PERSPECTIVE It's their party too (RINO blasts Christian conservatives)

http://www.nj.com/columns/ledger/auditor/index.ssf?/base/columns-0/1105253406196560.xml ^ | 1/9/05 | The Auditor

[Liz]

Former Gov. Christie Whitman's new book, "It's My Party Too" hasn't been released yet, but conservatives and Christian fundamentalists are enraged already, based on reviews and excerpts.

"It sounds as if the author of the book is a Michael Moore radical, not a former member of President Bush's Cabinet," fumed Gary Bauer, a conservative activist and former presidential candidate.

Rick Scarborough, a conservative Christian who is chairman of Vision America, wrote that Whitman's call to moderate GOP positions would be "political suicide" and that Whitman herself is a RINO (Republican in Name Only).

Whitman argues that the rise of "social fundamentalists" in the party drives away moderate voters and presents a threat to the party's success. That's a tough argument to make after the big GOP win in November.

"The conservatives' basic sentiment is 'Earth to Whitman: We won,'" says one New Jersey Republican leader.

[Liz]

".......'Earth to Whitman: We won,'" says one New Jersey Republican leader.

Whitman is so September 10, 2001. Too bad. She needs to study this map.

Conservative Christian voters made monumental contributions to GWB's vote totals. Pres Bush won with 63 Million Votes (13 million more than 2000).

According to CNN exit polls, Bush voters included 38% of union members, 40% of those with union members in their households, 42% of those earning $15,000-$30,000, 44% of those who earn under $50,000 and 44% of Latinos, 45% of youth (aged 18-29), 13% of liberals—even 11% of Democrats voted for Bush. The map, though impressive, conveys the misleading impression that blue state Catholics voted for Kerry.

According to EWTN "The World Over Live" analysts, with the exception of VA, where Catholics spit 70/30 in favor of Bush, the majority of Catholic voters split 55/45 for Bush.....a whopping number of votes since Catholics number about 52 million Americans. Democrats were considered the party of Catholics for generations from the days they stood on the dock registering European immigrants getting off the boat at Ellis Island.

If you look closely, the map appears to place the insignificant "Other Voters" in the ocean.....that's accurate, because "Other Voters---RINO Republicans" were on cruise ships.

(MAP UPDATE Bush won Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Iowa and New Mexico later.)

[sneakers]

bump

[Caipirabob]

"It's our party, too!"

Ah-hem!

The door works quite well. I suggest you try it, Christie.

[ovrtaxt]

Hey, Christie! How's it feel to be irrelevant?

[kingsurfer]

Any idea what religion is in the "Other" white section?

It is interesting to see the map. I had no idea about the amount of Catholics and Mormons there are.

[libs_kma]

I saw all I needed to see of this RINO at Arafats grave with peanut Jimmah

[Always Right]

There was a reason Whitmen was fired. Buah pur her in the EPA job thinking she was on the same page as him in that area, but she took a huge left turn and became a leftist whacko with her own agenda.

[OldFriend]

Perhaps Witless is preparing to go on tour with Michael Moore.

[EQAndyBuzz]

"Whitman argues that the rise of "social fundamentalists" in the party drives away moderate voters and presents a threat to the party's success. That's a tough argument to make after the big GOP win in November."

The win was big and I am grateful that we won so big. Understand Whitmans point. We won because our opponent was so far to the left that moderate Dems had no where else to turn but to the Republicans. Just like the big Reagan wins.

Take a different approach. Let's say an Evan Bahr or other moderate Dem runs in 2008. The liberals would still vote for that candidate, unless of course they put a third party candidate up. The Republicans put up another candidate farther to the right. The whole dynamic changes.

We are fortunate the left is so out of touch with America that they cannot tell the forest from the trees. Just remember, what happened to the far left can easily happen to the far right. Moderates now make up 30-40% of the voting population. A moderate candidate from either party.....

[Coldwater Creek]

Whitman has always been way to the left of center with her own agenda. I remember that a whole lot of conservatives were ready to run her for President before George Bush came along.

[jd777]

sure, but what happened to FISCAL CONSERVATISM...

[Always Right]

Whitman has always been way to the left of center with her own agenda. I remember that a whole lot of conservatives were ready to run her for President before George Bush came along.

Oh please, Whitman was never considered anything but a RINO by conservatives. She was trumped up by the media, but conservatives hated her from day 1. Most went into a hissy fit when she was appointed to head the EPA. I thought be OK, only because the EPA had no involvement in social issues where Whitman was most liberal in. But she out-RINOed herself and became a global warming extremist, pushing her agenda over Bush's.

[kittymyrib]

The map shows that more Catholics are loyal to the Democrat Party than to their church....sad.

[meenie]

Fiscal conservatism is in retreat along with the RINOS. Everybody knows that terrorism is the popular place to be on the political map. The more people become frightened the more they are willing to let the gubmint pick their pockets and take their liberty. Traffic deaths claim ten times the lives that terrorists have.

[almcbean]

Whitman must be right, for she "argues" and "calls" while those mean conservative Christians "fume" and are "enraged". Subtle , or maybe not so subtle, bias in this reporting.

[sevry]

The map shows that more Catholics are loyal to the Democrat Party

I noticed that overlap as well. But remember, the state of the institutional church is such that self-professed 'catholics' tend to be in name only - CINO.

And that tends to be rebellious, 'reformist' - that's right, liberal, and proud of it. I'm Catholic. I live in a blue county in a blue state. I voted for Bush, father and son, twice each. But then I'm not a 'reformed Catholic', like those around me. I'm Catholic, and am quite unwelcome at the local corner parish advertised as 'Catholic' in the local phone book.

Such are the times.

[jmaroneps37]

For those not from the northeast here's the story on christie. She is the jackass that threw away ten years of hard work by the New Jersey GOP when she appointed a moron who wanted "competitive elections" to come out of his redistricting plan. He must have thought he was running a junior high school intramural basketball league.
Now before of this puke whitman NJ will be a blue state for years to come and the rats will give us people like the torch and tinkle toes mcgreedy.

[Liz]

Stereotyping thosre "mean" Christians against a "tolerant and compssionate" RINO (sniffle).

[Liz]

She knows she's not going anywhere politically.

[bluebunny]

These liberal Republicans like Whitman have got it ALL wrong.
The vast majority of so-called moderates that don't vote Republican do this because of economic reasons not social issues. It's the whole party of the rich thing.

[JackDanielsOldNo7]

I do not mean to sound like an idiot. Someone explain why catholics vote liberal. I know a lot of rock solid conservative catholics. But they are few. I am a Baptist and there are liberal baptists also. I also feel that a "Christian" who is for abortion is no Christian. My opinion only. I do not make the final judgement. Take a baptist - Jimmy Turdball Carter. I do not see how he can claim to be a man of God but hold Democrat values so dearly.

[John O]

Take a different approach. Let's say an Evan Bahr or other moderate Dem runs in 2008. The liberals would still vote for that candidate,

I'm assuming you mean Evan Bayh of Indiana? We have the distinct advantage that any democrat moderate enough to win in the general elction cannot win in the dem primaries. The screaming liberals would never vote for bayh. (Thank God)

Until the feminists, gays, and envirowhackos lose all power in the dem party they will never fairly elect another president.

That's why we need positive photo id at all polling and registration places (with the photo used for registration being printed on the voter role).

Stamp out election fraud and we stamp out democrat politicians

[EQAndyBuzz]

"Stamp out election fraud and we stamp out democrat politicians."

You will on;y stamp out the power hungry, socialist loving, race baiting..... oh, never mind.

[Sloth]

The win was big and I am grateful that we won so big. Understand Whitmans point. We won because our opponent was so far to the left that moderate Dems had no where else to turn but to the Republicans. Just like the big Reagan wins.

I glean some different lessons:

#1) John Kerry, in spite of being the most liberal member of the U.S. Senate (by voting record), and several other disadvantages, almost won. He received the second-highest vote total in history. This means that candidates who are well to the left or right of middle CAN be competitive in national races.

#2) The leftist press will paint ANY Repub candidate as a hate-mongering rightwing ideologue. Face it, George Bush is a moderate, but the press portrays him as a cross between Adolf Hitler and Ebeneezer Scrooge. Look what happened to Schwarzenegger, who is actually a bit left of center, in CA. Thus, if we're going to nominate a candidate, it might as well be one who's really conservative, because no moderate is going to be given any credit or slack by the left.

[EQAndyBuzz]

"#2) The leftist press will paint ANY Repub candidate as a hate-mongering rightwing ideologue. Face it, George Bush is a moderate, but the press portrays him as a cross between Adolf Hitler and Ebeneezer Scrooge. Look what happened to Schwarzenegger, who is actually a bit left of center, in CA. Thus, if we're going to nominate a candidate, it might as well be one who's really conservative, because no moderate is going to be given any credit or slack by the left."

Fortunately, this is a fight that the Democrats have to have internally. We can only laugh at them and continue to field strong candidates with a high moral fiber.

I am a moderate and a personal friend of the Whitman family so I can be a bit biased. I may not agree with her, however I do see her point.

[NormsRevenge]

LOL.. people who buy this book also buy Gloria Allred books. ;-)

[Liz]

Dems used to be waiting on the docks to register the immigrants when the boats pulled in from Italy, Ireland, Germany, etc, way back when, then the ward heelers used to help the new citizens get settled. So their history with Catholics is long.

Later I believe as the culture changed, as abortion became legal, and so on, many Catholics had a lot invested in the party and stuck with it, hoping it would change.

[Liz]

Should we send her a "thank you" note now, or later (/sarc).