And congratulations to my good friend Frank Antenori, State Rep elect,R-30 a principled conservative who went all the way without ever taking a government handout, and further acted as a plaintiff in the above lawsuit.

Conservatives need to lead the charge on repealing this monster all together, instead of continuing to milk it.

EF

I reserved comments on the various players until the results came in. Apparently the GOP kept one CC seat after all and there were clear gains in the state house and perhaps one in the state senate.

It is clear that the top of the party – ie the RNC and RNCCC – via direct aid and from the Cong delegation itself at least adequately supported the Bee campaign as evidenced by the long list of appearances in an earlier post. Locally the legislative candidates were asked/cajoled not to use the governor’s budget as an issue to cover for Bee on this issue and I believe most complied. I was also told that a big split amongst the three GOP candidates in 26 was causing a single shot war which all three denied. I followed that with a joint appearance with them on INSIDE TRACK and they got along amiably. I suspected that someone was trying to stir a pot and hopefully I helped turn off the burner.

The three principle Congressional campaigns were not apparently injured by the state party and resources from elsewhere – including funds channeled to the Pima County Party – were available. That we lost all three is clear. That the CD8 margin was as great as two years ago leaves you with three possibilities:

1. Giffords resembles Joan of Arc and cannot be beaten.
2. Bee was a bad candidate.
3. The Bee campaign sucked.

I personally reject the first two options.

The three CC seats, with all deference to the candidates, were hardly the most relevant items on the ticket. All three were of less strategic importance than one house or senate seat if it was the one that gave control.

After the Battle of the Marne in 1914 when the French miraculously held the Germans back everyone wondered who had won it for them. The French Commander, Marshall Joffre, replied that he didn’t know who won it but he knew who everyone would have blamed if it had been lost.

It is hard to beat up Pullen and company when you GAIN seats where needed in a tough year.

Sproul is another matter. 105, 202, the Pearce fiasco – why would anybody pay attention to whom he takes to lunch? His track record both from this cycle and the last two is pathetic. He’s just a money pit for business guys who should know better by now.

Please note that I failed to philosophically rail about who the real conservatives are. Most of those posting here are hardly liberals. But philosophy without a competent political framework is pointless. That many claiming relative moderation seem to lack ability even more than some of the hard-liners is evident.

EF

We need a “do over”

DeAnn’s statement of: People only have passion to work for something that reflects the ideals that the party was founded on.

Which Republican Party do you both miss? Are you talking about the GOP of 1854, 1860, 1864, the Goldwater Era, the Reagan Era or the Bush’s?

I found these little “pieces of the platform” from years gone by in case it’s one of these:

from 1856: Resolved, That we invite the affiliation and cooperation of the men of all parties, however differing from us in other respects, in support of the principles herein declared; and believing that the spirit of our institutions as well as the Constitution of our country, guarantees liberty of conscience and equality of rights among citizens, we oppose all legislation impairing their security.

[The GOP I've known my entire adult life doesn't believe in this. Not in AZ !]

from 1860: SIXTH. That the people justly view with alarm the reckless extravagance which pervades every department of the federal government; that a return to rigid economy and accountability is indispensable to arrest the systematic plunder of the public treasury by favored partisans; while the recent startling developments of frauds and corruptions at the federal metropolis, show that an entire change of administration is imperatively demanded.

[The GOP has tried to preach this over and over to us but easy $$$ is such a seducer & the GOP leaders all take it when they can get it....even if they break every rule doing so. Yes the Dems do it too....but it's our commandment.]

from 1864: 8. Resolved, That foreign immigration, which in the past has added so much to the wealth, development of resources, and increase of power to this nation, —the asylum of the oppressed of all nations, —should be fostered and encouraged by a liberal and just policy.

[I'm speechless on this one. Have Randy Pullen & Tom Husband seen this? Maybe they're charter members of the "Know Nothing Party". See below.]

from the Know Nothing Party of the 1840s & 50s (they merged w/ the GOP by 1860):

The Know-Nothing Party intended to prevent Catholics and immigrants from being elected to political offices. Its members also hoped to deny these people jobs in the private sector, arguing that the nation’s business owners needed to employ true Americans.

The majority of Know-Nothings came from middle and working-class backgrounds. These people feared competition for jobs from immigrants coming to the United States. Critics of this party named it the Know-Nothing Party because it was a secret organization. Its members would not reveal the party’s doctrines to non-members. Know-Nothings were to respond to questions about their beliefs with, “I know nothing.” The Know-Nothing Party adopted the American Party as its official name in 1854. The Know-Nothing Party quickly grew in popularity in the North, where most recent immigrants to the United States resided.

So…….SA readers……………

****** Which GOP should now reign supreme ???

That, or they were not idealogically ‘pure’ enough. Heaven forbid someone does not agree with Pullen 100% of the time. Pullen changes his mind so dang often, it is hard to keep straight which line of bull he is feeding us.

MANY GOOD POINTS MADE.

BESIDES THE OBVIOUS AMOUNT OF MENTAL MASTURBATION THAT GOES ON IN POLITICAL BLOGS AND TALK RADIO YOU ARE RIGHT THAT WE MUST IMMEDIATELY BEGIN CHANGING HOW WE DO BUSINESS IN THE GOP.

PLEASE ALLOW ME TO AIR A FEW IDEAS OUT HERE……

I AM OK WITH GETTING THINGS STARTED HERE. I AM ALSO WORKING WITH OTHER GOP LEADERS ACROSS THE USA BECAUSE I FEEL THE SAME AS YOU WE HAVE NO TIME TO LOSE IN FIXING WHAT AILS US.

TOO MUCH OF HOW THE PARTY IS RUN AND HOW WE DO OUR BUSINESS HAS BEEN BROKEN FOR SOME TIME. WE THOUGHT WE MIGHT STILL BE ABLE TO HANG ONTO THE WHITE HOUSE BUT OUR PROBLEMS ARE DEEP ENOUGH THAT MORE SYSTEMIC CHANGE IS NEEDED.

OUR PARTY’S CORE BELIEFS CONTINUE TO BE AS VALID IN 2008 AS WHEN GOP ICONS LIKE T ROOSEVELT,B BUCKLEY, B GOLDWATER, R REAGAN WERE ALIVE BUT OUR EXECUTION , MESSAGE, OUTREACH IS OUT DATED. SOME OF OUR NATION’S ELECTED LEADERS HAVE LET US DOWN AS THEY HAVE GONE “NATIVE” AND APPARENTLY FORGOTTEN WHO ELECTED THEM AND WHY THEY GOT OUR SUPPORT. THE CURRENT CROWD RUNNING THINGS AT THE RNC LEVEL HAVE A VESTED INTEREST IN KEEPING THEIR JOBS. WE NEED NEW MANAGEMENT AND A NEW DIRECTION FOR THE GOP . ONCE WE HAVE ACCOMPLISHED THIS WE WILL BE IN A EXCELLENT POSITION TO SEND OUR NEXT GENERATION OF LEADERS OUT TO REPRESENT OUR PARTY IDEALS.

DO HAVE HAVE SUCH LEADERS? YOU BET……..FROM SARAH PALIN IN ALASKA TO MIKE PENCE IN INDIANA , KEVIN McCARTHY IN CA, BOBBY JINDAL IN LOUISIANA, PAUL RYAN IN WI TO MANY OF OUR OWN STATE’S LEADERS. WE HAVE MANY NEW LEADERS READY TO TAKE CHARGE.

FIRST, LET US FIX OUR PARTY. GET THE PLAN IN PLACE. RETURN TO RELEVANCY, CONCENTRATE ON OUR CORE BELIEFS, AND ABOVE ALL MAKE THE ARGUMENT SUCCESSFULLY ONCE MORE WHY WE SHOULD BE TRUSTED TO GOVERN. WHEN WE DO ALL THIS HARD WORK WE WILL HAVE GOD FOLKS SUCH AS YOURSELF WHO GET PASSIONATE ABOUT WORKING FOR THE GOP AGAIN.

BRUCE ASH