Posted on 11/08/2009 8:22:32 PM PST by SeekAndFind
Conservatives need to take a deep breath, relax, and stop bashing Joseph Cao. The man never claimed to be a fully committed economic conservative. He represents a district that is about 75 percent Democrat and 62 percent black (or thereabouts).
He SAID ALL ALONG, FOR MONTHS, that he would probably vote for health care reform if it included strong pro-life language such as the Stupak Amendment. He stuck to his guns, even though his district is not majority pro-life. He is a traditionalist Catholic, former Jesuit seminarian, and he stands up for the principles he holds dear, one of which is the sanctity of innocent life. He is willing to lose his office on behalf of that pro-life stance. And he has taken a leadership role in anti-Communist measures, meeting with the Dalai Lama when Obama wouldn't, and calling out the Vietnamese Communist government when too many these days refuse to recognize that Vietnam's mostly free market does NOT mean it is a free society. He is a thoughtful, principled, well-intentioned public servant.
He also represents a district that is fundamentally liberal. Congressmen have two roles: they are delegates, meaning their voters delegate to them the ability to use their judgment on complicated policy matters; and they are representatives, meaning they are there, specifically, to represent the will of their constituents. Serving in Congress is often a balancing act: When your district slightly favors one course of action but you strongly favor the opposite, you do what you believe and try to explain to your constituents why you bucked their wishes. That is being a delegate.
(Excerpt) Read more at spectator.org ...
* If your constituents STRONGLY favor the course of action, then your responsibility is to accurately reflect -- to REPRESENT -- the will of your constituents and vote in favor.
* Cao did not hold out for just some ridiculous pork project favored by big-money lobbyists; he instead asked for help with local issues caused by THE GREATEST NATURAL CATASTROPHE THAT EVER HIT THIS NATION. These are not roads to nowhere; they are health issues for a still-recovering population. Agree or disagree with his request, it is not outlandish.
Personal Note : Knowing the difficult situation Cao faced, the GOP waited till the 218th vote was cast in favor of the bill before letting him cast his lone vote. His yea vote would not have changed the result one bit.
Then just let him run as a democrap.
Nice try. But you can put a pig in a dress and it’s still a pig.
Um....because he wasn't a "real" Republican?
This appears to be an obligation for Republicans who represent Liberal districts. Off hand, I cannot think of a recent Democrat who acquiesced to the Conservative leanings of the district which they represent. I guess they have different obligations.
I'm not saying I don't understand Cao's situation. I'm just saying that this is a one-way street in which Republicans are expected to give in and Democrats are not.
we have to stop killing our own...
Cao's vote made no difference....
the rat cabal....that is who we need to go after....
I agree...having this seat is HUGE chance to show a black district that they can actually be represented, not only by a white, but also a Republican. It’s a once in a generation chance, and while Health Care is a huge issue, we really need to give this guy a LOT of wiggle room.
The article is wrong. Offer two stark choices and let the people decide. If they decide on the Republican, don’t expect him to govern like a Democrat. If they don’t like what they voted for, vote him out. Why even have two parties if the elected official is expected to vote one particular way?
A knife in the back is a knife in the back no matter how people try to frame it. I only wish I was in his state so I could look forward to one day voting against him.
I was thinking along those lines, too. It’s doubtful if he would have won if the voters hadn’t gotten sick of the crooked incumbent. And I think it’s true that his NOLA voters are very liberal except that they tend to be anti-abortion.
Finally, his vote did not make a crucial difference. It was regretable, but unlike the Olympia Snowe vote, it didn’t break a stalemate or tip the balance.
So there you have it: what the GOP really needs is more RINOs.
The Stupak amendment gave cover to those dems that are pro-life to vote for this horror. It was a waste of time and it backfired.
BINGO!
Who knows, Cold Cash Jefferson might be available in 2010
Then let rinos and moderates fund his campaign. Don’t expect conservatives to give one penny.
After a 117 years it was luck for a Republican to take that seat although it will probably be for only one term (but who knows?) This guy won one of the biggest upsets in the nation by knocking off William Jefferson (yes, that William Jefferson that we all hate).
“On December 6, 2008, Cao defeated nine-term Democratic U.S. Representative William Jefferson with 49.6 percent of the vote to Jefferson’s 46.8 percent.”
“Cao is the first Republican to represent the district since 1890”
“Cao’s win rendered the 2nd District by far the most Democratic district in the nation to be represented by a Republican; the district has a Cook Partisan Voting Index of D+28.”
I’m not buying it. Cao may well have had the interests of his constituents on his mind, but he sure didn’t give a damn about who’s paying the bill.
It provided the democrats the fig-leaf they needed to claim that the bill had bipartisan support.
Knowing the difficult situation Cao faced, the GOP waited till the 218th vote was cast in favor of the bill before letting him cast his lone vote.
And if the democrats only got 217 votes? Would the GOP have "let" him vote his "conscience"????
Thirty-plus Democrats voted against this health bill. Dozens of Democrats were against previous iterations of the bill. This is why something that Ogabe hoped to get passed in July is finally getting passed in November.
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