“We are going to tell the biggots to shut up.” - Lindsey Graham referring to Legal Americans.
“And I don’t do this much, but I want to thank Ted Kennedy!” - Senator Lindsay Graham.
Posted on 07/21/2007 2:23:18 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
The GOP leadership is waking up to a persistent reality, and it's one that has fundraisers and strategists at the RNC up at night. Conservatives, the core constituency of the Republican Party, are irate. Far from a passing hobbyhorse, the illegal immigration issue has galvanized Republican voters like no single issue in recent memory, and conservatives are refusing to let it go.
The Senate's comprehensive immigration bill, backed by the President and pushed by the GOP establishment, was more than a mere legislative miscalculation, is was the straw that broke the conservatives' back. Moreover, to listen to conservatives, it wasn't merely the legislation itself, but the strategy used by those trying to sell the bill. Conservatives are hopping mad at what they regard as unparalleled arrogance on the part of their Party's own leadership--arrogance that has rank and file Republicans digging in their heels, and vowing to go all the way in their efforts to defeat anyone associated with the bill.
With an election year approaching, the GOP is anxious to patch things up and move on. As in the past, the Republican establishment knows that come what may, when Hillary Clinton steps onto the stage, even conservatives outraged by the comprehensive immigration strategy will come running home. But as they are discovering, moving on may not be as easy as before. "Not this time" say many conservatives, who regard the immigration deal as merely the final insult from a party that has lost its way, and who vow to sit out the 2008 elections rather than compromise on their values.
"Money talks" and many conservatives feel that despite relying overwhelmingly on small money contributions, the Party caters only to big business interests in its policy. As a result, many conservatives are holding back their small contributions, and a grassroots effort to starve the GOP leadership into enforcing the borders has begun.
A favorite tool for angry Republicans is the so called "Bush Peso," that longtime GOP contributors are printing out on their home printers and enclosing in all Party solicitations. It is evidence of a new attitude among many conservatives--give us genuine conservatism, or else.
And slowly but surely, the message is getting through.
The collapse of John McCain's campaign is the most visible sign of conservatives walking away from GOP leaders associated with the comprehensive immigration strategy, but as Senate Republicans gear up for an election year, many are worried about their own reelection prospects.
Conservatives, it seems, are taking names and reminding their Party that they will not allow this issue to die. Rather than contribute to the Party's machinery--the RNC, NRCC, or NRSC--contributors are taking the time to investigate how their Senator voted, or whether their Congressional Representative voiced support for the legislation, and they're contributing accordingly.
Indeed, some analysts have suggested that 2008 could be a banner year for primary challenges to sitting GOP lawmakers. From South Carolina to Nebraska to Alaska, longtime GOP Senators are closely watching the groundswell of support for new conservative leadership.
In the midst of a campaign season in which there is no sitting Republican Vice President, or heir apparent, and an angry base clamoring for government accountability, the stage is set for a conservative revolt...and if you're a pro-amnesty incumbent, beware, your days in office may indeed be numbered.
Interesting. I recently told a party fund raiser caller that I was picking and choosing my donations more carefully, because of the way the leadership handled immigration amnesty.
Hear hear! Listen up, you party lurkers- we don’t need your steenkin North American Union!!
I’m telling you right now, people are prepared to exercise the 2nd amendment over this- and that’s just from the ones who 1> fully know about it and 2> have the guts to openly talk about it. I would imagine that many, many people are willing to stand up and be counted, if there were others to fall in behind.
The GOP stopped calling me years ago. I started sending back their silly little manipulative questionaires with CLOSE THE BORDER! scribbled across the page in big black Sharpie.
Saves a little money on postage, I guess they figured, so they took me off their sucker list.
Thanks for the ping - I have a few in mind the will be looking at “other” career options the next election cycle.
We’re going after Mel Martinez here. He’s the biggest RINO pile of crap to surface in a long time. And we’re not waiting for his term to come up, we want a recall.
ping
I have signed the recall petition, written letters, sent e-mails and tried to call.
I will fight to see him defeated, humiliated, arrested for treason, have his citizenship revoked and thrown in prison. And after that, I want to see him deported back to Cuba.
/rant
Also Charlie Crist - harrumph.
My $$ goes to my congresscritter, Randy Forbes, who is one of the last conservatives up there. The national GOP fundraising machine has stopped wasting their postage on me.
“I’m telling you right now, people are prepared to exercise the 2nd amendment over this- and that’s just from the ones who 1> fully know about it and 2> have the guts to openly talk about it. “
Definitely, the winds are blowing and “flyover” America is PO’ed. Question - will America be partioned before Iraq?
Oh, you’re a FL guy too! howdy neighbor.
I’m a little torn with Crist. I didn’t vote for him in the primary, but he is a good small government kind of guy.
Unfortunately, as we’ve seen lately, that’s not the end-all of wisdom. He’s definitely done a few boneheaded moves the past couple of weeks, that silly Global Warming thing for instance.
How long does the process take before they stop? I quit donating eons ago and I still get their crap. I also quit donating to the Michigan GOP because they absolutely refuse to go after target rich environment Karl Lenin, (she's far from)Little Debbie Stabemall, and Burt Stupidassak.
Send their fundraising envelopes back empty.
The final straw was the RSCC support for that POS Lincoln Chaffee. Even a moron could see that they are all about gaining / maintaining power - they don’t give a whit about conservative values.
I've know about Crist's liberal leanings for a while and voted for Max Linn.
I sent mine in--have you???
Oh really?
Linn cleaned his clock in the debate, didn’t he?
Crist is really more at home in the LP than the GOP I think, which is why I’m baffled at that enviro-whack position he took. That doesn’t make any sense at all.
“We are going to tell the biggots to shut up.” - Lindsey Graham referring to Legal Americans.
“And I don’t do this much, but I want to thank Ted Kennedy!” - Senator Lindsay Graham.
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