This comes via Reason.TV:
Ayn Rand’s Books and Some about her:
Category: Republican
Dede Scozzafava suspends NY-23 Campaign
I knew this was coming, sort of. I knew she was doing bad, I just was not sure if she would actually drop out. Well, Surprise surprise!
My Good Friend and fellow Blogger Robert Stacy McCain broke the news:
Just confirmed that Republican candidate Dede Scozzafava has quit the race. Speaking to supporters, Scozzafava broke down in tears.
UPDATE: Scozzafava, the hand-picked choice of the New York state GOP in the key 23rd District special election, reportedly will throw her support to Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman.
Scozzafava’s withdrawal came shortly after a new Siena College poll was released this morning, showing her in third place, with Hoffman neck-and-neck with Democrat Bill Owens.
This is confirmed by the Watertown Daily News:
Dede Scozzafava, the Republican and Independence parties candidate, announced Saturday that she is suspending her campaign for the 23rd Congressional District and releasing all her supporters.
The state Assemblywoman has not thrown her support to either Doug Hoffman, the Conservative Party candidate, or Bill Owens, the Democratic candidate.
“Today, I again seek to act for the good of our community,” Ms. Scozzafava wrote in a letter to friends and supporters. “It is increasingly clear that pressure is mounting on many of my supporters to shift their support. Consequently, I hereby release those individuals who have endorsed and supported my campaign to transfer their support as they see fit to do so. I am and have always been a proud Republican. It is my hope that with my actions today, my party will emerge stronger and our district and our nation can take an important step towards restoring the enduring strength and economic prosperity that has defined us for generations.”
Ms. Scozzafava told the Watertown Daily Times that Siena Research Institute poll numbers show her too far behind to catch up – and she lacks enough money to spend on advertising in the last three days to make a difference. Mr. Owens has support from 36 percent of likely voters in the poll, with Mr. Hoffman garnering 35 percent support. Ms. Scozzafava has support from 20 percent of those polled.
Now there are some bloggers who are saying that Scozzafava threw her support behind Doug Hoffman. As it is stated above; that simply is not true. Dede released her people to support whomever they wish; big difference there.
Ali Akbar (!) has the farewell or “I’m such a damned loser, that I am quitting” statement:
Dear Friends and Supporters:
Throughout the course of my campaign for Congress, I have made the people of the 23rd District and the issues that affect them the focal point of my campaign. As a life long resident of this District, I care deeply and passionately about its people and our way of life. Whether as a candidate for Congress, a State Assemblywoman or a small town Mayor, I have always sought to act with the best interest of our District and its residents in mind—and today I again seek to act for the good of our community.
The opportunity to run as the Republican and Independence Party candidate to represent the 23rd District has been and remains one of the greatest honors of my life. During the past several months, as I’ve traveled the district, meeting and talking with voters about the issues that matter most to them, I’ve been overwhelmed by the amount of support I’ve received as I sought to serve as their voice in Washington. However, as Winston Churchill once said, Democracy can be a fickle employer, and the road to public office is not always a smooth one.
In recent days, polls have indicated that my chances of winning this election are not as strong as we would like them to be. The reality that I’ve come to accept is that in today’s political arena, you must be able to back up your message with money—and as I’ve been outspent on both sides, I’ve been unable to effectively address many of the charges that have been made about my record. But as I’ve said from the start of this campaign, this election is not about me, it’s about the people of this District. And, as always, today I will do what I believe serves their interests best.
It is increasingly clear that pressure is mounting on many of my supporters to shift their support. Consequently, I hereby release those individuals who have endorsed and supported my campaign to transfer their support as they see fit to do so. I am and have always been a proud Republican. It is my hope that with my actions today, my Party will emerge stronger and our District and our nation can take an important step towards restoring the enduring strength and economic prosperity that has defined us for generations.
On Election Day my name will appear on the ballot, but victory is unlikely. To those who support me – and to those who choose not to – I offer my sincerest thanks.
Dede
See ya RINO!
and Besides:
Now would be a good time to head over to Doug Hoffman’s site and give big!
Related headlines:
Josh Kraushaar / Scorecard’s Blog: BREAKING: Scozzafava suspends NY 23 campaign
Ed Morrissey / Hot Air: Breaking: Scozzafava quits after Siena poll; Update: Hoffman campaign asking for endorsement?
Robert Stacy McCain / The Other McCain: NY23: SCOZZAFAVA QUITS! UPDATE: New poll shows Hoffman in dead heat with Democrat Owens
Jude Seymour / Watertown Daily Times: SCOZZAFAVA SUSPENDS CAMPAIGN
Marc Ambinder / The Atlantic Politics Channel:NEW! Dede Drops Out!
Paul Volpe / The Fix:10 minutes ago Scozzafava drops out of NY-23 special election
Andy Barr / The Politico: Steele: Hoffman win is a GOP win
Michelle Malkin: Radical leftist GOP candidate Dede Scozzafava quits
Real American Bloggers on the story: Betsy’s Page, QandO, Macsmind, NewsBusters.org, Outside The Beltway, Daily Pundit, Weekly Standard, Townhall.com, Conservatives4Palin.com and The Other McCain, , Erick’s Dump Dede, Sister Toldjah, Left Coast Rebel, And So it Goes in Shreveport, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Weasel Zippers and JammieWearingFool
Commies, America-haters, Socialists, Leftest Turds, and Democrats: (I’m being redundant, I know…) The Hill, Washington Wire, Daily Kos, The Daily Politics, Taegan Goddard’s …, TPMDC, Below The Beltway, PoliBlog, Campaign Trail, AMERICAblog News, The Hill, The Politico, The Moderate Voice, Swing State Project, The Washington Independent and msnbc.com
Updated: NY-23 Gate Continues
The saga of the NY-23 election race continues. Seems that there has been some interesting stuff uncovered by some very enterprising reporters.
Michael Patrick Leahy over at the TCOT Report writes about some interesting information about how this Liberal-lite candidate was chosen. Dan Riehl also has some interesting information as well. Dan is also making some new friends as well! 😉 😛 😀
Robert Stacy McCain, who is really a good guy and a damn good shoe-leather reporter; has some good information as well, and is also kicking at the stalls to get back up to upstate New York and do some more shoe-leather reporting. McCain also reports that the New Media, together with the big time endorsements has really help Hoffman’s Campaign. McCain could also use some donations as well. So, head on over and help the old man out. Better yet, Click right here to give to McCain. Mention my name and my Blog; and maybe I will get some kind words out of the deal. When you are done, donate to me as well; as I would just LOVE to be up there in the middle of all that myself. I have many needs, I need a better car; as the one I am driving now is just not road worthy at all. In fact, if my cousin doesn’t have the money to buy it by next week, it is going to the junk yard.
So, if you can click on my donate button as well and GIVE LIBERALLY! 😀
Update: Looks like the Liberals are hitting back a bit: (H/T to Simon via E-mail)
The Politico has more.
My feelings on this is basically this; Class warfare. Which is quite lame. It is the Democrats last line of defense, sort of like the Race Card.
Update #2: Some Great Bloggers covering this story: Campaign Trail, The Atlantic Politics Channel, Michelle Malkin, The Other McCain, American Spectator, AmSpecBlog, The Washington Independent and RedState (H/T Memeorandum)
It is official: Levi Johnston is a scumbag
Yesterday, AllahPundit wrote about this idiot; and I thought he was wasting his time. However, After watching this video; I am convinced, that this jackass is simply looking to destroy Palin to fatten his own pocketbook.
Just be clear, for the 500’th time; I am not a Sarah Palin fan boy. But this just goes too far. It is obvious to me, that this turd is just going after Palin for the fame and for the money. Most likely to buy his damned mommy more drugs; as she is a druggie you know.
At this point, if I were the Palin family, I would go to court and DEMAND that the judge remove all of Levi Johnston’s visitation rights and fix it where he never saw the child again, ever. I would bring up the drugs, I would bring up the posing for playgirl; I would inform them of his actions, and that he is more interested in being a “star” than he is a Father.
I know that I might sound a bit harsh; but it is quite obvious to me, that Levi Johnston is simply looking to cash in on Bristol Palin’s lapse in judgment; which, quite frankly, is much of Levi’s fault. Had Mr. horn-dog kept his hands off of her, she would not be pregnant and that baby would not even be here. All of this just to either make money for himself and possibly get back at Palin and or Bristol. That my friends, is the perfect definition of an asshole and that my friends is what Levi Johnston is.
Quite frankly, I am a bit pissed off at John McCain; for basically using Sarah Palin as window dressing for his rather idiotically ran campaign. If John McCain would have picked someone else; Sarah Palin would not be having to write books to defend herself and that poor family of hers. I mean, God love them people; they have been literally through hell and yet, they say nothing. No lawsuits, No lashing out. Nothing. I just do not see how they do it. If that were me, would be suing the living crap out of every damned Liberal media outlet that even remotely slandered me and my family; I’m talking multi-millions of dollars of lawsuit money. I would go after all of them; when I was finished with them, there would be some very wealth California Socialists who would be paying me some very big money and if their websites and papers went under, that would be just be too bad.
As for you, Mr. Levi. I just lost what little respect that I actually had for you dude. For a while; I actually gave you the benefit of the doubt. You have nothing on Sarah Palin; if it is anything, it is so damned minor, that not one damn person would even remotely care. Especially coming from a idiotic opportunist jack ass like you.
May you rot in the hottest part of the devil’s hell, you bastard piece of tripe.
Matthew Hoh resigns over Afghanistan
I have to give this man credit; he is a man of conviction, for that alone, he is a true patriot.
Via the Washington Times:
When Matthew Hoh joined the Foreign Service early this year, he was exactly the kind of smart civil-military hybrid the administration was looking for to help expand its development efforts in Afghanistan.
A former Marine Corps captain with combat experience in Iraq, Hoh had also served in uniform at the Pentagon, and as a civilian in Iraq and at the State Department. By July, he was the senior U.S. civilian in Zabul province, a Taliban hotbed.
But last month, in a move that has sent ripples all the way to the White House, Hoh, 36, became the first U.S. official known to resign in protest over the Afghan war, which he had come to believe simply fueled the insurgency.
“I have lost understanding of and confidence in the strategic purposes of the United States’ presence in Afghanistan,” he wrote Sept. 10 in a four-page letter to the department’s head of personnel. “I have doubts and reservations about our current strategy and planned future strategy, but my resignation is based not upon how we are pursuing this war, but why and to what end.”
The reaction to Hoh’s letter was immediate. Senior U.S. officials, concerned that they would lose an outstanding officer and perhaps gain a prominent critic, appealed to him to stay.
U.S. Ambassador Karl W. Eikenberry brought him to Kabul and offered him a job on his senior embassy staff. Hoh declined. From there, he was flown home for a face-to-face meeting with Richard C. Holbrooke, the administration’s special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.
“We took his letter very seriously, because he was a good officer,” Holbrooke said in an interview. “We all thought that given how serious his letter was, how much commitment there was, and his prior track record, we should pay close attention to him.”
While he did not share Hoh’s view that the war “wasn’t worth the fight,” Holbrooke said, “I agreed with much of his analysis.” He asked Hoh to join his team in Washington, saying that “if he really wanted to affect policy and help reduce the cost of the war on lives and treasure,” why not be “inside the building, rather than outside, where you can get a lot of attention but you won’t have the same political impact?”
Hoh accepted the argument and the job, but changed his mind a week later. “I recognize the career implications, but it wasn’t the right thing to do,” he said in an interview Friday, two days after his resignation became final.
“I’m not some peacenik, pot-smoking hippie who wants everyone to be in love,” Hoh said. Although he said his time in Zabul was the “second-best job I’ve ever had,” his dominant experience is from the Marines, where many of his closest friends still serve.
“There are plenty of dudes who need to be killed,” he said of al-Qaeda and the Taliban. “I was never more happy than when our Iraq team whacked a bunch of guys.”
But many Afghans, he wrote in his resignation letter, are fighting the United States largely because its troops are there — a growing military presence in villages and valleys where outsiders, including other Afghans, are not welcome and where the corrupt, U.S.-backed national government is rejected. While the Taliban is a malign presence, and Pakistan-based al-Qaeda needs to be confronted, he said, the United States is asking its troops to die in Afghanistan for what is essentially a far-off civil war.
As the White House deliberates over whether to deploy more troops, Hoh said he decided to speak out publicly because “I want people in Iowa, people in Arkansas, people in Arizona, to call their congressman and say, ‘Listen, I don’t think this is right.’ “
“I realize what I’m getting into . . . what people are going to say about me,” he said. “I never thought I would be doing this.”
The underlined parts up here are the parts that I think are the most inspiring. Some Conservatives and even some MilBloggers might want to slam this guy. Well, I will not be counted among that group. I have said on this blog many times that I felt that Bush basically screwed us in the long run, for trying to fight two wars at the same time. That belief is becoming clearer now, eight years on and we’re still trying to catch Osama Bin Laden —- and that task is becoming more of a difficult task everyday. There is plenty of blame to go around; Bush is not the sole person responsible for this terrible screw up. The whole “We have to fight them there, so, we don’t have to fight them here..” line is a bit worn thin now, seeing that there has been people arrested on terror plotting charges here now.
Again, I applaud this man for having the courage to stand up and dissent. Some may knock him, but not sane thinking Americans, who see things through the long lens; like me.
The Round up for ALL sides of the Political fence: The Washington Independent, The Moderate Voice, Top of the Ticket, Abu Muqawama, Matthew Yglesias, JustOneMinute, New York Times, Neptunus Lex, Firedoglake, ABCNEWS, MoJo Blog Posts, Alan Colmes’ Liberaland, The New Republic, Salon, The Atlanticist, BLACKFIVE, Jules Crittenden, The Daily Dish, Guardian, Mudville Gazette, Rethink Afghanistan, Newshoggers.com, Atlas Shrugs, Chicago Boyz, RedState, Newsweek Blogs, LewRockwell.com Blog, Wall Street Journal, Taylor Marsh, MyDD and Politics Daily
Joe Lieberman says that he will back GOP filibuster of Senate Healthcare Bill
I have an idea as to why Lieberman is doing this; well, I have several different ideas:
Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) said Tuesday that he’d back a GOP filibuster of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s health care reform bill.
Lieberman, who caucuses with Democrats and is positioning himself as a fiscal hawk on the issue, said he opposes any health care bill that includes a government-run insurance program — even if it includes a provision allowing states to opt out of the program, as Reid has said the Senate bill will.
“We’re trying to do too much at once,” Lieberman said. “To put this government-created insurance company on top of everything else is just asking for trouble for the taxpayers, for the premium payers and for the national debt. I don’t think we need it now.”
Lieberman added that he’d vote against a public option plan “even with an opt-out because it still creates a whole new government entitlement program for which taxpayers will be on the line.”
His comments confirmed that Reid is short of the 60 votes needed to advance the bill out of the Senate, even after Reid included the opt-out provision. Several other moderate Democrats expressed skepticism at the proposal as well, but most of the wavering Democratic senators did not go as far as Lieberman Tuesday, saying they were waiting to see the details.
Lieberman did say he’s “strongly inclined” to vote to proceed to the debate, but that he’ll ultimately vote to block a floor vote on the bill if it isn’t changed first.
“I’ve told Sen. Reid that if the bill stays as it is now I will vote against cloture,” he said.
via Joe Lieberman: I’ll block vote on Harry Reid’s plan – Manu Raju – POLITICO.com.
Lieberman, who caucuses with Democrats and is positioning himself as a fiscal hawk on the issue, said he opposes any health care bill that includes a government-run insurance program — even if it includes a provision allowing states to opt out of the program, as Reid has said the Senate bill will.Here is my official theory as to why Lieberman is doing this. For one; I believe that Lieberman is doing this to get back at the Senate Majority leader for his scolding of him for supporting John McCain during the 2008 election. Another theory I have is that Lieberman is attempting to garner support amongst the Conservative leadership on the hill. Maybe Lieberman is going to try for a run as a moderate to Liberal Republican in the not-so-distant future in the Senate. Either that, or Lieberman knows that he will never be elected as a Republican or a Democrat ever again and he is doing this, thinking that it will, someday be seen as his last great feat to save the Country from out of control socialism.
Either way, I believe that any chance of Lieberman getting back into the Democratic Party just totally dissolved. At this point, if I were a Democrat, I would want Lieberman’s head on a platter.
Others: Michelle Malkin, Townhall.com, Weekly Standard, The Corner, AmSpecBlog, The Greenroom, JOSHUAPUNDIT, The Moderate Voice,
Conservatives are the top ideological group
So says Gallup:
PRINCETON, NJ — Conservatives continue to outnumber moderates and liberals in the American populace in 2009, confirming a finding that Gallup first noted in June. Forty percent of Americans describe their political views as conservative, 36% as moderate, and 20% as liberal. This marks a shift from 2005 through 2008, when moderates were tied with conservatives as the most prevalent group.
Think of this the next time some screwball poll comes out in favor of the Democrats. The reason the pollsters are able to get the results they want is by oversampling the Socialist Democrats.
(H/T Confederate Yankee)
Video: The Southern Avenger on "The Myth of Objective Journalism"
I do not always agree with Jack Hunter; however I do on this video here. Especially on his views of the Main Stream Media in the lead up to the Iraq War. Whether it is his anti-Military bias or an honest disgust with the Bush Administration; that Jack can only answer. But he is right, and very sadly so. The media was laying down on the job during that time period.
Having said all that, let me be absolutely clear; while I am quite happy that Bush’s surge worked and that Iraq, outside of the occasional car bomb, is much more stable than it was in 2006. But that does not take away from the fact that Bush’s invasion of Iraq and occupation of it was not justified. I believe that this will be a black mark on America for a long time to come.
Enjoy the Video:
Glenn Beck interviews Doug Hoffman on his radio show
I realize that yesterday, I poo poo’ed Glenn for supposedly canceling Doug Hoffman’s appearance on his TV show. Of which I later found out has supposedly not Glenn’s fault, but was supposedly Hoffman’s campaign’s fault. Sorry, I never fully trust anything written by the corporate media.
However, this here, more than makes up for it. (H/T R.S. McCain)
Thank you Glenn, for standing up for us Americans. Thank you for having the brass balls to stand up to the Republican establishment.
We need more Glenn Beck types, we need more Ronald Reagan types, we need more William F. Buckley types. We need more voices that will be heard that say, “We will not allowed the socialists to steal our damned Country!”
One of those voices is Robert Stacey McCain; described as the Hunter S. Thompson of the Conservative Blogosphere. His Blog is a daily read of mine. McCain has been derided by some opportunist 9/11 Liberals as a White Supremacist. But that is nothing more abject balderdash. R.S. McCain is one of the best twenty first century contrarian writers. I highly recommend him to everyone.
Sarah Palin Endorses Hoffman — His campaign war chest goes through the roof!
She might not be the Reagan carbon copy everyone makes her out to be on the right. But boy can she draw the supporters!: (H/T The Weekly Standard)
The people of the 23rd Congressional District of New York are ready to shake things up, and Doug Hoffman is coming on strong as Election Day approaches! He needs our help now.
The votes of every member of Congress affect every American, so it’s important for all of us to pay attention to this important Congressional campaign in upstate New York. I am very pleased to announce my support for Doug Hoffman in his fight to be the next Representative from New York’s 23rd Congressional district. It’s my honor to endorse Doug and to do what I can to help him win, including having my political action committee, SarahPAC, donate to his campaign the maximum contribution allowed by law.
Our nation is at a crossroads, and this is once again a “time for choosing.”
The federal government borrows, spends, and prints too much money, while our national debt hits a record high. Government is growing while the private sector is shrinking, and unemployment is on the rise. Doug Hoffman is committed to ending the reckless spending in Washington, D.C. and the massive increase in the size and scope of the federal government. He is also fully committed to supporting our men and women in uniform as they seek to honorably complete their missions overseas.
And best of all, Doug Hoffman has not been anointed by any political machine.
Doug Hoffman stands for the principles that all Republicans should share: smaller government, lower taxes, strong national defense, and a commitment to individual liberty.
Political parties must stand for something. When Republicans were in the wilderness in the late 1970s, Ronald Reagan knew that the doctrine of “blurring the lines” between parties was not an appropriate way to win elections. Unfortunately, the Republican Party today has decided to choose a candidate who more than blurs the lines, and there is no real difference between the Democrat and the Republican in this race. This is why Doug Hoffman is running on the Conservative Party’s ticket.
Republicans and conservatives around the country are sending an important message to the Republican establishment in their outstanding grassroots support for Doug Hoffman: no more politics as usual.
You can help Doug by visiting his official website below and joining me in supporting his campaign:
Yes, I know Palin had zero to do with it. But his campaign “War chest” went through the roof, in a week!
Over the past week, New York House special election candidate Doug Hoffman has doubled the amount of donations he has received for his unusually strong third-party campaign.
Hoffman, the Conservative Party nominee in the Nov. 3 contest for the 23rd District seat, disclosed just more than $300,000 in total receipts in his pre-general election fundraising report, which covers the beginning of the race through Oct. 14. That included a $102,000 loan that Hoffman, an accountant and first-time candidate, made to his campaign from his own funds.
But Hoffman’s campaign also said that since Oct. 14, the candidate — who is in a tight three-way race to fill the seat Republican Rep. John M. McHugh vacated to become secretary of the Army — raised more than $200,000 online. He is opposed by Dede Scozzafava, a longtime state assemblywoman, and Democrat Bill Owens, a lawyer.
Hoffman’s campaign has received a boost from activists in the conservative blogosphere, who have rallied around his candidacy amid growing anger over the Republican Party’s decision to nominate Scozzafava, a GOP moderate who backs same-sex marriage and abortion rights and has ties to organized labor. By midday Thursday, 15 right-leaning blogs and news outlets posted calls for Scozzafava to withdraw from the race and let Hoffman carry the fight against Owens himself.
A significant portion of the contributions Hoffman disclosed in his report came via the political action committee for Club for Growth, the conservative anti-tax group whose early endorsement and more than a half-million dollars in ad spending have helped Hoffman’s campaign gain traction. The Citizens United Political Victory Fund also gave Hoffman the maximum $10,000 donation, other conservative PACs — such as Eagle Forum and Government is not God — chipped in, and donations were made by the state and Oswego County Conservative Party committees as well.
Hoffman picked up a high-profile endorsement from former House Majority Leader Dick Armey of Texas — a key figure in the “Republican revolution” of the 1990s and now a major backer of the “tea party movement” against government expansion — Thursday morning.
So, why did this all happen? It is quite simple; the grassroots Conservative movement likes the guy. He is not a part of the Republican or Conservative establishment. I would be willing to believe Newt Gingrich is crying in his beer, er um, in his case; Milk right about now. That knuckle head should have known better than to support that Democrat-lite woman. If Sarah is behind it, you know the guy is going to win. Dede does not have a prayer in hell now.
Exit Question: Will there now be a Conservative civil war between the Palin camp and the Gingrich camp? Now that will be interesting to blog about and follow! 😯 😮
