Christine O’Donnell

The Tea Party Republican Influence In The US Senate Grows, Even With Jim DeMint Leaving For Heritage Foundation

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South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint, the creator of the Tea Party Caucus in the US Senate, and one of the most right wing, reactionary members of the upper chamber, is resigning to head the ultra conservative Heritage Foundation for about ten times his Senate salary, and to continue to work to purge the Senate Republicans of anyone moderate, or willing to compromise with Democrats or President Barack Obama.

The members of the Senate Republican minority considered to be Tea Party oriented include:

Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky
Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin
Senator Mike Lee of Utah
Senator Marco Rubio of Florida
Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania

Also, new Senators joining the group include:

Senator Jeff Flake of Arizona
Senator Deb Fischer of Nebraska
Senator Ted Cruz of Texas

The Tea Party Senate Republicans failed to elect the following to the Senate:

2010
Christine ODonnell of Delaware
Sharron Angle of Nevada
Ken Buck Of Colorado
Joe Miller of Alaska

2012
Todd Akin of Missouri
Richard Mourdock of Indiana
Josh Mandel of Ohio

One could say, therefore, that there are now EIGHT Senators in the group, with SEVEN others being successfully defeated in the past two Senate election periods.

One more is likely to be added, when South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley appoints someone to replace DeMint, until the next Senate elections in 2014, with a tremendous edge for that individual to keep the seat.

Potential candidates for the replacement include:

Nikki Haley herself, who has national ambitions to run for President
Congressman Tim Scott, the only black Republican, and similar to Allen West in his views and attitudes
Congressman Joe Wilson, who infamously said Barack Obama was lying in his first State of the Union address

Many might say that the Tea Party is in decline, but in reality, it is far from dead, and there are still a large number of Tea Party Republicans in the House of Representatives, making life difficult for House Speaker John Boehner.

And one can be sure that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell will be having more sleepless nights, more so with DeMint able to work to make the Republican Party ever more right wing in his position as the head of the Heritage Foundation!

Any thought that the Republican Party might move toward the center of the political spectrum seems highly unlikely after this event of DeMint’s move out of the Senate!

Wing Nuts Of 2010, And Now Of 2012–Lost Republican Opportunities In The Senate Then, And Possibly, Now!

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The Republican Party is infamous for running wing nuts for the Senate, and as a result, lost the chance for control of the US Senate in 2010.

They ran such characters as Christine O’Donnell in Delaware; Ken Buck in Colorado; Sharron Angle in Nevada; and Joe Miller in Alaska.

The first three were so whacky that the Democrats held on to the seats, and kept control of the Senate, with Harry Reid of Nevada remaining Senate Majority Leader. Lisa Murkowski won a miraculous victory in Alaska over Tea Party favored Joe Miller, keeping that seat sane and sensible, while Republican.

At the same time, Rand Paul and Mike Lee won in Kentucky and Utah, respectively, and Marco Rubio was also backed by the Tea Party, and now Paul and Rubio are likely leaders of the party in the near future, no matter how right wing they are!

Now we have in 2012 the following: Ted Cruz in Texas, backed by the Tea Party and likely to win a Senate seat; Debbie Fischer in Nebraska, who faces former Democratic Senator and Presidential seeker Bob Kerrey, who faces a tough battle; Richard Murdock, who defeated respectable conservative Richard Lugar in Indiana; and now, Todd Akin, challenging Senator Claire McCaskell in Missouri.

With the likelihood of Cruz, Fischer, and Murdock victories for the Tea Party and the right wing of the social conservatives, the only thing that may stop GOP control of the US Senate is the Todd Akin controversy, but in theory, Akin could win that race too, and with only three or four seats gain needed to win control of the Senate for the Republicans, the future makeup of the Senate is disturbing!

It should be pointed out that the Texas and Indiana seats coming up for election are already GOP seats, so only Nebraska and maybe Missouri would be gains for the Tea Party element as things stand now! But going from Kay Bailey Hutchison and Richard Lugar to Ted Cruz and Richard Murdock is a major step backward toward further deadlock, confrontation, and paralysis in a Senate already with a terrible reputation

Michele Bachmann, Christine O’Donnell, And Unemployment Compensation!

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We now have more people out of work than at any time in American history, over 15 million, with many millions out of work for more than six months.

Unemployment compensation was created during the New Deal of Franklin D. Roosevelt to help unemployed people stay afloat during what is the greatest crisis in a person’s life, other than divorce or death in the family!

We all are paying for this entitlement through our taxes, and it is NOT a handout or a welfare giveaway, as many Republicans and conservative talk show hosts claim! 🙁

To say that one wishes to take unemployment compensation and not look for work is an outrage, as everyone knows it is a TEMPORARY assistance, nothing more! 🙁

And yet, we have Republicans in Congress calling for the end of unemployment compensation as a right for those losing their jobs through no fault of their own! 🙁

As examples of this hardhearted attitude, we have Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, and Senate candidate and loser Christine O’Donnell of Delaware! 🙁

Bachmann, already well known as one of the most controversial and divisive members of the House of Representatives, complained that the new tax bill will allow extension of unemployment compensation beyond the 99 week maximum for another 13 months. But the problem is that she is totally wrong, as the legislation does no such thing, but just simply allows the present unemployment compensation system to be funded for 13 more months! Bachmann is totally misinformed, as well as mean spirited, both characteristics nothing new for her! 🙁

But in a way, Christine O’Donnell, who lost the Senate race to Chris Coons in Delaware, is even worse in her reaction to the issue of unemployment compensation!

This woman, who proved her total incompetence to be a United States Senator during the campaign, complained about the tax bill because it allowed an extension of unemployment compensation to those out of work, wanting it to end completely! But this woman has NEVER held a regular work position, and has lived off running multiple campaigns for public office, inappropriately using campaign funds to pay her rent, to eat out at restaurants, go bowling, etc! 🙁

What a nerve that a woman who has no real work experience, has proved to be both extremely lazy and stupid, and has been corruptly living off campaign funds, should express a view that unemployed people should not have a safety net that has existed since the 1930s!   To top it off, she compared the “tragedy” of unemployment compensation to the death of Elizabeth Edwards and to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor! 🙁

Both these women just are further evidence of how out of touch with reality, and how lacking in concern, is the state of the Republican Party in 2010! 🙁

Arrogance Of GOP Toward Media Should Lead To Public Repudiation! :(

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During the recent Congressional campaign, many Republican candidates took a hostile, antagonistic attitude toward the news media, refusing to be interviewed by or answer questions, except from “friendly” media.

This included Senate candidates Joe Miller in Alaska, Christine O’Donnell in Delaware, and Sharron Angle in Nevada. Notice that all of these candidates lost, and the American people should continue to defeat any candidate who is such a prima donna that he or she refuses to face the challenge of news media they do not like! 🙁

This refers to Newt Gingrich and Sarah Palin, both of whom have just made clear that they will not deal with liberal media sources, even though Barack Obama has had to deal with right wing media on a regular basis, despite their irresponsible and reckless manipulation of the news and of the truth! 🙁

As President, anyone has to deal with any challenge that comes his or her way, and if they are afraid or unwilling to deal with news media they do not like, then it indicates that they are not qualified to lead this great nation into an uncertain future!

Reality: Tea Party Movement Caused Loss Of Senate Majority To Republicans!

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The Tea Party scored some major victories on Election Day, taking a substantial number of seats in the House of Representatives, making the job of Speaker Designate John Boehner of Ohio all the more difficult to accomplish anything over the next two years!

But in the Senate, the Tea Party Movement actually caused the loss of what could have been a GOP majority!

Tea Party candidates Christine O’Donnell of Delaware, Sharron Angle of Nevada, and Ken Buck of Colorado came across as unqualified and loony, and therefore lost those states which could have gone to the GOP if mainstream candidates Mike Castle, Sue Lowden, and Jane Norton had been the Republican nominees!

So these candidates, along with other Tea Party favorites Linda McMahon of Connecticut and John Raese of West Virginia, in effect, caused the loss of a Republican majority in the Senate!

And Joe Miller, by his arrogance and weird stands and statements, also allowed for the possibility of incumbent Senator Lisa Murkowski to win a Write In victory in Alaska, declaring opposition to Sarah Palin and the Tea Party Movement, another slap at both!

The Tea Party will be more of a burden to the Republican Party than a blessing, and the “establishment” Republicans will soon be fully recognizing of that reality! 🙁

Political Leaders Who Lost In The Midterm Elections: A Blessing For The Nation! :)

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While there are those political leaders and candidates that can be mourned because they lost, there are also a list of candidates who were defeated, and this fact can be considered a blessing for the nation! All of them were either Tea Party supported or invested their own fortunes or were just simply incompetent and loony in various ways!

They include the following:

Linda McMahon, Senate nominee in Connecticut
Carl Paladino, Gubernatorial nominee in New York
Christine O’Donnell, Senate nominee in Delaware
Alvin Greene, Senate nominee in South Carolina
Carly Fiorina, Senate nominee in California
Meg Whitman, Gubernatorial nominee in California
Ken Buck, Senate nominee in Colorado
Tom Tancredo, Gubernatorial nominee in Colorado
Sharron Angle, Senate nominee in Nevada
Joe Miller, Senate nominee in Alaska, at this point a likely loser to Senator Lisa Murkowski, substantially ahead as a Write In candidate!

The losses of these ten listed above can be seen as the “silver lining” of an election that was not a wonderful moment for President Obama and his party!

Tea Party Republican “Thugs”: Supporters Of Rand Paul And Joe Miller! :(

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A disturbing trend is developing around Tea Party candidates, who have supporters and employees who are roughing up people who show up in opposition to their candidates, or are news journalists who want to ask questions of the candidate! 🙁

This has happened in the past week in the Rand Paul and Joe Miller campaigns!

A Rand Paul aide attacked, roughed up, and stepped on a woman holding a sign critical of Paul at the site of the debate in Kentucky yesterday between Paul and his Democratic opponent, Jack Conway. Paul has refused so far to come out and apologize in person, although he has issued statements of regret. Instead, he should be firing the aide for what he did! 🙁

A news reporter in Alaska was mishandled and handcuffed by private security guards employed by Joe Miller, and no apology or explanation has been offered! 🙁

Both Rand Paul and Joe Miller have been intolerant toward anyone who opposes their candidacies, and that attitude has spread to their supporters and employees, leading to these examples of reprehensible behavior!

Additionally, other candidates, such as Sharron Angle, Ken Buck, and Christine O’Donnell have evaded reporters and refused to answer questions, and some have rejected debates because of anger at criticism in the press.

This kind of arrogance, resentment, and abusive actions cannot be tolerated, and it demonstrates that the Tea Party Movement has elements in its candidates that make them unacceptable to hold high office in the Senate, so hopefully these characters will be defeated next week.

The dignity of the Senate is at stake, and it is obvious these Tea Party activists will be, if elected, “loose cannons”, who Republican leaders will come to regret, as they will not be willing to conform to the rules of the Senate, and have the potential to be a nightmare to the GOP! 🙁

Christine O’Donnell Makes Sharron Angle And Sarah Palin Look Brilliant, Which They Certainly Are Not!

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We are in the age of Republican women politicians who come across as ill informed, ignorant, and unqualified for public office!

First, we had Sarah Palin, who has a great following, but has not yet demonstrated any knowledge or talents to be considering the Presidency, and yet flirts with it, the fault of Senator John McCain, who had the temerity to pick such an unqualified woman to run for Vice President! She is the gift that keeps on giving, and she is a nightmare to the future of the GOP, which she is now threatening will implode if they don’t follow the Tea Party Movement! 🙁

Then, we have Senate nominee Sharron Angle in Nevada, who has been absolutely outrageous in her statements and viewpoints, and manages to put her foot in her mouth every time she speaks!

But then we have Delaware Senate nominee Christine O’Donnell, who actually manages to make Palin and Angle look like comparative geniuses, with her constant evidence of pure stupidity and moronic statements!

Today, in a debate with her opponent, Democrat Chris Coons, before law professors and law students, O’Donnell seemed surprised to hear that separation of church and state was part of the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights!

She also expressed the idea that we needed to close American borders completely to deal with the illegal immigration problem, an extremely radical solution that just about no one else has suggested, and would put us in a position similar to the old East Germany, which sealed its border in 1961, with the building of the Berlin Wall, an approach also suggested in the past day by Alaska Senate nominee Joe Miller–another truly disastrous nominee!

It will not be soon enough for Christine O’Donnell, a three time candidate for the Senate, who has proved to be the absolutely dumbest nominee this year, to leave the news front pages with a sound defeat of her candidacy on Election Day two weeks from now! 🙁

Tea Party Outrages: More Evidence Of The Danger To The Reputation Of The US Senate! :(

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In the last week, and accelerating in the past weekend, we have seen outrageous statements and actions by several Tea Party Movement candidates for the Senate, proving that they are loons who should not be given the dignity of being United States Senators! 🙁

Ken Buck of Colorado declared that gay people can be compared to alcoholics, which can be partly genetic but can be overcome by strong efforts to change, according to him!

Sharron Angle of Nevada said that many Hispanics can be seen as Asians, because she sees them as looking very similar!

Christine O’Donnell of Delaware said that she had evidence that China was an imminent threat to the United States, based on having traveled with a group to China in recent years!

Rand Paul of Kentucky refused to shake hands at the end of a debate with opponent Jack Conway, because Conway brought up that Paul was a member of a strange Christian sect in college that promoted women being tied up as part of a ritual!

Joe Miller of Alaska has “goons”, a privately employed security group, which detained, roughed up, and handcuffed a journalist for trying to ask Miller a question after a public appearance by the candidate! This brings back memories of Governor and Senator Huey Long of Louisiana who had a group of “brown shirts” in the 1930s, that made some compare him to Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler!

This is besides the reactionary, backward, anti democratic views that these men and women profess, which should, on its own, be enough to convince voters in their states that they would be undermining the image of their states if they were to award a six year stint in the Senate to these wing nuts! 🙁

And while the Senate certainly has its embarrassments in some of its members, the damage that could be done by the election of Tea Party candidates would be massive! 🙁

Christine O’Donnell In Debate: Another Sarah Palin! :(

Ronald 2 Comments

Christine O’Donnell, the GOP candidate for the Delaware Senate seat, debated her Democratic opponent, Chris Coons, yesterday, on a nationally televised debate on C Span and CNN!

What stood out about the debate was that O’Donnell was aggressive, interrupted Coons constantly, evaded the specific questions that were asked, came up with vague generalizations designed to promote “code words”, and showed her lack of knowledge of specific Supreme Court cases, a la Sarah Palin two years ago! 🙂

Coons made a point of saying that a lot of what O’Donnell was saying made no sense, had no relevance, and was just plain erroneous, but that the debate format made it impossible for him to refute much of what she said in a brief one or two minutes!

Coons acted like a gentleman, so that he could not be accused of “beating up” on a woman, similar to how Joe Biden handled Sarah Palin in the Vice Presidential debate two years ago!

The impression gained is that Coons showed more command of the subjects of the debate, but that O’Donnell might have gained a bit just by not doing a “Jan Brewer” type of total panic reaction, as occurred in the Arizona Governor debate a few weeks ago!

But polls indicate that Coons is far ahead of O’Donnell, and it seems doubtful that a majority of Delaware voters will be swayed to back a candidate seen by many as not qualified to serve in the Senate!