Posted on 06/23/2005 12:03:27 PM PDT by Tumbleweed_Connection
A liberal political organization backed by anti-Bush billionaire George Soros plans to spend $30 million to support Democrats in the 2006 election – and the group will focus heavily on the key state of Ohio.
America Coming Together (ACT), a 527 soft money group, has already raised $6 million since January.
The group is the core of the America Votes coalition, which has been called the "shadow Democratic Party,” and includes AFL-CIO, the Sierra Club and NARAL Pro-Choice America.
ACT raised nearly $80 million for the 2004 election. For 2006, the group’s money "will be spent on building relationships with swing voters and developing an infrastructure to mobilize Democratic-leaning voters on Election Day,” reports the publication The Hill, which says ACT is "anticipated to have a major impact on the midterm election.”
Dick Wadhams, chief of staff to Sen. George Allen, a Virginia Republican who is facing re-election near year, accused the America Votes coalition of hypocrisy.
"Almost every one of these groups self-righteously decries the influence of money in politics and says how there needs to be restrictions on campaign spending and they support restrictions on campaign spending and then raise unlimited amounts of money that are unaccounted for.”
ACT’s chief executive Steve Rosenthal said Ohio – where Republican Sen. Mike DeWine is facing re-election and the Republican governor is leaving office due to term limits – is "the center of the storm” for the organization’s activities.
"We had the largest [voter] turnouts we ever had in 2004,” said David Duffey, director of operations for the Ohio Democratic Party. "I assume a lot of that had to do with ACT.”
NewsMax.com reported earlier this month that the Soros-backed group and other liberal forces have made Ohio’s secretary of state, Ken Blackwell – who’s expected to run for governor next year – their No. 1 political target.
"The Democrats fear that Blackwell, a staunch conservative, will play a key role in winning Ohio for the Republican presidential ticket in 2008 – just as he did in 2004,” NewsMax disclosed.
They also worry that Blackwell could be a powerful addition to the GOP presidential ticket in 2008.
The left-wing Air America Radio blasted Blackwell in early June and urged listeners to support an organized effort to defeat him.
And ACT’s Rosenthal has called the 2006 Ohio governor’s race the most important in the nation.
"He’s the guy Republicans love for certifying Ohio’s 2004 vote for President Bush,” reports the website of U.S. News & World Report. "And he’s African-American and conservative. ‘With him as No. 2, it creates a dream ticket,’ said a GOP strategist."
How'd that work out for you in 2004 George?
The Socialists just keep working at it, don't they? Well now, the Supreme Court liberals are helping them...not a pretty picture.
Conservatives have plans of our own for 7 "Maverick" Republicans!
More waste of money..which is good, it will not help in this case. The only thing that will change America's mind about liberals is their message. WHich it won't, it can't, they are powerless, visionless and have no leaders with credibility.
That's right, George . . . just keep throwing your money away on lost causes.
Uh, wasn't he jsut doing his job? Are they suggesting he should have certified the election for the guy that got 120,000 votes less than the winner did?
i wouldn't be overly confident in ohio, after the tom noe mess.
1. Defeating DeWine
2. Raising conservative turnout to help Blackwell
Not bad.
Hey, if he keeps doing what he's doing, he'll always have what he's got.
You'd think that will all the money that Soros has lost recently betting against the dollar, that he be a little more careful with his money!
Why, because it has Taft in trouble? Eric Fingerhut is calling for Taft to resign. I second that. People in this state know that the current GOP leadership is worthless. That is why we WANT Blackwell.
His candidates lose in places like OH because people don't think those candidates represent them as well as their opponents. The candidates Soros backs either have ideas in conflict with moderate-to-conservative middle America voters, or the candidates have no ideas at all other than the failed policies of the past, and so find less than a majority of support among voters. Sure, you find pockets of supporters for Soros-backed candidates here and there, the cesspool of 'Rat-dominated areas like Cuyahoga Co. and other areas of Kucinich country and the like, but, statewide, those candidates generally lose.
OTOH, with the scandals enveloping the Taft Administration on an almost daily basis, it could be problematic. People may turn to a 'Rat candidate with some measure of appeal (especially if they can put on a "centrist" mask) just out of weariness from the Republican administration scandals. That would probably be a mistake in the long run, but I can see it happening.
Excuse me... what ever happened to campaign finance laws? Has anything been done about the loophole that allowed George Soros to almost buy the 2004 election?
i wish REALLY wish we had the facts in the noe situation. it just doesn't look good right now AT ALL....lots of names implicated and more to come, it seems. i hate to rush in and accuse him too early, but it just doesn't look good right now and i am sure the dems will jump in there, fanning the flames.
ugh. dems on national security. losers.
Didn't Hagan capaign on the anti corruption platform in Ohio? For the life of me, I can't see the logic of blindly voting the party ticket. Ohio ends up with people like Taft, Voinavich, et al. I can hear it now. At least Dewine isn't a democrat...
Thank-you John McCain of Mcain-Feingold.
Now, if the 'Rats could find a candidate who could have more credibility to such a claim, as well as getting some traction on the economic issues (apart from demagoguery), then they'd have a good chance of winning. Can Strickland be the one to lead them out of the wilderness? Time till tell.
Ping
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