Showing posts with label tea party. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tea party. Show all posts
Sen. Bennett Loses GOP Nomination: And so it Begins
From Politico:
Sen. Robert Bennett lost his party’s nomination during the second round of voting at the GOP state convention Saturday, making the three-term Senator the first incumbent to fall in this volatile midterm election cycle.
Bennett finished in third place in the crucial second-round vote, garnering just 26 percent of the delegates’ support, well behind Tea Party-backed attorney Mike Lee and businessman Tim Bridgewater, who will advance to the June 22nd primary.
“The political atmosphere obviously has been toxic and it’s very clear that some of the votes I have cast have added to the toxic environment,” Bennett acknowledged in a brief media availability with reporters shortly after he was eliminated in the second round of voting.
“Looking back on them, with one or two very minor exceptions, I wouldn’t have cast any of them any differently, even if I had known at the time they were going to cost me my career,” he continued.
Bennett was dogged by his support for the Troubled Asset Relief Program and for co-sponsoring a healthcare bill with Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oreg.). To help make his case to the 3,452 delegates, he even tapped the star power of former
Massachusetts governor – and fellow Mormon – Mitt Romney to make a final pitch.
But in the end, the furor stirring at the grassroots level of the party over spending and the growth of government was too much for him to overcome.
Read more here.
Tea-Bagger
Though he aspires to promote civility, evidence has surfaced that President Obama has added "tea-bagger" to his public lexicon, though it's considered a cheap and tawdry insult by "tea party" activists. Watchdogs at Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) barked when they saw the proof, tucked in a sneak peak of Newsweek columnist Jonathan Alter's new book, "The Promise: President Obama, Year One," to be released May 18. Indeed, it appears the president joined certain partisan critics and the liberal media, and took the tea-bag plunge.
Mr. Alter wrote, "Obama said that the unanimous House vote against the Recovery Act 'set the tenor for the whole year': 'That helped to create the tea-baggers and empowered that whole wing of the Republican Party to where it now controls the agenda for the Republicans.'"
Mr. Alter wrote, "Obama said that the unanimous House vote against the Recovery Act 'set the tenor for the whole year': 'That helped to create the tea-baggers and empowered that whole wing of the Republican Party to where it now controls the agenda for the Republicans.'"
GEICO Voice Actor Fired After Insulting Tea Parties
Last week, the FreedomWorks press department received a voicemail from a man identifying himself as Lance Baxter. When he is not making creepy harassing calls to groups like FreedomWorks, he is the voice at the end of the Geico commercials. From the Washington Post:
Sometimes you have a headline that makes the rest of the story superfluous, but here's the background. Actor Lance Baxter, otherwise known as "D.C. Douglas," currently known as the man who informs you how much GEICO can save you on car insurance, left a message last month with FreedomWorks in which he asked the group how many "mentally retarded" people it had on staff and what it would do when a tea partyer "killed someone." On April 14, FreedomWorks put his voicemail online.
Click to Listen: Lance Baxter’s Voicemail
Click to Listen: Adam Brandon confirms the caller
Sometimes you have a headline that makes the rest of the story superfluous, but here's the background. Actor Lance Baxter, otherwise known as "D.C. Douglas," currently known as the man who informs you how much GEICO can save you on car insurance, left a message last month with FreedomWorks in which he asked the group how many "mentally retarded" people it had on staff and what it would do when a tea partyer "killed someone." On April 14, FreedomWorks put his voicemail online.
Click to Listen: Lance Baxter’s Voicemail
Click to Listen: Adam Brandon confirms the caller
Republican baffled by Tea Party endorsement of Democratic Rival
Interesting. Apparently the Tea Party's stance is/was, that they want to support Democrats willing to stand up to Reid and Pelosi, in order to encourage other Dems to do the same. Good point, but I disagree with that strategy. I say we should support the most conservative candidate, period.
When the Tea Party Express last week endorsed Idaho Rep. Walt Minnick — the only Democrat to receive the backing of the conservative grassroots group — one of his Republican challengers said he was simply baffled to learn the news, considering Minnick’s past votes that line up with Democrats on the estate tax and Guantanamo Bay.
“He voted for Nancy Pelosi. I mean all these things — I’m like, ‘Wait a minute. This is the guy you guys want to get behind nationally?’” said Republican Vaughn Ward, an active Marine Corps reserve officer whose candidacy for Minnick’s seat was endorsed by Sarah Palin.
His initial shock, Ward told The Daily Caller during an interview Tuesday, turned to frustration upon learning from Tea Party groups in Idaho — who he said have not endorsed candidates in the race yet — that the Tea Party Express didn’t consult them before the endorsement of the Democrat.
“My campaign manager e-mailed it to me the day it happened, and I thought, ‘Huh, that’s interesting.’ And I started making some phone calls around and found out that, one, they didn’t consult anyone in Idaho,” said Ward, who also faces primary competition from state Rep. Raul Labrador and three other Republican candidates.
The Republican added: “It’s almost like, ‘Did they really do a thorough job of investigating his voting record?’”
(Excerpt) Read more at dailycaller.com ...
When the Tea Party Express last week endorsed Idaho Rep. Walt Minnick — the only Democrat to receive the backing of the conservative grassroots group — one of his Republican challengers said he was simply baffled to learn the news, considering Minnick’s past votes that line up with Democrats on the estate tax and Guantanamo Bay.
“He voted for Nancy Pelosi. I mean all these things — I’m like, ‘Wait a minute. This is the guy you guys want to get behind nationally?’” said Republican Vaughn Ward, an active Marine Corps reserve officer whose candidacy for Minnick’s seat was endorsed by Sarah Palin.
His initial shock, Ward told The Daily Caller during an interview Tuesday, turned to frustration upon learning from Tea Party groups in Idaho — who he said have not endorsed candidates in the race yet — that the Tea Party Express didn’t consult them before the endorsement of the Democrat.
“My campaign manager e-mailed it to me the day it happened, and I thought, ‘Huh, that’s interesting.’ And I started making some phone calls around and found out that, one, they didn’t consult anyone in Idaho,” said Ward, who also faces primary competition from state Rep. Raul Labrador and three other Republican candidates.
The Republican added: “It’s almost like, ‘Did they really do a thorough job of investigating his voting record?’”
(Excerpt) Read more at dailycaller.com ...
Interesting Tea Party Poll Numbers
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of likely voters finds Obama with 42% support and Paul with 41% of the vote. Eleven percent (11%) prefer some other candidate, and six percent (6%) are undecided.
(...)
Obama earns 79% support from Democrats, but Paul gets just 66% of GOP votes. Voters not affiliated with either major party give Paul a 47% to 28% edge over the president.
(...)
Twenty-four percent (24%) of voters now consider themselves a part of the Tea Party movement, an eight-point increase from a month ago. Another 10% say they are not a part of the movement but have close friends or family members who are.
(...)
Twenty-six percent (26%) of GOP voters think Paul shares the values of most Republican voters throughout the nation, but 25% disagree. Forty-nine percent (49%) are not sure.
(...)
Sarah Palin, the former governor of Alaska and the GOP’s vice presidential nominee in 2008, is another Republican who has been bucking the party’s traditional leadership and was the keynote speaker at the recent Tea Party convention in Nashville. Fifty-nine percent (59%) of Republican voters say Palin shares the values of most GOP voters throughout the nation. Just 18% of Republicans see Palin as a divisive force within the GOP.
Rasmussen Reports released survey findings yesterday that take a closer look at the political views of those who say they’re part of the Tea Party movement. Among other things, 96% of those in the movement think America is overtaxed, and 94% trust the judgment of the American people more than that of America’s political leaders.
When it comes to major issues confronting the nation, 48% of voters now say the average Tea Party member is closer to their views than Obama is. Forty-four percent (44%) hold the opposite view and believe the president’s views are closer to their own.
Fifty-two percent (52%) believe the average member of the Tea Party movement has a better understanding of the issues facing America today than the average member of Congress. Thirty-five percent (35%) of voters now think Republicans and Democrats are so much alike that an entirely new political party is needed to represent the American people. Nearly half (47%) of voters disagree and say a new party is not needed
If the Tea Party was organized as a political party, 34% of voters would prefer a Democrat in a three-way congressional race. In that hypothetical match-up, the Republican gets 27% of the vote with the Tea Party hopeful in third at 21%. However, if only the Democrat or Republican had a real chance to win, most of the Tea Party supporters would vote for the Republican.
(...)
Obama earns 79% support from Democrats, but Paul gets just 66% of GOP votes. Voters not affiliated with either major party give Paul a 47% to 28% edge over the president.
(...)
Twenty-four percent (24%) of voters now consider themselves a part of the Tea Party movement, an eight-point increase from a month ago. Another 10% say they are not a part of the movement but have close friends or family members who are.
(...)
Twenty-six percent (26%) of GOP voters think Paul shares the values of most Republican voters throughout the nation, but 25% disagree. Forty-nine percent (49%) are not sure.
(...)
Sarah Palin, the former governor of Alaska and the GOP’s vice presidential nominee in 2008, is another Republican who has been bucking the party’s traditional leadership and was the keynote speaker at the recent Tea Party convention in Nashville. Fifty-nine percent (59%) of Republican voters say Palin shares the values of most GOP voters throughout the nation. Just 18% of Republicans see Palin as a divisive force within the GOP.
Rasmussen Reports released survey findings yesterday that take a closer look at the political views of those who say they’re part of the Tea Party movement. Among other things, 96% of those in the movement think America is overtaxed, and 94% trust the judgment of the American people more than that of America’s political leaders.
When it comes to major issues confronting the nation, 48% of voters now say the average Tea Party member is closer to their views than Obama is. Forty-four percent (44%) hold the opposite view and believe the president’s views are closer to their own.
Fifty-two percent (52%) believe the average member of the Tea Party movement has a better understanding of the issues facing America today than the average member of Congress. Thirty-five percent (35%) of voters now think Republicans and Democrats are so much alike that an entirely new political party is needed to represent the American people. Nearly half (47%) of voters disagree and say a new party is not needed
If the Tea Party was organized as a political party, 34% of voters would prefer a Democrat in a three-way congressional race. In that hypothetical match-up, the Republican gets 27% of the vote with the Tea Party hopeful in third at 21%. However, if only the Democrat or Republican had a real chance to win, most of the Tea Party supporters would vote for the Republican.
Newly Formed ‘Federation’ of Tea Party and Grassroots Groups Announced
In an effort to build its credibility and influence nationwide, the tea party movement on Thursday announced the formation of a "federation" of tea party groups.
Mark Shroder, a member of the Memphis Tea Party, told a crowd of roughly 200 conservative activists gathered outside the state capitol that 21 factions of the movement will form the National Federation Tea Party. Shroder said the federation will act as a "rapid response" to "misinformation" allegedly put forth by the "mainstream media."
Read more at liveshots.blogs.foxnews.com ...
Mark Shroder, a member of the Memphis Tea Party, told a crowd of roughly 200 conservative activists gathered outside the state capitol that 21 factions of the movement will form the National Federation Tea Party. Shroder said the federation will act as a "rapid response" to "misinformation" allegedly put forth by the "mainstream media."
Read more at liveshots.blogs.foxnews.com ...
