal like Specter on the ticket will also hurt Bush's chances of carrying PA, while Toomey will excite the base and bring more people to the polls...

[mabelkitty]

GO GO GO !!

[depenzz]

I am going to vote for Toomey but I am concerned that he can beat the Dem.

I think the only reason Specter has continued to win is because he is so liberal. If he were more conserative, he probably would have been gone.

I still want Toomey to win.

[calvin sun]

Ha...seeing this note just reminded me that I need to change my party registration back to R. I had changed to D in order to vote for Bob Casey Jr., but now it's time to go back.

What's even funnier: the voter form I am using came in a mailing from SPECTER supporters. They wanted Ds to change to Rs to support him.

I'm voting for Toomey, and telling all my friends to as well.

[Bushbacker]

Well, I know Joe Hoffel personally and he is a smart politician who
used to win regularly in a GOP
stronghold.

He was so popular
hhe often ran unopposed for State Representative and he won the
House seat from the popular Jon Fox and held it despite 2 subsequent challenges.

Hoeffel consistently has won in GOP territory and the entire state of PA has a Democratic majority.

Toomey is doomed.

ONLY Specter can hold the seat. Ideological purity is not worth risking the control of the Senate over.

[NY.SS-Bar9]

$25.00 on it's way.

[GeneralHavoc]

"I think the only reason Specter has continued to win is because he is so liberal. If he were more conserative, he probably would have been gone."

Come on, guys. Santorum is our other Senator.

It is getting silly to keep hearing people say a conservative can't win statewide in PA.

[AGreatPer]

First, I want to say that I would never wish ill health to anyone, but.......

The word here in Harrisburg is that Specter's health is not good and getting worse.

What would happen if Specter wins in April and goes away for the November election? I have no clue.

[eeriegeno]

Toomey is going to win this race! He is picking up all the momentum!

Toomey will win the primary unless, that is, the votes are counted according to Scottish law!!!!

[NY.SS-Bar9]

Where do we, as conservatives, draw the line?

At what point do we say "enough".

Unless we work to get conservatives elected, we will be taken for granted by the Republican Party and ignored by Democrats.

I have advocated sitting out an election between a RINO and a Democrat to "teach them a lesson". I admit that that may not be the best solution. Working from within the party to nominate and elect conservatives is the only way to bring about change.

As for electability, a candidate that is honest, sincere and clear in his positions can win a major election. Does the name Ronald Reagan ring a bell?

[North Coast Conservative]

TOOMEY BUMP

In God We Trust…..Semper Fi

[Dawgreg]

Ditto! Gotta get Specter OUT! That RHINO is next in line for chairman of Judiciary ,FCOL! Anyone know who would be next if Specter is defeated? Sorry to be so dumb, but I really don't know.:(

[GeneralHavoc]

Senator John Kyl

[Rightproud]

Press Release,
Contact: Ron Davis, Chairman,
Bethel Park Republican Committee (412) 377-3381

Bethel Park Republican Committee
Endorses Pat Toomey for US Senate

The Bethel Park Republican committee voted 28-9
to endorse Republican challenger Pat Toomey in his
race against incumbent Arlen Specter. In order to
obtain two thirds of a quorum of committee members
present at the Thursday night meeting, Toomey needed
only 25 votes to win the endorsement.

The committee's endorsement is an important one
for Toomey, as he continues to solidify support from
conservative Republican voters across Pennsylvania.
Bethel Park is one of the largest municipalities in
Allegheny County, with a population of over 30,000.
Members of the committee sited ongoing ideological
and political differences with Senator Specter, who has
developed a reputation for his more liberal voting record.

Representatives from the Specter and Toomey campaigns
had an opportunity to address members of the committee
before the endorsement vote.  The committee then
discussed the issue before making its decision.

As the April 27th primary date approaches, the Bethel
Park Republican Committee, and Chairman Ron Davis,
have vowed to fully support whichever candidate wins
the party's nomination.

[Dawgreg]

Thanks Havoc.........a sigh of relief just passed through my body.........I needed that. Don't know about you but I've always liked Kyl. Hope he doesn't go the way of the other pubs in the event he ever gets the chairmanship.

[North Coast Conservative]

Your remarks are very reminiscent of Alan Keyes' address to CPAC in January. What is the conservative wing of the party to do?

Abandon our principles and vote for the guy who has the best chance of winning? The Governator over McClintock? What did the Republican party win in that one?

I get into deep discussions with my friends at the Lake County Republican Party about them wanting me to work for Bush/Cheney'04, and my questioning about whether they are really working for a Republican.

Campaign Finance Reform No Child Left Behind Medicare Prescription Drugs Immigration Control and Reform GWB support of Spector over Toomey More Funding Dollars for the NEA than Incr'd Border Security Not One Veto of A Spending Bill in Three Years Poor support of Judicial Candidates in the Senate, (No Lobbying)

It;s hard to convince me to vote for him on his record. Tax Cuts and the War on Terror are great. There has to be more.

Alan Keyes said:"The lesser of two evils is still evil"

The most convincing argument for voting for B/C'04 is appointment of Supreme Court justices who will probably have more influence in the next 30 years than the Executive or the Legislative Branches.

If GWB loses this election, it is because the people who put him there in 2000 have lost faith in him. It is his fault, not theirs.

OwlEagle.... you are off as of now

In God We Trust…..Semper Fi!

[Bikers4Bush]

An amen to your amen.

[Bikers4Bush]

"ONLY Specter can hold the seat. Ideological purity is not worth risking the control of the Senate over."

Double BS to your rino supporting garbage.

The rino hunt is on and the powers that be had better wake up to that reality.

[NittanyLion]

ONLY Specter can hold the seat. Ideological purity is not worth risking the control of the Senate over.

I've had many people tell me that a general election is not the place to debate a candidate's conservativism, but I must admit yours is the first post I've seen telling people a vote for the most conservative primary candidate would be a wasted one.

Amazing...