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September 15, 2010



Personally-- I would prefer TM to deliver Dodd's vote in October to extend all tax rates for at least 2 years. Use that influence TM.

Rob Crawford

Ponnoru just cost NRO my subscription. Little twerp won't quit whining about the little people exercising their free will.


Legal Insurrection has a great post on this--if the GOP was so hot why did they have Castle give up his safe seat for this run after his voting record--why didn't they come up with a better candidate? Jacobson ads this update:

Update: Ed Morrissey is firing on all cylinders this morning (emphasis mine):
My advice to the GOP would be to quit whining about losing a long-shot bid to win control of the Senate and focus on actually winning the races....
What does Mike Castle’s crash and burn among Delaware Republicans say about their party organization? After all, we have heard oodles of commentary about how Delaware Republicans are moderates who might get energized by the Tea Party but supposedly aren’t looking for conservative candidates. Instead, they convinced Castle to leave a relatively safe House seat instead of looking for someone who hadn’t backed a government takeover of the energy sector in cap-and-trade (in a coal-dependent region!) and co-sponsored the DISCLOSE Act. Perhaps had the GOP establishment listened a little more carefully to Delaware Republicans, who turned out relatively heavily in this election, they wouldn’t find themselves crying in their lattes this morning....
Grow up, shut up, and get to work."

Rob Crawford

Fred Barnes, LUN, on why Castle lost. This one is the stand-out:

Castle didn’t respect a Tea Party-backed rival. Rather, he felt “insulted,” I’m told, that he had to face O’Donnell

Which is why he refused to debate. And why he deserved to lose, and why the failure to support O'Donnell know is infinitely more damaging than any act committed during the campaign.

Danube of Thought


No reason we can't do both.

Captain Hate

Ace has a real problem with conservative women; he's been a naysayer on Palin since Day 1. I think part of his problem is that he hasn't had his ashes hauled nearly enough, possibly never, because women scare him. I look at establishment Repuke males and I see a whole lotta betas.

Rob Crawford

CH -- no, I think Ace's problem is that he lives in a mostly liberal area. He's internalized a lot of their attitudes about the popularity (and superiority) of leftism.


Clarice: the repubs never developed a bench of candidates that could run. Castle was all that was left of the establishment here. Thus, O'Donnell.


Guess I was a little quick on the draw (Prevous thread).

Now I'm reading that Castle won't endorse Odonnell. Class. Nothing but class.


Castle was another Specter in waiting. Living 10 minutes from the DE border in PA I will be contributing to and working for the O'Donnell campaign. http://christine2010.com/>Donate here and help


And may I also add that O'Donnell's win should be a warning to the rest of the whining RINO's out there - in what ever State they happen to be in.

No more suport - no more donations until they start doing their damn jobs - instead of kissing up to Zero and the libs - so they can all get along and everyone work together in harmony. I'm sick of all that crap.

Danube of Thought

I see that the GOP is up 6.5% on the Pollster.com generic ballot average.

Remember when--maybe two weeks ago--Gallup had the GOP up by a record ten points, after having the Dems up six a few weeks before that? Now they have it even. I really don't know what to make of Gallup, but I give their results zero weight whether favorable or unfavorable.


I find Mike Castle as distasteful as anyone else, maybe even more than most, and I know of no O'Donnell policy positions that I disagree with. But in the world of politics there are hard choices to be made, sometimes focused on personality factors that voters pay attention to. If O'Donnell had been less personally flaky, I would have said, support the true conservative, come what may. But she does, objectively, sound like a personal flake, and that's a problem that could color the conservative brand. Powerline was against O'Donnell. Here's their reaction this morning:

I ceratinly hope that Christine O'Donnell defeats Chris Coons in November. Indeed, despite her flaws, I'd rather see her in the Senate than Mike Castle because she would be a far more reliable conservative vote. The deal-breaker for me was what I perceive to be O'Donnell's bleak prospects in the general election.

Speaking of which, PPP (whose last poll of the primary had O'Donnell defeating Castle) reportedly is about to present the following bleak facts about O'Donnell's prospects:

*Only 31% of Delaware voters think Christine O'Donnell is fit to hold public office.

*O'Donnell's favorable/unfavorable split is 29/50.

*Castle primary voters supports Coons over O'Donnell 44-28 in the general election.

In connection with the last of these facts, keep in mind that O'Donnell defeated Castle only by several thousand votes.

I hope O'Donnell will overcome these awful numbers, but I have a hard time seeing how she can.

No wonder Stu Rothenberg has already moved the Delaware Senate race from Lean Republican to Lean Democratic, bypassing toss-up entirely. It would be interesting to know whether Rothenberg was tempted to rate the race Likely Democratic. Given the numbers cited above, I would have been.

Army of Davids

Castle was an up vote for Cap and Trade. He may as well have been a Democrat.

For me Castle and Coon was no choice.

I don't know how this turns out in the general election.

But I am very happy w/ the primary.

Would Castle vote to Repeal ObamaCare? I have my doubts.

O'Donnell would.

Rick Ballard

Gallup's latest generic has the Reps up by 5% among RVs. The MOE would overlap the lower bound of Rasmussen's 9% LV number.


CNN on Tim Kaine's "big announcement" at GWU this afternoon:

However, a Democratic source with knowledge of the speech said it will be about the future of the party....The source told CNN that Kaine will announce something that will excite Democrats across the country.


My goodness.Howard Fineman left the beltway for DE yesterday and reports there will be a GOP earthquake in Nov.

"Democrats are busy trying to convince themselves that the GOP is hopelessly divided. I didn’t see that in Newark, Delaware. Many of the O’Donnell voters were women, interestingly, and were interested in party unity. I didn’t find a single Castle voter who said he or she would vote for Democrat Christ Coons if O’Donnell won.
This theme is probably wishful thinking on the part of the Dems. The GOP will be united around a few simple ideas: tax cuts, budget cuts, spending cuts and rolling back Obama’s health care and environmental agenda. That message seems likely to power the GOP to big gains, maybe even to control of Congress.
People are so angry and frustrated that they will lash out at the only big shots they control: not the banks, not Wall Street, not China, not the Beltway media, but elected officials."

She wore a big O'Donnell

What did Della wear?

Captain Hate

Rob, you're probably right and I don't get any pleasure out of bashing Ace because his blog has given me a lot of pleasure and is an excellent forum in a lot of ways. But he consistently gravitates toward the "safe" choices of the party operatives and shows a profound distrust of the voice of people that are fed up with business as usual, some of which was manifested in voting for the jugeared goof because they believed some of the garbage he promised and hasn't delivered on. Unlike the disinformation peddled by the troll in his latest Axelturfing, the tea party is a genuine reflection of dissatisfaction with how far astray both parties have led the country from Constitutional principles. Ace, by being part of the change away from the MFM being the sole source of information, is stunningly obtuse in his inability to understand that.

Rob Crawford


1. They're going for honesty and will rename their party the "National Socialists Workers Party of America"?

(Although I suspect there already is one.)

2. They're going to reinstate their party's pro-slavery plank.

3. They're going to become America's largest pro-shariah political party.

(Or are they already?)


Which is why he refused to debate.

Really? Instead of trying to finagle the Tea Party Express' endorsement, it sounds like the Rove's time would have been better spent persuading Castle to debate.

Melinda Romanoff

Interesting, Clarice.

Didn't expect Fineman to leave the beltway.

Rob Crawford

CH -- because he still reflexively cringes before admitting his political beliefs. He's used to being beaten up (verbally, at least) for being a conservative, and can't imagine the possibility that there exists places where that doesn't happen. The concept of turning the entire country into a realm where it's not a shunning offense to say you think taxes are too high or that government should stop discriminating based on race is not something he can grasp.

It's not a personal failing of his, it's just something you have to be aware of when dealing with any conservative who lives in a major metropolitan area, particularly one on the coasts.

Well, except maybe the Gulf Coast.

Matthew Crandall

I'd rather have a dem-controlled senate than a republican senate with squishes like Castle. It's not like we have a chance for a veto or fillibuster-proof majority, so who cares? Control of the House will be sufficient to stop Barack.


Angle will beat harry reid and odonnel will win in delaware. 2010 is the year of the grassroots over the establishment-

about 3 hours ago via ÜberTwitter



For me Castle and Coon was no choice.

And this is the strongest conservative argument for O'Donnell, flake or not. Republican voters in other states--Illinois, for example--face the same dilemma. The argument is that, as long as voters are given these no-choice candidates by the GOPer establishment, nothing will change. A message has to be sent: we'll bring your comfortable house crashing down on your heads if you don't give us conservative candidates. How often have we seen Republicans perfectly satisfied with a minority share of the political pie, as long as they have their share?

I entirely sympathize with that view. My one fear is that a flake who hitches a ride on that view could tarnish the brand.

Two further notes:

1. The reason I say I'm maybe more against the Castles of this world is that, as a Catholic, I strongly resent his tarnishing of the Catholic brand with his anti-life positions (yeah, I know--the Church should be doing something about that, too).

2. I've been playing around with the Google Chrome browser. They've upgraded their privacy settings and I recommend people give it a try. It's amazingly fast--leaves most everything, including Firefox, in the dust. There are a few add-ons I'd like to see, but it's a helluva browsing experience overall.



I can't imagine just how icky this is gonna be.


Does anyone have any real insight into how Delaware voters of all stripes are going to vote in the General Election? (I sure don't). They are the ones who are going to decide the next election in Delaware, not opinionators from Washington, Texas, California, New York, etc., etc.


Very encouraging report from Fineman, Clarice. How did he miss the "they're cannibals" memo?



Stopping isn't good enough--I want rollback (almost slipped and said "we"). The bigger the GOPer win, even including squishes, the greater the possibility that you might get a few Red State Dems to vote to override a veto of an Obamacare repeal. That's the strongest argument for Castle.

Jim Ryan

If O'Donnell wins, what's the damage to Rove's career?


Maybe Rove will try a "Dick Morris" and have a new career hitting for the other team. His GOP prospects imo don't seem bright sans a sincere apology for last night's hissy fit.


If Rove was good enough to get Bushie elected twice, his career prospects are probably as good as ever. Is it so crazy that he prefers candidates without lots of personal baggage that can't be hidden?

Dave (in MA)

The 'bats have to be enjoying the spectacle of all this in-fighting on the right the past few weeks.


It's also important to say now that even if O'Donnell loses, this was the right thing to do. As Barry Goldwater taught us, losing with honor is preferable to winning by selling out. In the long term we're better off if the GOP gets the message.

Melinda Romanoff


Wretchard the Cat lights it up.


Cornyn says NRSC will back O'Donnell.



Bah, just as likely blue state RINO's vote against it.


Mel, that whole piece is outstanding, but this bit is why I won't lament the Reps not winning the Senate:

"The defeat of Castle serves further notice that anyone wanting to return to business as usual will probably be punished by the voters. Since the economic crisis is likely to continue, the same forces now tearing through the ranks of the establishment will continue to rampage unabated in 2011. There won’t be enough Tea Party candidates to directly alter policy, or hang a rap on. However, there will be sufficient numbers to focus the energies of a movement whose energies have not yet run their course."

Reelecting Rep squishes might drive frustrated tea partiers toward third parties, which would be disastrous.



I've been thinking that too. They would be mistaken, however, if they believe it means they're not in big trouble in November.

The voters are serious as a heart attack, and if the Dems are too busy laughing to realize this, they'll miss whatever opportunity is left to them to fight it. So let 'em giggle.

Thomas Collins

O'Donnell's a flake? Compared to whom? Big F****** deal Biden? Windsurfer RI Boat Docker For It Before Against It Kerry? Must Pass It To Know What Is In It Pelosi? Flip The Middle Finger Obama? Bin Laden Gains Support With Day Care Centers Murray? My Freezer Is Stuffed With Green Cabbage Jefferson?

My message to Patton Boggs GOPers is this: if you have half a brain, you'll realize that if you snub the Tea Party, you are snubbing your base.

Rob Crawford

Cornyn says NRSC will back O'Donnell.

Yay! I just asked about that in the other thread.

I hope they figure out which of their staff of professional, well-tempered political experts was behind the statement from last night.


I have been thinking about Clarice's "Nuts and Sluts" comment since yesterday.

BTW, Rangel won his primary last night.

Rob Crawford

BTW, Rangel won his primary last night.

The sun came up this morning, too.

Melinda Romanoff


That's why I point things out. I love Wretchard's take on things, most of the time, but they're Always interesting.



"But National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman John Cornyn said in a written statement Wednesday that O'Donnell would have NRSC support as well as the maximum $42,000 donation from the organization.

"Let there be no mistake: The National Republican Senatorial Committee -- and I personally as the committee's chairman -- strongly stand by all of our Republican nominees, including Christine O'Donnell in Delaware," Cornyn said."

Cornyn's support is limp.


It's probably the Clique, that's what one of
the posters on the C4P blog, called the agglomeration of Establishment factotums, typified by Murphy, Madden, Harris and co, who man the communications and strategy division of the NRSC and NRCC


I believe the proper response to any Democrat trying to call O'Donnell a financially irresponsible nut is to plug your ears and yell "RangelRangelRangelRangel"


Romney endorses O'Donnell.

Rob Crawford


Ya know what would drive them to a third party even quicker?

A party that refuses to get behind the legitimately nominated candidates; a party that seems to be made up of people more interested in their "careers in politics" than in actually governing in line with the will of the people who got them into office.

The Crist and Murkowski hissy-fits are as damaging to the party as the idiotic (and admittedly unsourced and refudiated) statement from the NRSC after O'Donnell's win.

And while I'm sure it will sound paranoid -- how big of a leap is it from "I lost the primary, but that doesn't mean I'm out, yet" to "I lost the general, but that doesn't mean I'm out, yet"?



Rob Crawford

One thing on that Wretchard post -- he says the Democrats have lost the House, barring a sudden economic upturn. I submit that it's simply impossible at this point for an economic upturn to help the Democrats. It's too late -- the hiring would have already have to have started. If companies start looking to hire now, they'll actually start interviewing in late October. Employment wouldn't likely start until after the election, and the sense of improvement from the new jobs wouldn't kick in until well after Christmas.

Hans Christian Matt

gather around young and old, and read the Tale of the President's New Clothes. LUN

Rob Crawford



Or to bring up "Cold Cash" Jefferson, or the folks who think an opportunity scholarship fund is for the benefit of their immediate family, or...


The guy who thinks Guam is tipping over...


She wore a new jersey, of course.

That one is as old as the hills.


I don't want to link to HuffPo, but Kaine's blockbuster, sure-to-excite Dems announcement seems to be a new DNC logo and "streamlined" website.



That's awesome.

Boy that will really step on the news from last night, huh?

Thomas Collins

New logo? Like the one in the LUN?


Gibbs is such an idiot. He just called Christine O'Donnell "outside of the mainstream".

Has he looked at Obama's poll numbers lately? At the way Obama and Dem issues poll?
How is he defining the mainstream, here?
Because it looks to me like the Dems are outside of the mainstream.

Rob Crawford

How is he defining the mainstream, here?

"Has the approval of those inside the Beltway"

"Could win an election in Berkeley"

Dave (in MA)

Self-described http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0510/36726.html>"Bearded Marxist" Coons.


Somewhat OT and apologies if it's been posted, but I missed this yesterday:

Byron York: The public hates almost everything Congress has done

The numbers: Bank bailouts, 61 percent disapprove versus 37 percent approve; national health care, 56 percent disapprove versus 39 percent approve; auto bailouts, 56 percent disapprove versus 43 percent approve; stimulus, 52 percent disapprove versus 43 percent approve. Only financial reform, with 61 percent approve versus 37 percent disapprove, is a winner for the representatives and senators seeking re-election.

Thanks, Porch. I think the public might be out of the mainstream.


"Kaine will announce something that will excite Democrats across the country."

This is just my guess. I expect he will announce that they are merging completely with the Communist Party and dropping the word Democrat since they mean the same thing.


I think Rove will be on Hannity both T.V. and Radio today.Hat in hand.

Jim Miller

If you really, really want the Democrats to lose control of the Senate, then you might want to contribute to Dino Rossi's campaign. He has about a fifty percent chance of winning, and can use every dime you can send him.

(Many of you will find the story of Clint Didier, a Republican who lost to Rossi in the all-party primary, instructive. Didier promised, during the primary campaign to back whichever Republican made the top two. Didier has yet to keep that promise; in fact, so far, he hasn't even endorsed Rossi.)

Charlie (Colorado)


The more fool you, then. Among other things, a D-controlled Senate with only a simple majority could do no end of harm by screwing with the rules.


Is there any new information coming out of New Hampshire? Last time I checked the headlines, Ayotte had a slight lead with 85% of the vote counted.

BB Key

Dave in MA,
thanks for link. I noticed the 'Bearded Marxist' will fit right in... Coons got his conversion in Kenya...


Thought this was good from Ben Domenech:

Here’s my view: Conservatives should not tolerate the likes of Mike Castle because of the simple fact that a 51 member Senate with Mike Castle is a Senate where Mike Castle is the most important vote in the room. As Specter and others before him, that Senator will set the terms of policy debates, determining in advance what can succeed and fail. Those who advance the argument that a majority with Castle is better than being in the minority tend to place priorities on Senate committee chairmanships and staff ratios and lobbyist cash… a list which pales in comparison to the power they would wield as the broker for both sides. Again and again I saw this play out during my time as a Senate staffer, and anyone who tells you contrary is incredibly naive about the way legislative decisions are made.

Charlie (Colorado)


Barry losing to LBJ led to the War on Poverty, the abandonment of Viet Nam, 50K deaths in America and millions in Viet Nam, and Richard Nixon.

Some great moral victories there, boy.

Danube of Thought



Captain Hate

The more fool you, then.

More Buddhist loosening the grip of the ego.

Cecil Turner

the abandonment of Viet Nam

Hard to blame that one on Barry. Nixon, maybe, with some help from Ford.

Control without conviction led to the gang of 14, the inability to wage war effectively (including the current MCA), and a very credible charge against the GOP that they're "no better than the Dems" on fiscal accountability.

Cecil Turner

I'd rather have a dem-controlled senate than a republican senate with squishes like Castle . . .

I wouldn't go quite that far. But if the GOP is unlikely to control the Senate anyway, and you're having to rely on minority Senators for votes against cloture and to hold the line against giving "bipartisan" cover to the liberal dream plan du jour, squishes like Castle aren't a lot of help.

Dave (in MA)

New DNC logo.


Consists entirely of pixels from the new DNC website. If you get the reference, I'm so very sorry. If you don't get it, don't ask.

Captain Hate

I'm appreciating O'Donnell more and more since she seems to have driven all the elitists who really don't trust the voters out from under their rocks. Even if she turns out to be a horrible candidate (and, based on who's badmouthing her, she probably isn't) she's already performed a useful function.

Danube of Thought

Nixon, maybe, with some help from Ford.

The Democratic congress, against the wishes and despite the pleas of Ford.


Thanks for the Wretchard link, Mel. I've been wondering why things seem so weirdly personal between the establishment and O'Donnell, but it wasn't until I read Wretchard's piece that I learned O'Donnell is against masturbation. It's all starting to make sense now.

Dave (in MA)

http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Ayotte+defeats+Lamontagne+in+U.S.+Senate+primary&articleId=7d9f849a-0b1e-4da8-933f-ad8f3287e29e>Ayotte wins with an under 2000 vote margin. On the radio this morning I heard that the AP based some of last night's reporting on some erroneous information that they'd been sent from some early counties.


heh, Extraneus


What's all the BS about her being a bad candidate based on?

She took a while but just paid off her college tuition loans... how many voters are in that boat?

She had problems paying her mortgage almost going into forclosure but got it righted...how many voters are in that boat?

She had a tax issue when she was in that same financial difficulty and got it paid off...how many voters are in that boat?

There is a vast difference between a couple of grand owed to the gov once and for a short time and someone who is not paying their nanny tax or willfully claiming tax deductions or not reporting their income.

How many voters would be excluded from public office if her "transgressions" were all deal breakers? How do you think it makes them react when they are told they are "damaged" citizens not good enough to hold public office?

I may actually prefer someone with some warts like hers that makes them a little more normal. They've walked a mile in many citizens' shoes...

Who is it demanding clean togas again?


jean: Rove ain't backing down at all, he's doubling down.

Karl Rove Won't Back Down

He needs to be careful - may do more damage to himself than O'Donnell!

Dave (in MA)

I trust that endorsements from Joycelyn Elders and Pee-wee Herman shan't be forthcoming, then.



Depends on which branch of Barry you follow.
It could just as plausibly be argued Barry led to Reagan, the supply side boom and victory in the cold war.
It can also be plausibly argued that settling for a squish filled GOP senate and house led to Nancy Pelosi, Barry Soetero, socialized medicine and $1.4 trillion deficits.
Perhaps we should wait to see if O'Donnell actually loses.
Maybe we won't have to have our RINO and eat it too.

Jim Ryan

Add to your risk management calculus the possibility that a chastened GOP leadership learns to back more conservative candidates after the notorious debacle of 2010 in Delaware lead to Senator Coons. Add to the calculus the deplorable votes a Senator Castle would have cast.

Who knows? Point is, how can anyone with mirrors in his house vote for someone who supported Cap and Trade? It's only a step or two above public bathroom toe-tapper and single-payer health insurance proponent. When the likely utility of an outcome is too uncertain, you have to fall back on more non-utilitarian principles.


CC That why I should never predict anything.He isn't stupid so what could be the reason for Roves outburst?


Some great moral victories there, boy.

Gosh you're right, none of that would have happened if the Republicans had just nominated Rockefeller instead of Goldwater. What was I thinking? Because a more establishment centrist willing to abandon principles (if he had any) like Nixon was really effective in turning all that around.

Goldwater's candidacy was clearly the inspiration for Reagan's. It took 16 years but it was worth it.

Jim Ryan

Extraneous, do you like your martinis as dry as your humor? Me, too.

JM Hanes


Elizabeth Warren gets the nod as head of the new consumer protection agency! The base goes wild! Dem enthusiasm stats explode!


Karl Rove, God bless him... he was born with a forked tongue in his mouth.

BTW I was listening to Sarah wax eloquent on O'Donnell this AM and when queried about Rove she started her comments with "Bless his heart!"

I LOLed.



Not with an R-controlled House. In any case, it's only two years till the next election, and the more shenanigans like "deem and pass" the Dems try to pull, the bigger the Republican sweep in 2012.



Turnout is everything. An energized and enthusiastic and mad as hell Tea Party is far more instrumental in retaking Congress than a demoralized and dejected Tea Party.

Castle's victory might have led to the latter, so that even if he had won, other crucial races might have been lost. You don't want this electorate's largest and most enthusiastic group of voters ticked off at having to hold their nose for someone. The fact that Castle lost may not help O'Donnell make it over the hill in DE, but it might very well boost voters in other states to put their candidate over.

We shall see.

Jim Ryan

ROVE: Well, maybe he could have me do the show next month? Isn't he taking a vacation then, too?

RUSH STAFFER: Nope, he's got it booked by... Oh, my gosh, you're not going to believe this. He's got Senator O'Donnell booked to do the show on one of the days, and Mark Steyn on the others. Too funny!


RUSH STAFFER: But I'm really sorry he hasn't been returning your calls. I leave the notes, so I'm sure he gets them...


RUSH STAFFER: Hello? ....Karl?

Captain Hate

If Rove wanted to do something useful, he might be contacting Murkowski, Crist and the rest of the Repuke garbage that he littered the body politic with as he did his best to purge the party of conservatives, and tell them to STFU and GTFO. But this is about Rove boosting himself to the exclusion of all else. Even though I've not been one of his fans, I honestly expected better from him than this pathetic tone-deaf sniping. Even if O'Donnell turns out to be a horrible candidate, he's still revealed himself as a very small excuse for a man.

Rob Crawford

Some great moral victories there, boy.

That's raaaaacist!


This is a great storyline. Losing the Senate that is.
It lowers the expectation of the November Election into reasonable levels, and gives those lazy conservative and Tea Partiers a kick in the ass to get out and vote.

I'm psyched.

Rove may yet proved to be a counter-intuitive genius.


Drudge is reporting in red letters that O'Donnell has money "pouring in" and that her website has crashed due to same.


My first impression of Rove was early in the Bush administration when, as I understood it, he was responsible for getting Bush to go along with steel import quotas. He went a long way toward redeeming himself over the years, but it seems that the leopard doesn't change his spots.

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