Posted on 10/14/2010 8:10:08 AM PDT by taildragger
If your family has held onto a congressional seat for over 75 years, if you were first elected when a veteran of the Civil War was still alive, if you are the longest serving member of the House of Representatives in history, one might say your power is pretty well entrenched.
But for Rep. John Dingell, 84, that death grip on power may be slipping.
In a recent poll, Dingell was down four points to his Republican challenger Rob Steele, a doctor who has never run for political office before. Steele said his patients often tell him they think it’s time Dingell retire after a (very) long, good run.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailycaller.com ...
One incident earlier this year is illustrative. When the local Chamber of Commerce scheduled Steele to deliver a speech on Obamacare, the event was nearly canceled for fear of Dingell’s wrath.
“Almost as soon as the publicity went out, I started getting calls from my sponsor and my members, objecting to this,” said Sandy Mull, president of the South Wayne County Regional Chamber. The anxious members were afraid of crossing Dingell. “It was, ‘with everything that he’s done for us, this is really an insult, and we should not offend him in this way.’”
In a May 13 e-mail, Mull told several top officials from the Chamber, “Just a heads up. I had a call from Ryan Werder in Congressman Dingell’s office, and they aren’t a bit happy about our choice of speakers for the 24th. He said we could have found someone without so much ‘baggage’ to speak on the subject. I also had a voicemail from [former Dingell staffer] Jeff Donofrio this afternoon. I haven’t had a chance to call him back, but I can imagine what he’s calling about.”
In an interview Wednesday, Mull recalled the conversation with Werder. “He said, ‘well, you know, the Congressman is disappointed that the Chamber is having Dr. Steele speak,’” Mull said.
Others were told the overtures from Dingell’s office were more threatening, especially to businesses in the district. Randy Hicks, a member of the Chamber’s legislative committee, said he was told Dingell’s office said the Chamber’s relationship would be “damaged” if it permitted Steele to speak.
Concerned, Mull took a notice announcing the event off of the Chamber’s web site.
Days later, the Chamber’s executive committee met over the issue. The speech was “very close to being canceled. It was hotly debated,” Jeff Jones, the Chamber’s chairman told The Daily Caller. The committee hashed the issue out with “vigorous discussion for close to an hour.” Ultimately, the committee voted to let Steele speak.
Mull now says the incident was much ado about nothing. “Somehow it’s being really, really blown out of proportion – and I do believe that is politically motivated,” she said.
It appears, though, that fear of Dingell’s wrath may still be driving events. In a voicemail obtained by TheDC, another Chamber member, Dave Hamilton, said on Monday that Mull was still sensitive about the issue. “She was a little bit fearful about bringing this up…she didn’t want to have any repercussions coming from Dingell’s side,” Hamilton said.
Mull said Wednesday, “nobody was afraid of Dingell! They didn’t want to offend him.”
his much is uncontested: Steele, an expert on health care, was scheduled to speak at a local Chamber of Commerce event on the president’s health care law, roughly a month after Dingell addressed the group on the same topic. Businesses in the district, members of the Chamber, expressed alarm at offending Dingell. A Dingell aide told the Chamber the congressman was upset. The Chamber nearly canceled the event. The Chamber’s executive committee ensured it went on.
For Steele, who is now in the heat of his campaign, the incident is emblematic of a worrying trend in America, if less about Dingell’s character.
“This was not an isolated incident in terms of the posture of people is clearly they are fearful of the government and their representative, and that’s of course the posture of tyranny, instead of the posture of liberty, where the government fears the people. That’s the classic Jefferson quote, where there’s tyranny, the people fear the government, where there’s liberty, the government fears the people,” Steele said in an interview Wednesday.
“I wouldn’t want to be responding in reference to [Dingell’s] character personally,” he said, but “I can’t tell you how many times I talk to people who believe what I’m doing, they know me well, they’re entrepreneurs, they’re successful business people, and they don’t want to give me money, because they don’t want their name on the report, because they’re afraid of their government.”
A spokeswoman for Dingell did not return a call for comment.
Yet another poster child for term limits.
I like the term “death grip”. Has anybody seen Dingell lately? You need a mirror up next to his mouth to see if he is still breathing.
Yes, 1 term for the Senate, and send that back to the States not by popular vote. Add to that only 4 years for the House and leave the Prez @ 8.
http://robsteeleforcongress.com/steele-leading-dingell
I am praying for an electoral nuclear winter for Democrats on November 2nd.
It takes a long time to get the organization in place so that you can control the people.
Waxman and Pelosi have already booted Dingell to the curb (loss of chairmanship).
Dude!! It would be so great, and also good for the Republic,to see this guy tossed out.
Waxman...AKA Nostrils. There’s one guy who I wont miss chairing a committee.
As a Michigander, thanx.
Oh BTW... Go here to see what I think Sarah is up too...
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2605574/posts?page=13#13
She is brilliant, IMHO is is running and MI is key ot the victory (electorially) . She is playing 3 level chess and no one see's it
Almost 4 years ago here someone posted a thread about her winning and about 20 something of us posted. I'd like to find it, cause I said something like, lets keep an eye on her, she is running mate material for the future :-)...
The ballot box is not a sure thing. Look at the Kennedy’s, Byrd’s, Rangle’s of the world. Sheeple vote for them by rote. They never leave office once in. No, term limits is the only sure way to rid the Hill, and ourselves, of these types that make careers at the public trough.
This type of thinking is what defines "sheeple". Pathetic.
John Dingell, poster child for term limits...
I will be celebrating wildly if these two loose !!!!
Gotta show the Godfather his proper respect...
No, term limits is the only sure way to rid the Hill, and ourselves, of these types that make careers at the public trough.
They gave us the ultimate tool, the ballot box. Going through this effort to change the rules is a waste of time.
Please Michigan, elect Dr. Steele!
Add one to that-—Daniel Webster to beat the evil Alan Grayson, my choice for the most odious Congressman.
Yes indeed. And there are just as many on the Pubbie side.
O'Donnell in DE would be great too, just to show the RINO's "can you hear me now?" !!!!
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