The Other McCain

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Delaware Fever: Catch It!

Posted on | September 14, 2010 | 44 Comments

OK, how crazy has the Delaware GOP Senate primary gotten? Crazy enough that it prompted one ill-informed reader to send Michelle Malkin an e-mail accusing her of supporting Mike Castle and — wait for it — also saying that Allahpundit is her husband.

Never mind the absurdity of that last one. The ill-informed reader’s assertion that Malkin is a RINO-hugger contradicts all known facts about The Boss Emeritus. Not only did she endorse Christine O’Donnell two weeks ago, but Malkin is so hardcore that she was one of the very few prominent conservatives who supported J.D. Hayworth against John McCain in the Arizona GOP primary.

Malkin doesn’t usually make a big deal out of stuff like that because she seldom engages in Red-on-Red action, preferring to concentrate her fire on Democrats. By contrast, Dan Riehl has spent the past two weeks going after Castle and Castle’s supporters with a bloody vengeance. Over the weekend, however, things got so crazy that even Dan urged everybody to calm down.

Let’s be clear who is responsible for this vituperative environment: Mike Castle, his campaign consultants, Delaware GOP chairman Tom Ross and the national Republican Establishment. 

Just as when they tried to fix the Florida primary for Charlie Crist — “Those treacherous bastards!” — the Establishment’s cliquish favoritism angered and alienated the grassroots. O’Donnell’s candidacy thus became a rallying point for those who have tired of the top-down control approach to politics that became standard operating procedure for Republicans during the Bush administration, when the Rove-Mehlman axis called the shots and expected everyone to fall in line.

Such centralization of political authority might have been tolerable if it had actually led to the promised “Permanent Republican Majority.” Instead, it gave us Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid in 2006, then gave us President Obama in 2008.

So this online fight in Delaware isn’t about who’s a “True Conservative.” It’s about whether we are going to let the GOP elite do our thinking for us.

The problem with the GOP elite is not that they’ve got all the money and prestige. The problem isn’t that their egos are swollen with the arrogance of entitled privilege. The problem is that they’re politically incompetent.

Rather than admit that it was a foolish blunder to anoint a septuagenarian RINO like Mike Castle, the clueless clowns of the GOP Establishment doubled down and went negative on Christine O’Donnell. Thus it is the Establishment defeatists who have dictated this kind of doom narrative to the MSM:

With an assist from Sarah Palin, tea party activists in Delaware are trying to defeat the Republican candidate with the best chance to win Joe Biden’s old Senate seat and nominate instead a candidate Republican leaders say has no chance of winning the general election in November.

So how’s the “nuts and sluts” attack on working out for the Establishment? Here’s a text message I received this morning from an O’Donnell supporter in Delaware:

“Just spoke to a friend working polls in district in Wilmington stronghold of Castle. He says so far voter turnout is slower than usual. This is very good for Christine. Many have told him they’re turned off by Castle tactics. Leads me to believe many have stayed home. Those would typically be Castle votes.”

Will Christine win tonight? I don’t know. It would be the biggest miracle upset of the year. We have been supporting Christine O’Donnell since Smitty blogged about her in March, and we’re going to fight to the finish.

The polls close at 8 p.m. in Delaware, and I’m leaving at noon to make the 150-mile drive to O’Donnell HQ. Hit the tip jar!

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Category: Christine O'Donnell, Dan Riehl, Delaware, Election, Michelle Malkin

Comments

44 Responses to “Delaware Fever: Catch It!”

  1. flenser
    September 14th, 2010 @ 2:42 pm

    Malkin is so hardcore that she was one of the very few prominent conservatives who supported J.D. Hayworth against John McCain in the Arizona GOP primary.

    Which speaks volumes about “prominent conservatives”.

  2. flenser
    September 14th, 2010 @ 10:42 am

    Malkin is so hardcore that she was one of the very few prominent conservatives who supported J.D. Hayworth against John McCain in the Arizona GOP primary.

    Which speaks volumes about “prominent conservatives”.

  3. AngelaTC
    September 14th, 2010 @ 2:51 pm

    You’re right, and exposing the attitudes of the GOP to the new-to-all-this TEA Party faction is very important.

    Most people go into politics expecting the other side of the aisle to fight, but not many are prepared for the in-party resistance to change.

    The leaders of the GOP are fighting to retain relevance. Fighting back is a good thing.

  4. AngelaTC
    September 14th, 2010 @ 10:51 am

    You’re right, and exposing the attitudes of the GOP to the new-to-all-this TEA Party faction is very important.

    Most people go into politics expecting the other side of the aisle to fight, but not many are prepared for the in-party resistance to change.

    The leaders of the GOP are fighting to retain relevance. Fighting back is a good thing.

  5. Credo
    September 14th, 2010 @ 2:53 pm

    I noticed that Ross the State Chair has done such a bang up job that there all of 5 State Senators in Delaware that are GOP.

    Cutting deals with democrats doesn’t work.

  6. Credo
    September 14th, 2010 @ 10:53 am

    I noticed that Ross the State Chair has done such a bang up job that there all of 5 State Senators in Delaware that are GOP.

    Cutting deals with democrats doesn’t work.

  7. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 2:54 pm

    Which speaks volumes about “prominent conservatives”.

    flenser, yeah it does. It shows they are sane. While I respect RSM and Michelle Malkin for their committed position on changing the GOP, Hayworth was an embarassment. Yeah McCain sucks. The lesson of all of this, find a decent candidates to run against Lindsay Graham when he is up for re-election.

    That said, at least Hayworth did not pull a Clint Didier or, even worse, a Charlie Crist, when he lost. I will be watching closely on what the loser of this race does the next day. We all need to back the winner. Immediately. Anyone who doesn’t should be shunned.

  8. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 10:54 am

    Which speaks volumes about “prominent conservatives”.

    flenser, yeah it does. It shows they are sane. While I respect RSM and Michelle Malkin for their committed position on changing the GOP, Hayworth was an embarassment. Yeah McCain sucks. The lesson of all of this, find a decent candidates to run against Lindsay Graham when he is up for re-election.

    That said, at least Hayworth did not pull a Clint Didier or, even worse, a Charlie Crist, when he lost. I will be watching closely on what the loser of this race does the next day. We all need to back the winner. Immediately. Anyone who doesn’t should be shunned.

  9. flenser
    September 14th, 2010 @ 2:57 pm

    The problem with the GOP elite is not that they’ve got all the money and prestige. The problem isn’t that their egos are swollen with the arrogance of entitled privilege. The problem is that they’re politically incompetent.

    Perhaps.

    But if they were really politically incompetent, I’d expect them to err on the side of supporting conservatives from time to time. They’re so consistent in the type of people they support that its hard not to conclude that they have a political ideology, and that it’s not a conservative one.

  10. flenser
    September 14th, 2010 @ 10:57 am

    The problem with the GOP elite is not that they’ve got all the money and prestige. The problem isn’t that their egos are swollen with the arrogance of entitled privilege. The problem is that they’re politically incompetent.

    Perhaps.

    But if they were really politically incompetent, I’d expect them to err on the side of supporting conservatives from time to time. They’re so consistent in the type of people they support that its hard not to conclude that they have a political ideology, and that it’s not a conservative one.

  11. Kojocaro
    September 14th, 2010 @ 3:00 pm

    why would michelle malkin marry a beta male?

  12. Kojocaro
    September 14th, 2010 @ 11:00 am

    why would michelle malkin marry a beta male?

  13. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 3:01 pm

    Crazy enough that it prompted one ill-informed reader to send Michelle Malkin an e-mail accusing her of supporting Mike Castle and — wait for it — also saying that Allahpundit is her husband.

    Never mind the absurdity of that last one.

    Allahpundit is not a…cow lover, is he?

  14. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 11:01 am

    Crazy enough that it prompted one ill-informed reader to send Michelle Malkin an e-mail accusing her of supporting Mike Castle and — wait for it — also saying that Allahpundit is her husband.

    Never mind the absurdity of that last one.

    Allahpundit is not a…cow lover, is he?

  15. flenser
    September 14th, 2010 @ 11:04 am

    Hayworth was an embarassment.

    And what has McCain been? Not only an embarrassment, but a squishy RINO embarrassment. I’d take the embarrassment who’ll vote the right way.

    How could anybody watch McAmnesty wandering along the border in a Border Patrol cap and acting as if he’d like to personally rip the heart out of any illegal he saw, and not realize what a colossal embarrassment this man is to himself, Arizona, the GOP, and the US of A?

  16. flenser
    September 14th, 2010 @ 3:04 pm

    Hayworth was an embarassment.

    And what has McCain been? Not only an embarrassment, but a squishy RINO embarrassment. I’d take the embarrassment who’ll vote the right way.

    How could anybody watch McAmnesty wandering along the border in a Border Patrol cap and acting as if he’d like to personally rip the heart out of any illegal he saw, and not realize what a colossal embarrassment this man is to himself, Arizona, the GOP, and the US of A?

  17. More Delaware primary action « Olliander
    September 14th, 2010 @ 11:07 am

    […] McCain unearths the root cause of our dilemma: Let’s be clear who is responsible for this vituperative environment: Mike Castle, […]

  18. Robert Stacy McCain
    September 14th, 2010 @ 3:08 pm

    Allahpundit is not a…cow lover, is he?
    No. While Allahpundit’s true identity is the most closely-guarded secret in the blogosphere, I’m certain he’s not Bob Etheridge.

  19. Robert Stacy McCain
    September 14th, 2010 @ 11:08 am

    Allahpundit is not a…cow lover, is he?
    No. While Allahpundit’s true identity is the most closely-guarded secret in the blogosphere, I’m certain he’s not Bob Etheridge.

  20. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 3:18 pm

    flenser, valid points. Which is why if you are going to challenge a RINO, find a decent candidate to do so. Rubio, Miller, perhaps O’Donnell.

    Hayworth, not so much.

  21. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 11:18 am

    flenser, valid points. Which is why if you are going to challenge a RINO, find a decent candidate to do so. Rubio, Miller, perhaps O’Donnell.

    Hayworth, not so much.

  22. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 3:20 pm

    But hey, if Hayworth won I would have supported him over the Dem challenger. And whoever wins today (O’Donnell or Castle), the losing side needs to fully back the winner against the Dem challenger in the general.

  23. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 11:20 am

    But hey, if Hayworth won I would have supported him over the Dem challenger. And whoever wins today (O’Donnell or Castle), the losing side needs to fully back the winner against the Dem challenger in the general.

  24. flenser
    September 14th, 2010 @ 3:29 pm

    flenser, valid points. Which is why if you are going to challenge a RINO, find a decent candidate to do so.

    I guess we differ about what makes somebody a “decent candidate”. From where I’m sitting, Hayworth was a decent candidate and McCain was the same bad joke he’s always been. Maybe a little worse than usual.

    Of course once you elect a RINO it’s always going to be difficult to get rid of them. The moral of the story should be: think long and hard about electing them in the first place.

  25. flenser
    September 14th, 2010 @ 11:29 am

    flenser, valid points. Which is why if you are going to challenge a RINO, find a decent candidate to do so.

    I guess we differ about what makes somebody a “decent candidate”. From where I’m sitting, Hayworth was a decent candidate and McCain was the same bad joke he’s always been. Maybe a little worse than usual.

    Of course once you elect a RINO it’s always going to be difficult to get rid of them. The moral of the story should be: think long and hard about electing them in the first place.

  26. Ronald Reagan Weighs In on Delaware, Washington State. « Annoy the Left
    September 14th, 2010 @ 12:46 pm

    […] the weeks leading up to today’s primary election in Delaware, great gigabytes of bloggity attention has been devoted to weighing the merits of Republican Christine O’Donnell vs. […]

  27. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 5:26 pm

    flenser, when Hayworth gets drummed out of his seat as a Republican Congressman in Arizona and then whores around pitching “free money” and government grants on infomericals (while quoting Ronald Reagan), I would suggest that is not the sort of candidate the tea party should be recruiting. Are you telling me that was the best Arizona could come up with?

    I agree, don’t vote RINOs into office. But once they are there, you have to find decent candidates to take them out.

    But hey, Lindsay Lohan Graham is coming up for reelection eventually. Now there must be a conservative in South Carolina available who hasen’t had inappropriate sexual relations with Will Folks (or pitched “free government money” on an infomerical).

  28. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 1:26 pm

    flenser, when Hayworth gets drummed out of his seat as a Republican Congressman in Arizona and then whores around pitching “free money” and government grants on infomericals (while quoting Ronald Reagan), I would suggest that is not the sort of candidate the tea party should be recruiting. Are you telling me that was the best Arizona could come up with?

    I agree, don’t vote RINOs into office. But once they are there, you have to find decent candidates to take them out.

    But hey, Lindsay Lohan Graham is coming up for reelection eventually. Now there must be a conservative in South Carolina available who hasen’t had inappropriate sexual relations with Will Folks (or pitched “free government money” on an infomerical).

  29. flenser
    September 14th, 2010 @ 6:57 pm

    flenser, when Hayworth gets drummed out of his seat as a Republican Congressman in Arizona

    Arizona is supposed to be some super-duper conservative state? If it were, we would not be stuck with McCain.

    and then whores around pitching “free money” and government grants on infomericals

    I’m underwhelmed with you, Joe. You plainly are more upset about that nonsense than you are about MCain’s cutting deals with the left-wing of the Democratic party on a regular basis. If McAmnesty would cease and desist from writing bills with the Ted Kennedy’s and Russ Feingolds of the world, he could do infomercials on Viagra for all I care.

    But then, I evaluate politicians in terms of their policy positions. Pretty wild, huh?

  30. flenser
    September 14th, 2010 @ 2:57 pm

    flenser, when Hayworth gets drummed out of his seat as a Republican Congressman in Arizona

    Arizona is supposed to be some super-duper conservative state? If it were, we would not be stuck with McCain.

    and then whores around pitching “free money” and government grants on infomericals

    I’m underwhelmed with you, Joe. You plainly are more upset about that nonsense than you are about MCain’s cutting deals with the left-wing of the Democratic party on a regular basis. If McAmnesty would cease and desist from writing bills with the Ted Kennedy’s and Russ Feingolds of the world, he could do infomercials on Viagra for all I care.

    But then, I evaluate politicians in terms of their policy positions. Pretty wild, huh?

  31. Thomas L. Knapp
    September 14th, 2010 @ 6:58 pm

    This is one of the things I find confusing: In what sense is John McCain a “RINO?” He seems to be the very epitome of the Republican Party’s historical direction.

    “Republicans as smaller-government conservatives” has been an occasionally useful bit of hyperbole, but the next time it’s followed through upon after it wins an election will be the first.

    The GOP was founded for the express purpose of imposing tariffs and expanding “public works.” It gave America anti-trust law, the FDA, the income tax, the 17th Amendment, the Federal Reserve and “progressivism.”

    As much as Republicans hate to admit it, Herbert Hoover was the architect of the New Deal — FDR turned traitor to become its construction manager after he was elected in 1932 on a platform of balancing the budget and cutting the size of the federal government by 25% versus Hoover’s “we need to expand all my public works programs that haven’t worked yet” platform.

    McCain is the face of the real GOP, the GOP as it actually is instead of as its pretty spokesmodels (Goldwater, Reagan et al) have portrayed it.

  32. Thomas L. Knapp
    September 14th, 2010 @ 2:58 pm

    This is one of the things I find confusing: In what sense is John McCain a “RINO?” He seems to be the very epitome of the Republican Party’s historical direction.

    “Republicans as smaller-government conservatives” has been an occasionally useful bit of hyperbole, but the next time it’s followed through upon after it wins an election will be the first.

    The GOP was founded for the express purpose of imposing tariffs and expanding “public works.” It gave America anti-trust law, the FDA, the income tax, the 17th Amendment, the Federal Reserve and “progressivism.”

    As much as Republicans hate to admit it, Herbert Hoover was the architect of the New Deal — FDR turned traitor to become its construction manager after he was elected in 1932 on a platform of balancing the budget and cutting the size of the federal government by 25% versus Hoover’s “we need to expand all my public works programs that haven’t worked yet” platform.

    McCain is the face of the real GOP, the GOP as it actually is instead of as its pretty spokesmodels (Goldwater, Reagan et al) have portrayed it.

  33. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 7:11 pm

    flenser is mad that I am telling him things he does not want to hear but knows to be true.

    Tom is correct that McCain represents the status quo of the party. That is a huge part of the problem.

    flenser is also correct, McCain pissed off a lot of Republican by trying to self promote or go off on his own self rightousness. flenser hates McCain. I get that. If you have a basically red-pink state like Arizona, you can elect a more conservative candidate. flenser is just mad that the challenger they picked lost by 20 points+ to Meghan’s Daddy. That is partly because Mac Daddy had his left over presidential war chest and partly because Hayworth sucked as a candidate. Get over it. You have Graham to take on soon enough.

    Since I think restrictions on political speech are obsene, I am very much against McCain Feingold. That is the worse legacy of his Senate career.

    Immigration reform as proposed by McCain-Kennedy was a huge mistake that fortunately did not pass. Now I am for changing the status quo (which sucks) with a emphasis on civil fines on employers engaging illegals and greater legal immigration (with an emphasis on lawfulness, assimilation, and patriotism).

    I thank John McCain for saving the filibuster (had we gotten rid of it as many suggested, we still would have lost seats in the Senate in 2006-08 and the Dems would have run ramshod over us). Now if we reach a point that the Senate truly is conservative, I might support getting rid of it then. Still, sometimes, be careful for what you wish for.

  34. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 3:11 pm

    flenser is mad that I am telling him things he does not want to hear but knows to be true.

    Tom is correct that McCain represents the status quo of the party. That is a huge part of the problem.

    flenser is also correct, McCain pissed off a lot of Republican by trying to self promote or go off on his own self rightousness. flenser hates McCain. I get that. If you have a basically red-pink state like Arizona, you can elect a more conservative candidate. flenser is just mad that the challenger they picked lost by 20 points+ to Meghan’s Daddy. That is partly because Mac Daddy had his left over presidential war chest and partly because Hayworth sucked as a candidate. Get over it. You have Graham to take on soon enough.

    Since I think restrictions on political speech are obsene, I am very much against McCain Feingold. That is the worse legacy of his Senate career.

    Immigration reform as proposed by McCain-Kennedy was a huge mistake that fortunately did not pass. Now I am for changing the status quo (which sucks) with a emphasis on civil fines on employers engaging illegals and greater legal immigration (with an emphasis on lawfulness, assimilation, and patriotism).

    I thank John McCain for saving the filibuster (had we gotten rid of it as many suggested, we still would have lost seats in the Senate in 2006-08 and the Dems would have run ramshod over us). Now if we reach a point that the Senate truly is conservative, I might support getting rid of it then. Still, sometimes, be careful for what you wish for.

  35. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 7:15 pm

    McCain is actually good on fiscal restraint.

    The GOP better focus on that issue out of the gates.

  36. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 3:15 pm

    McCain is actually good on fiscal restraint.

    The GOP better focus on that issue out of the gates.

  37. Cynthia Yockey, A Conservative
    September 14th, 2010 @ 7:39 pm

    Marylanders, remember that Jim Rutledge is the candidate that has what it takes to beat Barbara Mikulski. Vote for Jim Rutledge!

  38. Cynthia Yockey, A Conservative Lesbian
    September 14th, 2010 @ 3:39 pm

    Marylanders, remember that Jim Rutledge is the candidate that has what it takes to beat Barbara Mikulski. Vote for Jim Rutledge!

  39. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 8:33 pm

    Allah is perplexed by the Delaware GOP and the Castle campaign statements.

  40. Joe
    September 14th, 2010 @ 4:33 pm

    Allah is perplexed by the Delaware GOP and the Castle campaign statements.

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