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Virginia Notebook: GOP Fights Over Its 'Roots'
http://voices.washingtonpost.com ^ | March 18, 2009 | By Tim Craig

Posted on 03/19/2009 6:49:33 PM PDT by Maelstorm

...On Friday, the five Republican U.S. representatives from Virginia called on Frederick to resign, saying "it is the sentiment of the grass-roots membership of the party to move in another direction."

In mounting his defense to the criticism that he mismanaged the party and is incompetent, Frederick used the same term.

"I make no apologies for standing against these efforts to remove me or the changes I've made within our party to give greater authority and input to the grass roots," Frederick wrote in a letter to GOP activists this week.

A year ago, Frederick did create a grass-roots uprising to topple former lieutenant governor John H. Hager, a moderate, as chairman of the state party.

After a three-month campaign, Frederick mobilized several thousand conservative GOP activists to show up at the convention to support him for a four-year term as chairman.

Many GOP leaders now say Frederick has been a failure. In an effort to remove him before his term ends, they have made 10 allegations against him centering on his management style and whether he diverted party business to a company he owns.

But much of the angst over Frederick revolves around his personality, and his having become an easy target for Democrats.

"Its an abysmal situation," said Mike Wade, chairman of the 3rd Congressional District Republican Committee.

It would be an oversimplification to call efforts to oust Frederick a battle between the party's conservatives and moderates.

But it is shaping up to be a contest between pragmatic conservatives who want to reach out to moderates and those who want to stick with their core beliefs on social issues.

...

(Excerpt) Read more at voices.washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: Extended News; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: Virginia
KEYWORDS: cantor; conservatives; frederick; moderates; vagop; versus
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"To be successful, leading Virginia Republicans such as Rep. Eric I. Cantor have said, the state party needs to start reaching moderate suburban Republicans as well as the state's business community, two constituencies that have shown a surprising openness to Democratic candidates in recent years."

It all finally comes out. I'm surprised at Eric. So he is planning to lead us to compassionate conservatism II? He keeps disappointing and this latest bit of opportunism on his part to overturn our elected Chairman isn't helping.

1 posted on 03/19/2009 6:49:33 PM PDT by Maelstorm
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To: Maelstorm

Rep. Eric I. Cantor is a Vichey Republican.


2 posted on 03/19/2009 6:53:50 PM PDT by SoConPubbie (GOP: If you reward bad behavior all you get is more bad behavior.)
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To: Maelstorm

Conservatives are always obliged to cater to moderates never the other way around. The race for governor is lost. He can’t unite the party. That is his job not ours.


3 posted on 03/19/2009 6:56:38 PM PDT by AHWilde
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To: SoConPubbie

His wife is a democrat.


4 posted on 03/19/2009 7:07:35 PM PDT by Bainbridge
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To: Bainbridge
“His wife is a democrat.”

Cross contamination!!

5 posted on 03/19/2009 7:19:10 PM PDT by Cheetahcat (Osamabama the Wright kind of Racist!)
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To: Bainbridge

Ettu, Mr. Cantor?

Virginia is a microcosm of what we can expect from the mainstream/moderate/country-club/blue-blood Republicans across the country. They want Conservatives to AGREE with them or at least shut up and support them — or get out of the Republican party...


6 posted on 03/19/2009 7:28:16 PM PDT by patriot preacher (To be a good American Citizen and a Christian IS NOT a contradiction. (www.mygration.blogspot.com))
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To: Maelstorm

And yet, no mention of how people like Frank Wolf along with Jim Rich have been destroying the party for years. No mention how Bob McDonnell stabbed the conservatives that got him his win in the back over the “Restaurant Ban”.

You want to know how these “moderates” work? Look at what they did to Mr. Mark Tate. They knew they couldn’t beat him in the primary so they had bogus felony charges filed against him so that the “moderate” candidate won the primary by default.

These examples of “Republicans” disgusts me and they offend me. Never, have I seen them putting out yard signs or doing door to door drives. I’ve never seen them lift a finger to make a grass roots effort. People like me however have been assaulted, threatened and worse. One of our conservative grass roots volunteers got HIT BY A CAR!!! (yes, it was a hit and run.)

All of us who do the hard work are leaving the party. I ask, who is going to get their hands dirty putting up signs and spending their free time out getting votes?

As long as this keeps up, I will turn my back to the Republican Party. I no longer vote the lesser of two evils. I’ll sit a particular race out and under vote on the ballot. The Republicans better understand that we aren’t coming back.

Mike


7 posted on 03/19/2009 7:43:05 PM PDT by BCR #226 (07/02 SOT www.extremefirepower.com...The BS stops when the hammer drops.)
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To: BCR #226
As long as conservatives lose battles with rank-and-file Republicans and elected office holders on policy and politics, there is little hope of general election success. The conservative faction of the party needs (1) to find an articulate and attractive spokesman, and (2) to have wanna-be office holders via the Republican line earn the endorsement of Conservatives. Republican office holders who in key votes side against conservative principals, e.g., TARP I, impeachment for perjury, need to be ousted in primaries and have funds denied in the general. Conservative Republicans are treated like African-American Democrats, both of whom lock-step vote the party line but never reap the benefits. Campaign promises to lower taxes and eliminate federal agencies like Education followed by key votes to the contrary need to be followed up with vigorous opposition in the very next primary election. When the country-club Republicans fail to get in office and the victorious Democrats over-reach with socialist solutions to the country's problems, the Conservatives will have a ready and willing voting block. Unfortunately, such a process has taken years and leaves deep scars such as the foreign policy consequences of President Carter and the feckless approach to Vietnam by the Johnson Administration.
8 posted on 03/19/2009 8:38:21 PM PDT by sefarkas (Why vote Democrat Lite?)
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To: BCR #226

Man I feel the same way. I don’t think those who are engineering this coup will find the result they seek. I was just contacted tonight by the McDonnell campaign and I was planning to work for his election but I wrote back that his involvement in this thing with Jeff has made that less likely. I’ll vote for Bill Bolling but I’ll not work for the party at all if they succeed in removing Jeff on such petty grounds. I’d rather see a another Democrat elected given how much they liked Mark Warner they can have another.


9 posted on 03/19/2009 9:36:10 PM PDT by Maelstorm
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To: AHWilde

The race isn’t lost but it could be if he continues to step into this. If Jeff is removed then it is going to be really hard to unite the party. I think this whole thing is disgraceful. Democrats have better sense.


10 posted on 03/19/2009 10:54:42 PM PDT by Maelstorm ("No bill of attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed.")
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To: SoConPubbie

I thought according to the ACU he was one of the most conservative guys in the House.


11 posted on 03/19/2009 11:02:47 PM PDT by princeofdarkness ("Obama Lied. Liberty, Morality, and Prosperity Died.")
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To: Maelstorm; BCR #226; EDINVA; iceskater; xyz123; Corin Stormhands; jla; Flora McDonald; ...

Virginia ping.

I’ve been the good Virginia GOP soldier for years, defending their stupidity. But no longer.

Quite frankly, in this mess, I want them ALL to go.

But the nail in the coffin was Eric Cantor’s insane vote yesterday. I’m done.


12 posted on 03/20/2009 5:52:21 AM PDT by Corin Stormhands ("Failed Obama Administration" (TM))
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To: Bainbridge
His wife is a democrat.

? How do you come up with that one?

13 posted on 03/20/2009 5:53:29 AM PDT by Corin Stormhands ("Failed Obama Administration" (TM))
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To: Corin Stormhands

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/10/AR2008121003751_pf.html,

read it.


14 posted on 03/20/2009 6:16:24 AM PDT by Bainbridge
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To: Bainbridge

Yeah, I did some digging and found that.

I don’t think I’ve been living under a rock, but I’ve not seen it as a (major) issue before in his campaigns.


15 posted on 03/20/2009 6:23:20 AM PDT by Corin Stormhands ("Failed Obama Administration" (TM))
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To: Corin Stormhands

I was done when the best “we” could do was John McCain. I’m with you Corin; we need a wholesale housecleaning.


16 posted on 03/20/2009 6:29:43 AM PDT by P8riot (I carry a gun because I can't carry a cop.)
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To: Bainbridge

His current wife’s a Dem? Is this the lady who started the Virginia 529 College Savings Plan in VA? (If Cantor was previously married, or not, I’m not aware of it)


17 posted on 03/20/2009 6:30:39 AM PDT by jla
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To: Corin Stormhands

Randy Forbes (my current rep) also voted for it. Are you buying Limbaugh’s explanation as to why these two, and other Rs/conservatives, did likewise?


18 posted on 03/20/2009 6:31:51 AM PDT by jla
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To: Corin Stormhands

Well, I always have a problem when it comes
down to major issues (abortion and “gay marriage”)
and a disconnect between a husband and wife.
It is obviously not a make or break thing for him.
Not good.


19 posted on 03/20/2009 6:33:12 AM PDT by Bainbridge
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To: Bainbridge

I just seen your link at post 14


20 posted on 03/20/2009 6:33:27 AM PDT by jla
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