Free Republic

Washington’s Handpicked Ringer Mr. Delasandro is making the following statement for immediate release: “The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) inserted its candidate into the CD-17 race this past week, Mr. William H. Flores. Flores apparently recently relocated to Bryan/College Station from Sugarland, TX (outside the district). Flores was chosen, not because he represents the values of Central Texas, but because he can self-finance. He has the wealth to self-finance a race for Congress in large part from his business ties to socialist investor George Soros. There is nothing wrong with making a profit and businessmen shouldn’t be required to vet...

County chairs seek alternative to Nan Hayworth for run against Hudson Valley DemWhen Assemblyman Greg Ball dropped out of the race to unseat Democratic Congressman John Hall last month, most political observers assumed that the path was clear for Nan Hayworth, a wealthy ophthalmologist who had the backing of the National Republican Congressional Committee.But in the past few weeks, Republican officials in the 19th Congressional District, which covers suburban counties north of New York City, have revolted from the directives from Washington and begun hunting for an alternative.Several names have emerged as potential Hayworth challengers, among them David McFadden, a...

The National Republican Congressional Committee is targeting three veteran Democrats who voted for the House version of the health care bill in a weeklong round of television ads that will begin airing on Thursday. The new 30-second spots hit Democratic Reps. Earl Pomeroy of North Dakota, Vic Snyder of Arkansas and John M. Spratt Jr. of South Carolina for their votes by using the words of fellow Democratic legislators who opposed the legislation. Among the statements the NRCC uses in it' new ad against Pomeroy is one released by the office of Rep. Dan Boren, D-Okla., when he announced he...

The National Republican Congressional Committee just released a new Web ad, "Which is it, Hoffman?" that spotlights Conservative candidate Doug Hoffman's alleged dithering about his positions on certain issues.Here's the transcript:"Doug Hoffman is running for Congress. He is opposed to civil unions. Actually...Oh. Well, he is against big government bailouts. Not before! Geez! Well Doug Hoffman lives in the 23rd...uh...this guy doesn't even live here? Why are we...? Doug Hoffman is running...from himself."Mr. Hoffman, according to a recent Siena poll, is unknown by almost three-quarters of voters in the 23rd Congressional District. The NRCC is likely using this ad to...

At a meeting of Washington conservatives this morning, House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, expressed pride over GOP success in last night's election. But questions about NY-23 remain -- so I asked him whether there was an effort to get New York Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava, the GOP nominee in that race, to endorse Conservative Party nominee Doug Hoffman. "There was a huge effort," he replied.  When asked about rumors that the New York Republican Party picked Scozzafava because of the advice of Washington insiders who felt she would be a more electable candidate, Boehner rolled his eyes. "We told them...

Under pressure from conservative forces within her own party, Dede Scozzafava, the regular Republican nominee in the interim House race for New York's 23d District, suddenly withdrew from the race today. Though endorsed by the Republican National Committee and big GOP establishment names like ex-House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Scozzafava had fallen to third place in polls of the upstate longtime Republican district next to the Canadian border. Her retreat came in the face of a vigorous campaign by Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman, who was backed by Sarah Palin, Dick Armey and Fred Thompson, among others. Her surprise move sets...

I’m hearing that the NRCC is pulling out of NY-23. It’s coming from a credible source familiar with the operation inside of the beltway Committee. That being said I just reached out to Matthew Burns, Spokesman for the Scozzafava campaign, who denied this claim. He said it was “False.” Protecting the candidate or categorically true – we’ll let this flesh itself out in the public. I’ll also avoid giving you the analysis of what this could mean for now. Look for links in the comments. UPDATE: I’m on the ground and I have personal confirmation from an additional, credible source...

That’s what it looks like and it reflects what I’ve been hearing too. The NRCC tells me directly that they are only spending money on anti-Owens ads. The anti-Hoffman YouTube? Gone. The anti-Hoffman press releases? Gone. The anti-Hoffman everything else? Gone. The pro-Dede Scozzafava stuff? Gone too. The RNC ground crews? They are pulling out to New Jersey. The Dede Scozzafava campaign says this is all false. Then again, they say she is a Republican too. H/T to Ali.

Maybe there is hope for the GOP after all. A few days ago the NRCC announced that they would will throw good money after bad in the NY-23 congressional election. The announced they would be spending $200,000 to $300,000 on "TV ads propping up Scozzafava in the days leading up to the Nov. 3 contest and plans to keep up a near relentless barrage of press releases slamming Hoffman." Since that time, Scozzafava the liberal Republican candidate, has been hemorrhaging support to the Conservative candidate Doug Hoffman to the point where Hoffman is now in the lead and Scozzafava is...

So much for Newt Gingrich's prediction that Hoffman can't win and only Scozzafava has a chance. According to a new poll out by the Daily Kooks blog Bill Owens is at 33% Hoffman at 32% and Scozzafava at a mere 21%. Now I never understood how such a far left partisan organization has suddenly become a legitimate polling outfit. However, this poll does indicate two things. 1, If Hoffman is only down 1% by a liberal biased poll (they always show the Dems over performing) then in reality he is either ahead or very much in the game. The extremists...

"Perhaps more ominously for his ( Newt's )rapidly fading hopes for a 2012 Presidential bid, conservatives are beginning to question his integrity. His constant repetition of the false "she's locally selected" mantra seems as off message as Scozzafava's numerous well documented campaign missteps.""Either Newt Gingrich is lying, or someone misled him."But how can "the smartest guy in the room", with a reputation as a scholar and seeker of truth have been so easily misled about a set of facts that could be discerned with half an hour's worth of phone calls?"

RNC Chairman Michael Steele needs to do his homework before going back on Sean Hannity's radio show. Today, Hannity asked him about the Republican National Committee and the National Republican Congressional Committee's support of the liberal Republican in the race against Conservative Party and Republican Doug Hoffman for the House seat vacated by John McHugh. Here's a brief excerpt; listen closely to Steele disputing Hannity about Scozzafava's position on card check: The two sources of proof that Michael Steele is mistaken are Dede Scozzafava and Dede Scozzafava, in writing and on tape. On Oct 19, 2009, the all things liberal...

As high-profile Republicans (other than Newt Gingrich) flock to endorse Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman in New York's 23rd district special election over the Republican in the three-way race, Dede Scozzafava (R) still has one prominent supporter besides the former Speaker: Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele. "I support the republican nominee as the republican party chairman, and that's the way it should go, right?" Steele told NBC's Chuck Todd this morning during an interview on MSNBC's Morning Joe (video here--fast forward to 4:55). Conservatives far and wide have alleged Scozzafava is too liberal, as Hoffman has won endorsements from...

Watching these clips back-to-back is simply remarkable. Here we have a mainstream conservative candidate, running in a consistently center-right district, being assailed by both major parties. The Democrats, recognizing the official "Republican" candidate's slide into the abyss, have turned their fire on viable (front-running?) third-party candidate, Doug Hoffman. Well, hello, politics of personal destruction and shameless class warfare: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15L_TaolOqg&feature=player_embedded Minor details like Hoffman's humble upbringing (which also shouldn't be an issue), and his lifetime of hard work, are ignored. The success he's earned is used to bludgeon him — which, ironically, reflects the prevailing Democratic position on taxation. The Republican...

The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has spent tens of thousands of dollars in the three-way NY-23 race to support pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage, pro-taxation, pro-stimulus DIABLO candidate Dede Scozzafava, who has refused to promise not to run as a Democrat next year if she loses the Republican primary as expected. That's bad enough, but at least many of the ads so far have focused on attacking the Democrat, which we can all agree upon. Rumors posted to NRO and elsewhere are saying that this weekend things will change, and hundreds of thousands of NRCC dollars will pour into the district...

Email: website@nrcc.org Phone numbers at link above.

This is why you lose elections. GOP officials: We won't abandon DedeThe National Republican Congressional Committee remains committed to embattled GOP nominee Dede Scozzafava in the upstate New York House special election, even as many of the party's top names throw their support to Conservative Party nominee Doug Hoffman. Two party officials tell POLITICO that the NRCC will continue to air TV ads propping up Scozzafava in the days leading up to the Nov. 3 contest and plans to keep up a near relentless barrage of press releases slamming Hoffman. Scozzafava, a state assemblywoman who supports gay marriage, abortion rights...

Former Sen. Al D'Amato (R-NY) appeared on Neil Cavuto's TV show, and said that he'll likely be making an endorsement soon in the NY-23 special election -- and that he's leaning heavily towards backing Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman over moderate Republican Dede Scozzafava. "I will say to you that I am leaning heavily towards the Conservative," said D'Amato, citing Scozzafava's support for the Employee Free Choice Act as major point against her. D'Amato was first elected in 1980, defeating liberal Republican incumbent Sen. Jacob Javits in the GOP primary. He was re-elected in 1986 and 1992, and then defeated...

Pretty good ad.I think just about any voter will understand THIS.LOL! The name "Scozzafava" (RINO), is not even brought up!!

A team of conservative bloggers with 73Wire.com arrived in upstate New York's 23rd District this morning and visited the headquarters of liberal Republican candidate Dede Scozzafava: Not only is the NRCC pumping hundreds of thousands of dollars into the media campaign of Dede Scozzafava, they're also organizing and coordinating teams of GOTV volunteers in the district. And they're picking up the tab. Our team just finished meeting with a NRCC volunteer named "James" who works out of the Watertown office for the Scozzafava campaign. James informed us that he was sent to Watertown, NY from Washington D.C. as a volunteer...

Enough of this garbage, already. After two spectacularly dismal national elections, a large part of the old-guard in the GOP remains in "Einstein's Definition Of Insanity" mode and is determined to throw the party on the Whig pile. This past week and a half has played out in a most interesting fashion both locally and nationally for me. After spending a weekend butting heads with the old-school money people at Western CPAC, I had a keener sense of just how clueless they are and how desperately their influence needs to be diminished, if not obliterated.(Hyperbole? You hang out with them...

Conservatives are sick and tired of being taken for granted, misrepresented, and talked down to by the same "elite" Republicans in Washington who hopelessly screwed everything up during the Bush years. Everybody knows exactly whom we're talking about here. The same snobby, elitist, stuffed shirt, squishy, poll-obsessed Country Club Republicans who went to D.C., forgot who put them there, wasted the incredible opportunity they had to change this country for the better, and are now pointing the finger at everyone except themselves for their mistakes. Here are five messages for those people: We're not going back to the Bush years:...

Please, any freepers who live in the NY 23rd district (or have relative/friends..) who live there, please post first (or 2nd) hand accounts of the actual ground/game/situation in NY's 23rd. I love reading all the updates of this race from Conservatives across the web..but we need acurate information so we know how best to HELP as well. Thanks, Sincerely, J.S.

Departments: The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC)'s departments can be reached below: General Email website@nrcc.org Executive Phone: 202-479-7000 Administration Phone: 202-479-7000 Political Phone: 202-479-7000 Finance Phone: 202-479-7000 Communications Phone: 202-479-7070 eCampaign Phone: 202-479-7000

WASHINGTON — The National Republican Congressional Committee Friday bashed the "failed" federal economic stimulus that its own candidate for the 23rd Congressional District, Dierdre K. Scozzafava, has openly supported. In a press release, the NRCC attacked Democratic candidate William L. Owens for supporting the stimulus bill as part of President Barack Obama's "big government agenda."

The National Republican Congressional Committee remains committed to embattled GOP nominee Dede Scozzafava in the upstate New York House special election, even as many of the party's top names throw their support to Conservative Party nominee Doug Hoffman. Two party officials tell POLITICO that the NRCC will continue to air TV ads propping up Scozzafava in the days leading up to the Nov. 3 contest and plans to keep up a near relentless barrage of press releases slamming Hoffman.

Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.) endorsed GOP special-election candidate Dede Scozzafava on Monday, saying a vote for her Conservative Party opponent is tantamount to a vote for the Democrats in the close 23rd Congressional District race in New York. . . . . . In a statement, King made the case that voting for Hoffman will only help Democrat Bill Owens win. "Dede is the only Republican candidate in this race, and the only candidate with a proven record that Republicans can trust in Washington," King said. "A vote for either of her opponents is a vote for Nancy Pelosi and...

Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava is not your typical Republican candidate. Running in a special election in upstate New York for the seat of departing Congressman John McHugh, she has, naturally, picked up the support of state and national Republican party officials. She has secured the full support of the National Republican Congressional Committee and that of its chairman, Texas Rep. Pete Sessions. But, she has also picked up the support of the DailyKos, not a traditionally deep well of support for Republicans. Oh, and ACORN’s Working Families Party. Below is a memo Big Government obtained circulating among leaders of the conservative...

Michael Long, chairman of the Conservative Party of New York, is urging fellow conservatives not to contribute to the National Republican Congressional Committee. His complaint: The NRCC is supporting the Republican candidate in New York’s 23rd Congressional District, who he says is out of step with GOP values. The Republicans have nominated centrist State Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava as their candidate in the special election to be held on Nov. 3. In response, the Conservative Party nominated its own candidate, local accountant Doug Hoffman. Hoffman has been getting some traction, winning endorsements from several conservative groups and garnering 16% support in...

The nominee in a looming House special election is at the heart of an angry dispute between conservatives and Republican House leadership, a rift so serious that it threatens the party’s chances of keeping control of the upstate New York seat. At issue is the National Republican Congressional Committee’s support for Dede Scozzafava, a New York assemblywoman who conservatives assert is so liberal that they absolutely cannot support her candidacy. Instead, many conservative groups are rallying behind Doug Hoffman, a third-party candidate running on the Conservative Party line, even though their support for him might pave the way for a...

Just when it seems congressional Republicans have finally gotten the message about standing on principle before grasping for power, they go and pull a Dede Scozzafava. Scozzafava is the "Republican" New York assemblywoman selected by the GOP establishment as their candidate in the upcoming special election to succeed Rep. John McHugh. He recently resigned from his seat representing the Empire State's 23rd Congressional District on Capitol Hill to become President Obama's secretary of the Army. Incredibly, National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas, is throwing its money and resources behind Scozzafava. There is something else about Scozzafava -...

Here is video of a new National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) ad that is already tying vulnerable Democrats to their support of the radical policies being pushed by Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama. Expect to see this as a trend heading into the summer and fall of next year as the 2010 Congressional Elections draw near. In this case the target is New York Democrat Rep. Michael Arcuri of the 24th Congressional District. . . . (Watch Video)

Republicans are seeing a lot of opportunities for 2010, according to a letter from staffers at the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC). The letter, issued to a variety of Republican PACs and reported first at AOL's Politics Daily website last week, states that over 70 different seats across the nation are being targetted for turnover.

The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has identified 70 Democrats to target for the 2010 election, according to an email obtained by AOL Politics Daily. Many of the targeted members are Democratic freshmen and sophomores from conservative districts. The email sent from an NRCC staffer to Republican PACs says that "we have the opportunity to focus on many more districts and some unusual districts that haven't been targeted in a long time." The email with the list of targeted districts appears at the bottom of this page. Currently the GOP has 178 seats, so the party would need to win...

Today's topic is about a crucial event in politics. Whether the candidate is a Republican or a Democrat, the importance is the same. Whether the candidate is running for city council, Congress, or the White House, the importance is the same. What is this event? Simple... the political fundraiser. Fundraising events are crucial at all levels of politics. They come in all shapes and sizes, some simple and some elaborate, but all have one singular goal: to raise money. A fundraising event is judged on only one thing: how much money did it raise? So, it only seems logical that...

In another sign of the sway that Sarah Palin and her supporters in Palin Nation hold over the GOP, NRCC chief Pete Sessions is working behind the scenes to get Palin reinvited to the big GOP fundraiser tonight, GOP sources say. It’s the story of the day that GOP leaders have been battling over who’s to blame for the fact that Palin was “snubbed” when she was disinvited from a speaking role at the big fundraiser, which is for the two Congressional committees, the NRCC and the NRSC. Politico laid the blame on NRCC chief Sessions, claiming he didn’t want...

As we noted yesterday, the Beltway GOP invited Gov. Palin twice to speak at their fundraiser event tonight, and has twice disinvited her. Patrick at Hot Air’s the Greenroom expressed the sentiments of many conservatives: Whatever you think of Sarah Palin, the NRCC’s treatment of her in the run up to tomorrow’s fundraising “gala” has been atrocious. And I don’t just mean in a “that’s not how you treat someone” sort of way. I really mean it in a “that’s not how you raise money and win elections” sense. Earlier today, Fred Malek tweeted that this double disinvite is “[m]ore...

Sarah Palin’s on-again, off-again appearance at Monday night’s gala GOP fundraising dinner is off — again. After being invited — for a second time — to speak to the annual joint fundraiser for the National Republican Congressional Committee and the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Palin was told abruptly Saturday night that she would not be allowed to address the thousands of Republicans there after all. The Alaska governor may now skip the dinner altogether, and her allies are miffed at what they see as a slight from the congressional wing of the Republican Party.

WASHINGTON – House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Friday she won't talk any more about her charge that the CIA lied in 2002 about using waterboarding on terrorism suspects. "I have made the statement that I'm going to make on this," she told reporters at a Capitol Hill news conference. "I don't have anything more to say about it. I stand by my comment." But Republicans aren't letting this one slide. Ken Spain, spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, issued a statement after the news conference calling Pelosi a political liability to the Democratic party.

GOP Poised for 2010 by: Emily Kanyi, May 22, 2009 The chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), Congressman Pete Sessions (R-Texas), has called for Republicans to embrace new campaign tactics if they hope to win the 2010 Congressional elections. Speaking at a Bloggers Meeting held at the NRCC headquarters, the Congressman reiterated that the GOP needs to garner as much grassroots support as possible. “We need to have more boats in the water,” he said. He emphasized that one of the top priorities of the party is to have more people getting involved within their communities to increase...

Starting with the background: AR-01 is one of those districts that is… interesting. It is currently rated as R +8 in the Cook Political Report, but is held by a soi-disant ‘Blue Dog Democrat’: in this case, Marion Berry. Berry has been in that seat since 1997: he won the 2006 election with 69% of the vote; and he was unopposed in 2008. However, he will not be unopposed this term. Rick Crawford is going to be challenging him; it’s reported that the NRCC is looking at him as part of their planned campaign against selected ‘Blue Dogs’ that did...

GOP recruiters tilt toward center in 2010 races Outreach to more moderate candidates angering many in conservative base Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, a moderate Republican, has found support for his Senate race from key Republicans even though another well-established candidate has stronger conservative credentials. WASHINGTON - Dick Cheney and Rush Limbaugh contend the Republican Party needs less moderation and more conservative backbone to win back voters who have been abandoning it in droves. Leaders of the party's 2010 election efforts are showing they don't think ideological purity is the answer. In the latest example, key Republican senators jumped this week...

To feed their insatiable appetite for cash, the two parties’ House campaign committees are turning to their own members to fill their coffers. And as the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) has far outpaced its GOP rival in fundraising, so too have Democratic members given far more to the effort than their Republican counterparts. In total, Democrats have transferred $4.87 million from their campaign accounts to the DCCC, with 19 members forking over more than $100,000. By comparison, Republican members of Congress have given the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) just $477,000, with no member topping the six-figure mark. Both...

Gov. Bobby Jindal spoke to the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) earlier this week. Here is complete video of his remarks . . . . . This is the Bobby Jindal most of us thought we would see when he delivered the response to Obama's Address to a Joint Session of Congress. Jindal's substance was great in both speeches, but his delivery is far better in this one. PART III has a great closing summation. Bobby Jindal speaking like this has a chance if he wants to run in 2012. . . . . . . (Watch Complete Video of...

**AS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY*** NOTE: Governor Frequently Ad-Libs Remarks Thank you so much for having me tonight. It’s truly an honor to be offered this opportunity to speak to you all. I sure appreciate John Boehner’s leadership, as well as Eric Cantor, Pete Sessions, and the whole crew. There is a camaraderie and unity of purpose that is developing among your ranks that has excited conservatives and Republicans around the country. On behalf of rank and file conservative Americans everywhere, I’d like to thank you all for standing on principle. Many of you have asked that I reprise my State...

The National Republican Congressional Committee is holding a NCAA basketball tournament "pick 'em challenge." Winners will receive two tickets to the June 8th GOP dinner, where Governor Palin will be delivering the keynote address.

ALBANY—Scott Murphy is a rich carpetbagger, out-of-touch with the needs of the average voters in the 20th Congressional District he hopes to represent because he actually grew up in Missouri. He hasn't even voted in recent elections. He was a lobbyist, for Pete's sake, taking his clients to the Cotton Bowl and lavishing them with expensive meals. As a "venture capitalist" he outsourced work overseas; that's probably why his campaign website isn't calling him "Mr. Jobs" anymore. Oh yeah: he cheats on his taxes—just like all those other Democrats, who have no problem voting to raise yours.As for Jim...

McKeon Criticizes Democrat-Passed Spending Bill Disguised as “Stimulus” Republicans aim to stimulate small business and cut taxes, not bloat government WASHINGTON, D.C. – Earlier today, H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, passed the United States House of Representatives with a 244-188 vote. Rep. Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-Santa Clarita) joined his Republican colleagues in denouncing the Democrat plan and uncovered the bill as nothing more than a spending measure cloaked as “stimulus.” McKeon opposed Speaker Pelosi’s legislative package and instead supported the House Republican Economic Recovery Plan. “With California’s unemployment rate up over 9%, it is...

The unanimous vote by House Republicans against President Obama's stimulus plan provided an early indication that the GOP hopes to regain power by becoming the champion of small government, a reputation many felt slipped away during the high-spending Bush years. The bill passed easily despite the opposition of all 177 Republican House members, but party leaders delighted in what they considered a victory after two straight electoral drubbings and much soul-searching about what the party stands for. "How about those House Republicans?" cheered Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), a vocal small-government advocate, at a Heritage Foundation appearance yesterday.

Former Rep. Tom Davis (Va.) will lead the Republican Party's centrist Main Street Partnership, the organization announced Wednesday. Davis, who represented a Northern Virginia district for seven terms, takes over a group self-billed as "the nation’s largest organization of elected centrists." As a member, he led the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) and chaired the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. “The 2006 and 2008 election results make it clear that the Republican Party must — once again — reach out to independent and centrist voters if we are to restore our congressional majorities and return a Republican to the...