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Scozzafava Drops Out

It seems like the far right has got it’s wish:

Republican Dede Scozzafava has suspended her bid in next Tuesday’s NY 23 special election, a huge development that dramatically shakes up the race. She did not endorse either of her two opponents — Conservative party candidate Doug Hoffman or Democrat Bill Owens.

The decision to suspend her campaign is a boost for Hoffman, who already had the support of 50 percent of GOP voters, according to a newly-released Siena poll, and is now well-positioned to win over the 25 percent of Republicans who had been sticking with Scozzafava.

I guess the message from all this is pretty simple: if one deviates one bit from the current Republican “script” they are a RINO and must be driven out. Only the “pure” can be accepted.

The sad thing is that Hoffman doesn’t even know or care about issues affecting the district he is supposed represent should he win. Scozzafava knew her district,but because of her so-called liberal stances on gay marriage and abortion she is being drummed out of the party.

How Scozzafava was treated makes me wonder how long I will keep the moniker of Republican. I consider myself a pragmatic conservative and will remain one. But I am increasingly finding it hard to stay in a party that does not want me even though I agree with them on more issues than I disagree with them.

The party is headed towards destruction. I don’t know if I want to be there for the end.

Crossposted at Republicans United

  • Silhouette
    Why is this a duplicate thread?

    The comments in the other one should be included here.
  • JSpencer
    The GOP in it's current incarnation ought to be symbolized not as an elephant, but as a giant lemming.
  • mgardener
    This scary to me because I live in this district.
    Hoffman would not even debate the other 2 candidates this week in Plattsburgh, NY. He blew the debate off. He does not care about upstate NY.
    The adds are typical republican attack adds and he is using tons of outside money.
    WHo will he be beholding to? The palins, the becks and the limbaughs of this country.
    God help us if he wins. People up here are good tolerant folks who are hurting financially. Hoffman could care less, he is running on gay marriage and abortion!
  • I wonder what the reaction will be if Owens wins ?
  • TheMagicalSkyFather
    It will be used by the GOP to allow them to ignore the Tea Parties.
  • DLS
    While many on the Left or have lefty leanings (who are English- as well as challenged in other ways) will make all kind of ridiculous remarks, more intelligent observers will watch what happens subsequently (without hyping them) with an eye toward what means regarding GOP dysfunctionality as well as (in this case) if Upstaters resent being "visited" by DC-centered interest groups from outside, such as the Club for Growth. (That it will be confused or confounded by "far right" misstatements or outright lies is sad.)
  • DLS
    "Why is this a duplicate thread?"

    Priorities, bias and skew, preferences on this site.
  • superdestroyer
    The moderate Repubican RINOS needs to learn the lesson that few voters are willing to buy what they are selling. Scozzafava made massive appeals to homosexuals, public sector workers, union members, etc and failed to attract any of their votes. She was willing to give the militant homosexuals whatever they wanted and they still supported the Democrat instead.

    Maybe the so-called middle that their is more to homosexuals than their support of homosexual rights. It appears to everyone now that to be gay is to be a very liberal big government Democratic Party supporter.
  • DaMav
    Where is the thread with the apologies from all those folks who sagely told us the Tea Party movement nothing but a ploy and in the pocket of the Republican Party?

    heh
  • TheMagicalSkyFather
    If the tea parties turn into a 2012 candidate that beats Obama I will apologize. The reason I have my doubts is history though. Not long after Reagans election the AFL/CIO held a rally in DC much like the Tea Parties to build support and energy for the Dem party. 200k people showed up for the march and the media treated it as a growing movement but as we know with the vision of hindsight it was a death rattle, not a rallying cry. In 2012 we will see if this is a rallying cry or a death rattle, until then it is to early to make the call but we will see.
  • DaMav
    Regardless of the future success of the Tea Party Movement, it should be quite clear that they are not "a ploy and in the pocket of the Republican Party." The proof of that is obvious: They just forced the chosen candidate of the Republican Party out of the race.
  • TheMagicalSkyFather
    I definitely disagree that they are "a ploy and in the pocket of the Republican Party." Though I would say they are being bank rolled by Repub operatives(Armey) who are attempting to direct the movement though I think as of yet no one has real control of it. If the control is wrestled away from Armey it may have a real impact but as long as he is attached to it I fear it will be a less potent version of Newts contract with America that said some good things but in the end just wasted a lot of time investigating a stain on a dress. If that ends up happening again I will be horrified, if on the other hand we get actual reform and change then good luck to them.
  • DLS
    The most telling consequence is that Scozzafava now endorses the Democrat.

    To what extent this is disgusting RINO behavior, Never Question Big Government Precepts [tm], and to what extent it's sour grapes, or simply a robotic worship of the Duopoly (i.e, favoring either major party and the Establishment formed by these two parties, over any "outsider"), remains an open, even intriguing (albeit also disgusting), question.
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