Kean steps to forefront of president's GOP critics

"Red" Star Ledger ^ | 09.10.06 | DEBORAH HOWLETT

[Clemenza]

Robert Menendez is my neighbor (literally).

No way in hell I would vote for him.

[Wuli]

I will vote against Kean, I will not vote for him, no matter what.

We in New Jersey, will have to wait at least one more cycle to try to get a real Republican Senator. The RINOs in our state need to be taught a lesson.

[davidosborne]

excuse my ignorance.. but are we talking about a primary or a general election?

[Coleus]

General Election for this November. Our primary was last June where John Ginty ran against Kean and garnered 44,000 votes in just 6 weeks of campaigning nights and weekends.

[davidosborne]

hmmmmm... well in that case I must suggest that since this debate is about a GENERAL election that all conservatives should rally behind the Republican..... 2006 is going to ALL ABOUT NUMBERS !!! As I have posted in a number of FLORIDA threads... it is IDEAL to only vote for a candidate that you SUPPORT.. but in some cases you need to vote for and consider the BIG PICTURE...

In todays modern political world it is no longer about "voting for the best candidate" regardless of party affiliation.... REAL Political POWER comes from the numbers period.. we, conservatives, that is, are so close to getting a REAL majority in this country.. it is so close we can almost taste it... then and only then will the world see America as truly conservative... I hate it when people say "Republicans have the majority in the U.S. Senate"... .this is NOT TRUE.... anyone who understands the U.S. Senate knows that it takes 60 SEATS to have a real majority... 59 is NOTHING....because it only takes 41 votes to effectively fillibuster, which the DEMs have used over and over and over again in the past 6 years...... If you really want to see something get done our NATIONAL CONSERVATIVE MOTTO going into NOVEMBER needs to be on the big picture.... SIXTY in 06' ... in addition the number of Republican Govs vs Democrat Govs also has huge national political influence and power.... We must not allow New Jersey to give the Dems a Senate seat....

[JohnnyZ]

it is IDEAL to only vote for a candidate that you SUPPORT

"Ideal" doesn't even enter the picture here. This is about voting for -- or not voting for -- a candidate based on whether he is minimally acceptable.

You seem to advocate voting for anyone with an R after their name. I would not.

Hell, I could see Kean joining a Democrat filibuster of a conservative Supreme Court nominee!

[davidosborne]

that may be true.. but the time to address that is in the PRIMARY !!!.... in the general election it is not longer a "state" issue, but rather a NATIONAL issue, as the balance of power is at stake... it really is about numbers in the U.S. Senate..... if we got 60 R's the pressure would be enormous on the 1 REPUBLICAN who breaks ranks to allow the threat of a filibuster to have any impact... with the filibuster threat out of the picture we only need 50 votes to get our agenda passed !!... the filibuster threat is the only power the LEFT has in the U.S. Senate.. and they use it very frequently and effectively and most of America is ignorant.. otherwise we not be hearing all this B.S. about the so called "republican majority" in the Senate.... so yes I AM suggesting that in a GENERAL ELECTION conservatives across the nation need to vote for the R --- even if the D is "more conservative"... the time has come that all conservative democrats need to quit giving the FAR LEFT any credibility and come join the GOP !!

[E.G.C.]

BTTT

[XRdsRev]

"Hell, I could see Kean joining a Democrat filibuster of a conservative Supreme Court nominee!"

I guess you don't realize that Kean was a big supporter of both Roberts and Alito. He would not filibuster a Conservative nomination.

And for the record, Kean supports the Patriot Act, Tax cuts and a whole host of other "Conservative" issues. He is far more in line with most Conservatives on illegal immigration than President Bush is.

All this stuff about Kean being a RINO like Chafee or Snow is total BS.

[Paradox]

I don't necessarily disagree with Kean on anything except the "horredous" mistakes. Why characterize it that way? The other stuff, I can see his point, but I still don't like the tone. No need for that, unless it is politically expedient, which it may be.

[Wuli]

I know, I'm a hypocrite, because I just cannot stand Tom Kean or his father - they both make me puke. I could make the excuse that we will not "lose" that seat, because it is not ours now. That's a weak excuse, so I'll just have to live with my hypocrisy, when it comes to some RINOs in the general election.

[F.J. Mitchell]

Kean had all the time in the world to complain and criticize Bush' handling of every thing he has ever done. Yet when asked for examples, (just the facts,Kean) his response was, "How much time do we have?"

However much time it takes, Kean; give us some specifics and while you are at it, tell us how you would have done things better?

[Antoninus]

I'm so glad I'm not voting for this worm. If you ask me, putting this guy in office would be worse than Menendez. It would be a setback for conservatives in NJ--we really would have no party representation at all in the state.

[Antoninus]

it is IDEAL to only vote for a candidate that you SUPPORT.. but in some cases you need to vote for and consider the BIG PICTURE...

I am looking at the big picture. The GOP doesn't need any more RINOs. We're becoming diluted enough as it is. We need to be expunging RINOs like Chafee, not creating new ones. Electing liberal Republicans, like Kean the Less, just ensures that we're going to eventually end up with two parties which agree on:

-> Abortion
-> Homo-marriage
-> Raising taxes
-> Amnesty for Illegals
-> Killing the 2nd Amendment

No thanks. I'm voting 3rd Party or write-in here in NJ. See tagline.

[no dems]

You know, the more I read about the likes of Tom Kean Jr. and Lincoln Chafee, it gives me a little solace; for this reason:

If the GOP does get their butts handed to them on November 7, I will take comfort in the fact that "we got what we deserved". "What goes around, comes around". "You reap what you sow". "Sleep with the dogs, end up with fleas". "If you're going to dance, someone has to pay the fiddler".

I'll stop there. Can't think of anymore appropriate addages at the moment. Just keep it up Mr. Kean and Mr. Chafee; remembering you will help comfort me on election night if need be.

[My2Cents]

A coward and an ass.

[My2Cents]

Between sips of hot water with lemon wedges

A scene right out of Joe Wilson's trip to Niger.

[davidosborne]

The big picture is 60 REPUBLICAN SEATS !.... The time to get rid of RINOS is in the PRIMARY.. this is NOT a difficult concept to grasp..

[Antoninus]

The big picture is 60 REPUBLICAN SEATS !.... The time to get rid of RINOS is in the PRIMARY.. this is NOT a difficult concept to grasp..

The big picture is 60 conservative seats. As we discovered with this "Gang of 14" nonsense, there are only about 43 dependable Republicans in the Senate. I will not help one bit to add a 15th member of McLame's clique.

[colorado tanker]

I'll be happy if he votes for a Republican Majority Leader and votes for Bush's judges. Way better than any Dem.