Free Republic

The King of Amnesty is dead. On tuesday, Team America candidate Jason Chaffetz defeated La Raza Republican Chris Cannon by over twenty points! Team America raised over $25,000 for Jason who used the money to make it clear to the voters of Utah that he stood for securing the borders and enforcing our laws, while Cannon stood for amnesty. Chris Cannon has long been one of our top targets. He’s sponsored over half a dozen amnesty bills, and has won awards from MALDEF and La Raza for his pro-amnestyrecord. We supported his challengers in 2004 and 2006, but they...

Rep. Chris Cannon -- who lost in a 60%-40% Primary election landslide yesterday -- had survived several previous Primary challenges by fooling enough people into believing that he was not really an amnesty champion. The seven-term incumbent lost to Jason Chaffetz, 41, a former chief of staff for Utah's governor who was running for public office for the first time and who was outspent 7-1. Chaffetz ran as a True Immigration Reformer, favoring deep cuts in legal immigration and vigorous Attrition Through Enforcement measures.

With iconoclast Ron Paul having ended his quixotic bid for the Republican presidential nomination — his platform had called for, among other things, ending the Iraq War, repealing the PATRIOT Act, returning to the gold standard and eliminating taxes on tips — his many dedicated supporters are up for grabs. Even excluding his support in caucus states, Paul received a few more than a million votes in the Republican primary, finished second in five states including Pennsylvania and Oregon and continued to draw votes well after he’d effectively withdrawn from the race. His campaign also tapped into the potent new...

While most Republicans are likely to consider Rep. Ron Paul of Texas a mere pest, his devoted followers could be a problem for Sen. John McCain in November. Paul, the GOP congressman with the squeaky voice but with a following of vocal supporters, will not go away. He's suspended his presidential campaign but his crusade goes on. Paul got into the presidential race with no chance of winning. But his opposition to the war in Iraq, his isolationist foreign policy, and his leave-us-alone views on the domestic front won him faithful supporters during the debates earlier this year. Based on...

Ron Paul is suspending his presidential campaign. WASHINGTON (CNN) – Texas Rep. Ron Paul announced Thursday he is suspending his bid for the Republican presidential nomination to focus his time on building an organization to help recruit and elect “limited government Republicans.” “We want to elect constitutionalists, limited government Republicans across the country at the state and federal level,” said Paul spokesman Jesse Benton. The congressman will speak about his political plans at the Texas Republican State Convention being held in Houston. Late Thursday afternoon, Paul launched a Web site for his new organization where he explained the decision to...

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham faced a long shot primary challenge Tuesday from a fellow Republican who has hammered his ties to Arizona Sen. John McCain. In Virginia, Democrats wrapped up a bitter contest to run for the seat being vacated by retiring Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Davis. And in Maine, Democrats chose between Rep. Tom Allen and political newcomer Tom Ledue in a U.S. Senate primary while both parties settled hard-fought races in the 1st Congressional District in the southern part of the state. Graham challenger Buddy Witherspoon, a retired orthodontist and former Republican National...

Bob Kelleher, a former Green who sued the Montana University System for excluding the Green and Libertarian candidates from a gubernatorial debate in 2004, scored an upset victory in the Montana GOP primary race for U.S. Senate. Kelleher, who still maintains his Green beliefs, will be the Republican nominee versus Democratic incumbent Max Baucus. The Montana Green Party does not currently have ballot access. The theme of Kelleher’s campaign was “no more tax cuts until hunger, health, HRDC, and job needs are satisfied and social security, Medicare and Medicaid funds are secure.” Ballot Access News reports that Kelleher apparently raised...

Thank you all very much. I’m reluctant to start making individual thank you’s because so many have done so much in this campaign – but I do want to say – first and foremost – a special thanks to my wife and family for all they have endured during this campaign. At least I have the chance to fight back; they have to just sit there and take the abuse day in and day out. And then they have to put up with me when I get home at the end of a campaign day. And yet they’ve been resilient...

Without a doubt, the Republican primary for California's Fourth Congressional District was the highest profile legislative race taking place in yesterday's statewide elections in California. Whether you look at how the race shaped up locally, or how it was covered Inside The Beltway, the battle between conservative State Senator Tom McClintock and moderate former U.S. Representative Doug Ose was truly looked to as an election-day indicator of where the heart and soul of the GOP was, and whether Republicans want to see change in direction that their party has taken in the United States Capitol. Despite the massive financial advantage...

There's no mistaking Lindsey Graham's loyalties or liabilities as he seeks a second term in the U.S. Senate. The 52-year-old Republican makes it clear that his future and that of Republican presidential candidate John McCain are tightly interwoven. "My re-election, I think, will benefit South Carolina because if he gets to be president, South Carolina's interests will have a receptive audience due to our relationship," Graham said in a recent interview. "I want to help him do the hard things." McCain recently made his first stop in the state since winning South Carolina's January primary, and Graham pumped his fists...

Steve Pearce won the Republican nomination in the race for U.S. Senate over rival Heather Wilson and will now turn to the challenge of keeping Sen. Pete Domenici's seat in Republican hands. The southern New Mexico representative won Tuesday's primary with roughly 51 percent of the vote, compared to Wilson's 49 percent with 99 percent of precincts reporting statewide, according to unofficial results. Pearce, who ran as a right-wing conservative, will face Democrat Tom Udall, who ran unopposed in the Democratic primary, on Nov. 4. Wilson endorsed Pearce this morning, saying that Republicans have "no time for disappointment or for...

A photo finish appears to be in the works as a Survey USA poll shows Heather Wilson closing in on Steve Pearce in the last weekend of the primary campaign. Pearce is still clinging to a slim lead, but it's well within the poll's margin of error. The poll, conducted Friday through Sunday, shows Pearce ahead by one percentage point, 48 to 47. Wilson closed in on the three point lead Pearce had in the poll two weeks ago. The poll may reflect Pete Domenici's eleventh hour endorsement of Wilson as his choice to replace him in the U.S. Senate....

Jim Henley assesses the complete and utter failure that was the Ron Paul campaign for the Republican presidential nomination: Paul failed to win any states, to move the GOP debate in his direction, to accrue significant delegates or to leverage his fund-raising into a third-party run. And word is he’s staying quiet about endorsing an independent because he doesn’t want the Congressional GOP leadership to strip him of committee assignments come the fall. Paul accomplished the one thing he’s always been good at: using political appeals to get people to send money. I don’t feel freer. But other than that,...

Ron Paul continued his push for a speaking role at the Republican National Convention with an address Friday to supporters outside the Minnesota state convention. Paul has continued his presidential bid despite Sen. John McCain's status as the presumed nominee. With state GOP leaders refusing to allow him to speak inside the convention hall, Paul told about 400 supporters he was more concerned about spreading his libertarian message than preserving party unity. "The campaign that is going on right now is the campaign for the freedom revolution, which is going to be going on for a very long time," Paul...

Kevin Mannix, who lost in the Republican primary in Oregon's 5th District to businessman Mike Erickson, will not be endorsing his rival - a serious blow to the Republican party's chances of holding the very winnable open seat, currently held by retiring Rep. Darlene Hooley (D-Ore.). "I will not support him because he's a dishonest person and that's my bottom line," Mannix told the Politico. "I cannot support a dishonest campaign. I need to stick to my principles here, and he'll have to deal with it. That doesn't mean I'm endorsing or supporting the Democrat, but I'm not doing anything...

In today's Kentucky presidential primary John McCain received 72% of the vote. Huckabee 8% (dropped out). Ron Paul 7% (did not campaign). Uncommitted 5%. Mitt Romney 5% (dropped out). Rudy Giuliani 2% (dropped out). Alan Keyes 1% (did not campaign).

John Armor is a student of history. He knows where the country has been and where he would like to take it in the future. As a Republican candidate for the 11th Congressional District, Armor has the chance to make an impact. Armor is running against Asheville City Councilman Carl Mumpower and former Henderson County Republican Party Chairman Spence Campbell in the Republican primary. Raised in the Baltimore area, Armor attended Yale University, where he earned degrees in political science and English. He took a job at an advertising agency shortly after graduation but wanted a new challenge. He enrolled...

The race for the Virginia 8th District congressional seat has seen two candidates vying for the Republican nomination and the opportunity to unseat nine-term Democratic Congressman Jim Moran. This week, I interview one of the candidates, Amit Singh. My interview with his opponent, Mark Ellmore, will be published next Monday. The primary is on June 10. Paul Ibrahim (P.I.): Mr. Singh, thank you for doing this interview. Can you, in one sentence, explain why you are running for Congress? Amit Singh (A.S.): I am running for Congress because our politicians are leading America in the wrong direction and those who...

As former Congressman Dick Zimmer formally entered the Republican U.S. Senate race today, he essentially becomes the third candidate to fill a single candidacy. First there was Anne Estabrook. Andy Unanue took her place after she suffered a minor stroke. Zimmer jumped in to the race after Unanue’s campaign disintegrated in less than three weeks. Just as Unanue inherited most of the Estabrook campaign infrastructure – who had been paid a severance that lasted until the June primary while they waited for a candidate to take her place– Zimmer is poised to take over much of Unanue’s staff, including Campaign...

WWL-TV political consultant Greg Rigamer projects that Steve Scalise will win the GOP Primary in the First Congressional District of Louisiana. With 95 percent of the vote in, Steve Scalise has 58% of the vote. Tim Burns has 42%.

I recently had a conversation with a young friend who expressed his displeasure at the lack of conservative candidates in this presidential election cycle. His feeling, shared my many on the right, is obviously that John McCain is not a “real” conservative. I’ve heard this sentiment from many conservatives in the past few months - from high profile squawkers like Rush Limbaugh and James Dobson to rank and file folks in my everyday life. I’m more than a little sympathetic to their complaints. I myself have spent no small amount of mental energy since the New Hampshire primary trying to...

In a surprise move, Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell announced Friday at the State GOP Convention that he will challenge embattled Congressman Don Young in the Republican primary. Young -- an 18-term incumbent -- is reportedly the target of a federal corruption investigation. Young's campaign committee has already spent over $800,000 on legal fees related to the investigation. Independent polling has shown Young trailing former State House Minority Leader Ethan Berkowitz (D) in general election matchups. "For too long, we have expected too little from our elected officials. It is time for change," said Parnell. As Parnell is a close ally...

Dear Faithful Friends, Last night was a tough one for all of us. While Janet and I stood on the stage, we felt as if we were surrounded by a much larger family than our immediate family. We have been surrounded throughout the process by a large and growing family of faithful friends whose efforts in the campaign have humbled and amazed us day after day. I regularly wept or choked back tears just reading comments on the blog when I realized the sacrifices that so many have made for the campaign. We had held out hope that we would...

When incumbent Congressman and presidential candidate Ron Paul faces Chris Peden in the Republican primary March 4, the winner likely will be the district’s next congressman. And it might not be Paul. Early voting in the contest opens Tuesday. Peden, 36, is challenging Paul for the seat in the 14th Congressional District, which runs down the Gulf Coast almost from Port Arthur to Port Aransas. It doesn’t include Houston or a chunk of Galveston County. With no Democrat in the race, the winner of the Republican primary is exceedingly likely to be the district’s next congressman. Paul, 72, is something...

For those not familiar with Maryland, we are like that that red/blue map of America. Most of the state is conservative but is overwhelmed by the liberals concentrated in Baltimore City and the DC suburbs. Until recently Maryland was divided 4/4 in its congressional representation until the dems redistricted (gerrymandered) Republicans into two main congressional districts. This pretty much guarantees republican wins for these two congressional seats but the problem is that one of these seats is held by a "RINO"-Wayne Gilchrest. Gilcrest voted with Nancy Pelosi more than any other (r)epublican in congress. He is the poster boy for...

LAKE JACKSON — In what promised to be very different gatherings, Republican candidates Congressman Ron Paul and Friendswood Mayor Pro Tem Chris Peden met with District 14 constituents in Lake Jackson on Sunday to campaign for a seat in Congress. Peden is challenging Paul in the March 4 primary. Early voting begins Feb. 19. The candidates each had a rally at the Lake Jackson Civic Center on Sunday, and both said the overlapping times and shared venue simply were coincidence. The signs hundreds of Paul’s supporters held were both for his campaign for the Republican nomination for president, in which...

A lead challenger to U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham in the state Republican primary said during a Monday stop in Spartanburg he’s more in line with South Carolinians when it comes to immigration reform. Buddy Witherspoon Buddy Witherspoon, a Lexington orthodontist and former Republican National Committee member, is seeking to unseat Graham, R-S.C.

MY FELLOW CONSERVATIVE AMERICANS… It has been some time since I wrote an “Open Letter to the American People” http://www.DavidOsborne.net I am currently on vacation after my return home from Iraq, and have been watching the presidential race very carefully.. I am VERY disturbed when I hear conservatives say that “John McCain is the front runner….. so we need to support him” I SAY --- JUST SAY NO… Whenever you hear a conservative try to prop up John McCain as the “Front Runner” – JUST SAY NO ! When you hear a conservative say that John McCain is the “only...

Commentary By Daniel T. Zanoza, Executive Director, RFFM.org I know I'm going to regret this because every time I talk about my favorite political candidates, e-mails from RFFM.org readers with differing views come in like ants at a picnic. Because of my political opinions, one day I'm called one of the most articulate men on the face of the earth and a week later I'm being compared to one of the greatest idiots of all time. It gets even worse, but my life is pretty good, so I can't complain. What I've learned about politics is you can't please everyone...

Carl Cameron says it'll become offical sometime later this week. Oh well, we're doomed. Let's hope it'll be minimal damage until 2012.

Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson didn't drop out of the Republican presidential field after his disappointing finish in Saturday's South Carolina primary -- but he sounded close to it. About an hour after the polls closed, Thompson addressed a ballroom in a college student union, an event that featured as many students enjoying free beer as it did hardcore Thompson supporters. He delivered a lengthy soliloquy, speaking in the past tense about "clear conservatism," the cornerstone of his campaign. "My friends, we will always be bound by a close bond because we have traveled a very special road together for...

BETTENDORF, Iowa - Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, facing some hints of an anti-Mormon whisper campaign, said Sunday he's irritated but not overly concerned about such "personal" attacks as he makes his final pitch to voters in the early states. Such attacks, especially those focused on his faith in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, could hamper his ability to win the GOP nomination. Romney, however, said Sunday that dirty politics such as an anti-Mormon Christmas card mailed to South Carolina voters are "part of the political process" by some groups or individuals who want to muddy the water....

Mike Huckabee doesn't wish you happy holidays. He wants you to have a Merry Christmas. And keep the Christ in it, please. That's the subtext - as well as the text - of Huckabee's latest TV ad, which began airing this week in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. Wearing a red sweater, the surging Republican presidential hopeful looks into the camera, acknowledges America's fatigue with political spots, then declares that, this time of year, "what really matters is the celebration of the birth of Christ." "God bless," he says at the end, "and Merry Christmas."

The movement to replace Sen. Lindsey Graham with a fiercer opponent of illegal immigration gained strength on Monday when Columbia native Buddy Witherspoon brought his campaign for the Republican nomination to Hilton Head Island. Witherspoon is a dentist and three-time elector in the electoral college and a representative at the Republican National Committee since 1996. He espouses traditionally conservative positions against abortion, gay marriage, gun control and higher taxes. But the key issue of the campaign -- and one that has many in South Carolina looking for a replacement for Graham -- is immigration. Opponents accuse Graham and other senators...

US Senator Mel Martinez (R) may draw an unexpected challenge for re-nomination when his seat comes up in 2010, possibly from ambitious State House Speaker Marco Rubio (R). Some Florida Republicans are upset with Martinez over his immigration position, others in the agricultural community are unhappy about his support for CAFTA (Central American Free Trade Agreement), and party activists grumble about his brief, hands-off RNC Chairmanship. Considered a fairly poor campaigner with weak name ID and no discernable association with any particular issue, Martinez could be vulnerable to a challenge from the right. Others who know Martinez -- who was...

A topic I have not seen discussed on FR is "Who will drop out when?". This is of paramount importance, for the drop out will probably recommend one of the remaining candidates. This is key to Fred Thompson's campaign strategy. I've cherry picked some polls from Real Clear Politics to go along with my opinion.

If you thought there was something odd about CNN's YouTube Republican presidential debate you are correct. As it turns out, at least nine of the “undecided Republican voters” have subsequently been identified as Democrats who have taken stands in support of one or another of the current Democratic presidential candidates. CNN President Jonathan Klein was quick to defend loading the questions in this fashion. “Who better to show the unsuitability of these Republican candidates than knowledgeable Democrats?” Klein asked. “The American people deserve to see these poseurs exposed to critical scrutiny. Our only disappointment is that the revelation of the...

When voters cast their ballots during Virginia's Feb. 12 Republican presidential primary, they'll be required to sign a document stating they intend to support the party's nominee for president in a strategy one conservative leader called a "bullying tactic" but a nonpartisan election official dismissed as just "a piece of paper." On Monday, the State Board of Elections approved text to be included with the ballot that states: "You can vote in this presidential primary only if you sign and print your name to the voter pledge below. You will not be permitted to vote if you refuse to do...

RENO, Nev. (AP) - It's not exactly your average Republican fundraiser. A Nevada brothel owner is giving Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul his stamp of approval and plans to start raising money for the Texas congressman. Dennis Hof, owner of the Moonlite BunnyRanch near Carson City, says he'll leave collection boxes outside the door so people can drop in their political contributions. A spokesman for Paul says the politician with a libertarian streak doesn't condone prostitution on a personal level. But, he says, "it's not the role of federal government and it's not in the constitution for federal government to...

Buddy Witherspoon, a long-time South Carolina committeeman to the Republican National Committee, will be announcing this week that he will challenge Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) in the GOP primary, according to a source familiar with his intentions. Witherspoon, an orthodontist, is known as an arch-conservative on social and cultural issues, and plans to run a campaign centered on fighting illegal immigration. But as a first-time candidate, he will face an uphill battle raising his name identification and money against a very well-funded incumbent. Graham has over $4.2 million in his campaign account at the end of the third quarter. Graham...

WASHINGTON -- Democrats enter the 2008 election campaign with powerful political advantages but face a tough and unpredictable battle because of the vulnerabilities of front-runner Hillary Clinton and the Democratic-controlled Congress... But offsetting that demand for change in the presidential contest are reservations about Sen. Clinton's truthfulness and ideology...The result: She is in a virtual dead heat with leading Republican candidate Rudy Giuliani when the two are matched up... Mr. Giuliani has maintained an aggressive stance toward his in-state rival for the White House. While promoting his antiterror credentials with tough talk on Iran, the former New York City mayor...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Underdog Ron Paul is airing the first TV ads of his presidential campaign, hoping to capitalize on a fundraising surge and promote his blend of anti-war, anti-spending libertarianism in New Hampshire. The two 30-second spots are part of a $1.1 million series of five ads that the Republican congressman intends to air in the state in November and December. One ad, called "Catching On," features New Hampshire residents voicing their support, including a self-described undeclared voter who says he will vote in the Republican primary simply to cast a ballot for Paul. The ad says nothing about...

The right-leaning side of the blogosphere, and especially some of the leading Repub-blogs, have been ablaze over the decision by RedState.com to bar comments and diaries from those enthusiastically Web-savvy and driven backers of Representative Ron Paul. To recap first of all, Leon Wolfe over at RedState, under a headline that included “Life Is Really Not Fair,” wrote on Monday: Effective immediately, new users may *not* shill for Ron Paul in any way shape, form or fashion. Not in comments, not in diaries, nada. If your account is less than 6 months old, you can talk about something else, you...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 — Rudolph W. Giuliani strolled into the maw of the religious conservative movement Saturday, and won applause from a crowd of over 2,000 with language of Christian inclusiveness and shared values. Mr. Giuliani made a litany of promises meant to convey that he would not be their enemy if elected president, but he was followed to the podium by Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor and Baptist minister, who drew boisterous standing ovations. Mr. Huckabee’s speech, full of his trademark quips and red-meat declarations about faith and values, had the feel at times of a Pentecostal tent...

WASHINGTON, DC -- After his Values Voters speech here, in which he called for all Americans to defend life at every stage, Brownback refused to confirm the news that he is dropping out of the presidential race this afternoon. “I’m headed back to Kansas and I’ll be making an announcement there,” he said. The Kansas senator did acknowledge, however, that he is convinced the Republican Party will nominate a “pro-life candidate,” and he feels that Giuliani does not fit the bill. “Governor Romney’s certainly taken a pro-life position now,” Brownback said to reporters after his speech. “We’ll see if that’s...

The National Rifle Association, which did not endorse President Bush in 2000 and 2004 until just a month before the general election, is considering stepping into the presidential campaign fray early next year during the primary season, the group's chief lobbyist says. --snip-- "A lot of gun owners decided then, 'Hey, we're sitting this election out,' " he said.

Nearly four decades ago, John McCain and his fellow American POWs imprisoned in North Vietnam would climb onto each other's shoulders to peer out their cell grate and signal each other by hand. Today, the 71-year-old McCain is running in an uphill campaign for the Republican nomination for president, and he's counting on his war buddies and hundreds like them to help him. This weekend the Arizona senator is completing another leg of his "No Surrender Tour," this part in South Carolina. The tour title has a double meaning, no surrender to the rough days of overspending and staff turmoil...

A Gurnee veterans group volunteer whose eldest son was killed in the Iraq war is entering the 8th Congressional District Republican primary supporting the war, tougher illegal immigration laws and abortion rights. Kirk Morris, a 49-year-old sales executive for a bio-fuels manufacturing company, will face off against former minor-league hockey player Steve Greenberg for the right to take on two-term Democrat Melissa Bean of Barrington. "I've decided that it is time to put action behind my words," Morris said Wednesday. Morris and Greenberg face the difficult task of energizing a Republican base torn by a vicious six-candidate GOP primary in...

To have a conservative candidate as our nominee, we need to rally behind a single candidate and need to do so fast. Mike Huckabee is an articulate defender of conservative values, likeable and electable. When the choice of Presidential Candidates became clear, I wrote that both Rep. Duncan Hunter and Gov. Mike Huckabee are both true conservatives and effective communicators of conservative philosophy. They have common sense, yet compassionate, philosophies and would both make excellent presidents. While Rep. Hunter should be receiving far more publicity than he is, the fact is that, through no fault of his own, he's not....