Posted on 09/08/2010 9:29:56 AM PDT by Qbert
As many of you know who read my blog, I am no fan of Senator John McCain. A man who has sold his principles one too many times to ingratiate himself with the beltway and media. But when it comes to Representative Mike Castle, he makes McCain look like another Jim DeMint.
Supporting the DISCLOSE Act, Cap and Trade, as well as being against the repeal of Obamacare does not spell out republican to me: He is a liberal.
I decided to look at Castle’s record in the House to see if he at least votes for republican issues 80% of the time, following Ronald Reagan’s golden rule. I find out, it’s worse.
According to the ACU (American Conservatives Union), Castle received a 28 out of 100 in 2008 for voting for conservative causes. Suddenly it piked in 2009, not by much. He received a 56. Slightly above half. And a lifetime rating of 52.49.
Contrast that to Senator McCain. At least McCain is trying to espouse some conservative bonafides 96 in 2009 and 63 in 2008, with a lifetime rating of 81.97. Lindsey Graham has an 88 rating in 2009, 82 in 2008, and a lifetime rating of 89.68.
I’m aware that we are talking about Delaware here, however, the mood in this country is for real conservative change, if Delaware can shake things up and get a real conservative in the race, why the heck won’t we support such a conservative woman as Christine O’Donnell in the race?
Republicans are in a volatile situation right now. The tea party and conservatives are attentive to what goes on in Washington. Obama has shaken voters to the core with the policies he has enacted. Not to mention, how the establishment republicans are treating conservatives who are a clear alternative to Obama and the liberals in the senate. Just look at what was done to Joe Miller, Rand Paul, Sarah Palin, and Marco Rubio to name a few. These people are stalwart conservatives, but ostracized by the establishment. Yet they made it out, thanks to grassroots support.
Delaware is no different. Now we see the state chairman of the Delaware GOP, who seems to be in the backpocket of Mike Castle, come out of the beltway closet to lambaste Christine O’Donnell:
State GOP chairman Tom Ross has dismissed O’Donnell as a perennial candidate unworthy of being elected dog catcher, and even some fellow conservatives have turned on her.
This is the kind of contempt we have to deal with, when it comes to the beltway elite.
If the republican party has a Mike Castle who will vote for dangerous liberal policies that will overtax, overregulate, and overgrow the size of government, you can bet in the future, the republican party is in trouble.
(Emphasis added)
The 28% is for a single year. Castle has a lifetime rating of 52.49% which means he is a 52% conservative, not a 28% conservative. Far better than having a 10% RAT as senator.
Uh oh... you’re in trouble now. Can’t use logic and reasoning in RINOville.
I say the same thing to MORONS who complain about Scott Brown.
I agree 100%. We all know that O'Donnell is the superior candidate for just about anyone who posts on this forum.
However, she's not the electable candidate in a Delaware general election. Rasmussen has her down 11 points to a horrible Democrat candidate in Coons.
RINO Castle defeats Coons handily because he represents that typical NE liberal RINO spirit of Brown and the Maine twins.
The best way for conservatives to pick off RINOs is to do it in places like Alaska and Utah where you have an electorate that will actually elect conservatives in the general. Let the RINOs vote put us in power and the conservatives steer the ship as we incrementally add more over the next two cycles.
| 2008 | Bailout$ | Auto$ | 2009 | Cap&Trade | FDA/Food | Healthcare | |||||
| Representative | HR1424 | District | HR7321 | District | Representative | HR2454 | District | HR2749 | District | HR3962 | District |
| Castle, Michael [R] | Yea | DE-0 | Aye | DE-0 | Castle, Michael [R] | Aye | DE-0 | Yea | DE-0 | No | DE-0 |
No matter how we vote, Delarware voters will be called idiots by the rest of the country anyway. Just look at that loon Biden we kept sending back to DC.
I’d rather being called idiotic short term, rather than for the next few years every time Sen. Castle voting against our wishes.
Everything you just wrote should be posted at the top of Free Republic.
“...Far better than having a 10% RAT as senator.”
I disagree. A (lengthy) rebuttal:
An example: in 2008, a lot of conservatives argued that one of the biggest strikes against Barack Obama (in addition to his ultraliberal voting record) was the fact that the guy was simply not ready to hold the highest office in the land. All the talk about him being a ‘community organizer’; a candidate with very little practical political experience; somebody with no executive experience, etc, was said for a reason. He simply wasn’t *ready to lead*. And looking at his disastrous poll numbers, this particular criticism was rather prescient, I would say...
Well, how do you know that we were being honest at the time about this claim, and that we weren’t just saying this because we were “partisans who would criticize Obama no matter what he did or said”? Because...we’re saying the exact same thing about the Republicans now.
I (and I know many others agree with me on this) am not convinced that the Republicans, especially in the Senate, are ready to lead. They played their cards right the last two years by presenting a basically unified front in opposing Obama’s far left agenda. But the reality is, they are going to have to present some serious leadership going forth. Most economists feel that the economy will be even worse in 2011 than it is now, and the leftists will hurl every possible insult at the GOP if they gain control. All the photos and articles about homeless people that have disappeared from the newspapers under the years of Democrat control will magically make their way back to the forefront...
The GOP will have to have the fortitude that a guy like Chris Christie (a blue stater at that, who woulda thunk?) for example has demonstrated in standing up to these people. I may not agree with him on all the issues- but I love his attitude and certainty. (”Mike Castle, you’re no Chris Cristie”...)
What is Mike Castle going to do to demonstrate the necessary leadership? For instance, Scott Brown made opposition to Obamacare one of his big issues- we understood when he ran that he wasn’t always going to vote with the right...but on this issue, he took a stand, and he was forthright about it. What is Mike Castle going to take a stand on in opposing Obama’s mess of an agenda? (And yeah, I know Christie endorsed Castle...but what is Castle going to do to demonstrate that he deserves this endorsement?)
What is Castle going to do besides ‘reaching across the aisle’, and confusing the public at large about what it means to be a Republican and Democrat? The voters want the Republican party of the mid-1990’s in Congress, and not the Republicans of the 2000’s.
**And finally...everybody want us to believe that a conservative-leaning politician can’t win in a liberal blue state, and won’t be popular. Then why did Christie win, and why have his approval numbers soared once in office?
Scott didn't have a conservative running against him-Castle does.
There is no reason to reward Castle for his terrible voting record in the Congress.
Amen to your post.
This is going to be a strong GOP year, even in Del.
There is no reason to accept Democrat-lite.
Agreed!
Thanks- great points you made, as well!
You are missing the entire point of what Barbour is stating:
Yes, Christie won. Yes, Christie is pro-life. BUT CHRISTIE DID EXACTLY WHAT BARBOUR IS SUGGESTING — he ran on fiscal issues and never once strayed from the message: limited government, economic liberty.
McDonnel in Virginia is also Pro-Life. BUT MCDONNEL DID EXATCLY WHAT BARBOUR IS SUGGESTING — he ran on fiscal issues and never once strayed from the message: limited government, economic liberty.
Finally, remember Ronald Reagan’s golden rule — never speak ill of a fellow republican.
Barack Obama 62%
John McCain 36%
Scott Brown is more conservative than Castle, and more liberal than O'Donnell. He is also an especially attractive candidate. If it was a Scott Brown running, then sure, give Castle the boot, because Brown would win in the General. But O'Donnell is no Scott Brown, and may well lose in November.
The Republicans have got to win with what we've got. In the Blue states, RINO-esque candidates will emerge. Castle in DE, Kirk in IL, Fiorina in CA. We deplore their RINO'ism, but for these States it is likely the best we are going to get. Running tea party heartthrobs makes sense in Red states like AZ, Alaska, Utah, but is suicidal in the Blue States.
“You are missing the entire point of what Barbour is stating...”
Hey, I think you meant to respond to somebody else...I didn’t write anything about Barbour. I fully support the message of “limited government, economic liberty.”
...”Finally, remember Ronald Reagan’s golden rule — never speak ill of a fellow republican.”
-They need to tell this to the Repubs who are slamming O’Donnell and making the “dog catcher” comments...
“...The Republicans have got to win with what we’ve got. In the Blue states, RINO-esque candidates will emerge. Castle in DE, Kirk in IL, Fiorina in CA.”
My general response to this is in comment 27 (apologize for the length, but it says everything I feel about this).
I have no problem getting behind Fiorina in CA for a number of reasons. I know that she won’t vote with the right all the time if elected. But I think she’s an intriguing candidate, and what she brings to the table with her business expertise (and fiscal conservative message) more than makes up for some of her more moderate views on other issues.
With Kirk, and even more so, Castle, I have to disagree. Obama and the Dems are going to use both of them to castigate the GOP for every failure that the Dems have. The only reason that the GOP has gotten as far as they have in the past two years is because they have presented a stark alternative to the ‘P-O-R’ radical agenda.
When politicians reach across the aisle to support policies that are unpopular and will only lead to more economic misery, and it undermines the party’s important message, its ‘brand’, if you will. Quite frankly, I’d rather have a D in Illinois and Delaware for voting for Cap and Trade, etc. in the Senate than an R, so when the economy sheds even more jobs and the misery spreads, the public will know exactly where to point the finger in 2012.
Castle is a coward! He lets others do the hatchet jobs while he stays silent. He won’t face the voters, not because of Christine O’Donnell’s candidacy - althoiughhe refuses to acknowledge her, but because of the beating he took at a town hall in 2009!
To those who are comfortable with a RINO just for the sake of winninng, I put this to you: How long would you put up with a spouse that was faithful 52% of the time? How long would you keep a firearm that was accurate 52% of the time? How long would you keep a hunting dog that didn’t bite you 52% of the time? Same with RINOs!
Two months ago O'Donnell was a ham sandwich (aka a generic candidate). No one really knew who she was or what she stood for. Let's face it, when she ran for Senate before she basically was the sacrificial lamb to the slaughter. She had no chance against the D candidate. They had no need to open their oppo research books against her.
Thus far, O'Donnell has let Castle and others define her. (A terrible thing for any politician to do). As a result, her negatives went up and her slim lead over Coons two months ago turned into a likely double-digit defeat.
Yes, the tactics used by Castle have stunk and yes, it goes without saying that O'Donnell is the better of the two candidates to just anyone on this site.
But unfortunately, our views are not well represented by the majority of the people of the State of Delaware. They are more RINO-ish than we'd ever, ever be. As a result, O'Donnell is not the more electable candidate there. Castle is.
It basically boils down to whether you want someone in the Senate that is voting for the Republicans staying in power who is with us most of the time or someone voting with Harry Reid and Barack Obama 90% of the time. The answer is obvious to me.
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