tag:www.thedonovan.com,2012://1/tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532- 2012-03-24T15:11:28Z We're the Military and Airpower Guys of Jonah Goldberg of National Review Online + a stray we found wandering around looking lost. All original material JHD, BHD, JR, WT, and KA 2003-2010 Movable Type 4.12 tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532 2009-11-04T13:56:32Z 2009-11-04T15:07:36Z

The Armorer http://www.thedonovan.com
Now to see what message who takes away from it - aside from the Dems spinning the NY-23 election as the single most important indicator of anything that occured yesterday and those two governorships as meaningless, and the Republicans spinning them (probably more correctly, but no doubt overstated) as the opposite.

That said - the Republicans need to understand that what happened yesterday wasn't Republicans going to the polls and making a difference.

It was the conservatives and others in the mushy middle, who don't necessarily consider themselves Republicans (waves hand) or Democrats trying to get the attention of incumbents.

And the RINOs got a real message - might as well jump ship if the only difference between you and a Democrat is the letter denoting party.

That's my simple take, admittedly from out here where the only things at stake were local issues - and the locals voted to impose or keep taxes that made sense and were explained adequately, and rejected some that weren't.

One thing it did show - if the vote's not close, it's much harder to lie, cheat, and steal your way into an office.]]> tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95100 Casey http://www.thegantry.net/blog
The GOP has to realize that the Tea Party folks are just as pissed at them as they are at the Dems. This is NOT a "conservative" movement, per se.

]]> 2009-11-06T18:23:38Z 2009-11-06T18:23:38Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95045 fdcol63 Botox ain't helpin' Pelosi ..... at all. LOL 2009-11-05T16:52:19Z 2009-11-05T16:52:19Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95044 RPL
Regardless of the Democratic spin, if you take a look at the down state races across the country, and especially in CT, PA, and NY, the Republicans came up big winners. As hard as the MSM and D's will try to spin it, Hoffman came from polling at 13% of the vote to nearly winning it (Thanks, Fred and Sarah).

We'll see what happens in 2010, but right now I'll take another one of these Democratic successes next year.]]> 2009-11-05T16:17:14Z 2009-11-05T16:17:14Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95041 BillT http://www.thedonovan.com
Tim Waite, Chairman of the DNC said, "It didn't go our way," about the same time San Fran Nan was chirping, "From our perspective, we won."]]> 2009-11-05T12:04:36Z 2009-11-05T12:04:36Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95036 Fishmugger
To win one needs organization...that is the reason for the Party system. It starts at County Committee level and works up. To win you must get out YOUR voters, and that is done at the grass roots level with a good organization. Obama proved that with all the caucuses victories against the Clinton Machine.

Yes the candidate is important and the message is important but if you don't energize the troops all the TV adds are wasted. Regan got out his VOTERS, Clinton got out his VOTERS and yes Bush 43 got out his VOTERS...better then their opponents.

Independents are nice for the News hour or as spoilers but the two Parties will make the difference. Find one that supports your views and work like hell.]]> 2009-11-04T20:40:01Z 2009-11-04T20:40:01Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95034 John of Argghhh! http://www.thedonovan.com 2009-11-04T19:48:37Z 2009-11-04T19:48:37Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95033 fdcol63 Whoops ... previous comment being held for approval. Guess the link in it caused the quarantine. [Not anymore. Any time a comment has two or more URLs in it, it gets held as an anti-spam safeguard. Quickest way to liberate your comment is to send me an email! -the Armorer] 2009-11-04T19:30:53Z 2009-11-04T19:30:53Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95032 fdcol63
As this New York Observer article mentions, in reference to Obama vs Clinton in the Dem primaries last year, early voting may be a "well-intentioned concept that has exploded in popularity while fundamentally undermining the fairness of elections", because "two different electorates ma[k]e up their minds after watching two very different campaigns. This is a violation of the democratic spirit, which demands that all voters have access to the same basic information before rendering their judgments."

http://www.observer.com/2008/big-problem-early-voting
]]> 2009-11-04T19:30:01Z 2009-11-04T19:30:01Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95028 jim b http://www.v4asa.org '1. Dede forked us bad. She took it personal that a conservative refused accept the decision of the county heads and she believed that because she has been a good little soldier at the state level, she had earned the step up to the big leagues.'

Hoffman is to be commended for the guts to try. The "you gotta work your way up" mentality is thick around here. Our candidate has no political history, just one as a Marine. I can already feel the resistance from the blue blood Republicans, because he has not worked his way up from 'Chairman of the Waterboard ...or whatever"

Like Hoffman said, this is one battle not a war. Lessons learned can be survival down the road.]]> 2009-11-04T18:06:37Z 2009-11-04T18:06:37Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95026 Jon the Mechanic http://frozenindrum.blogspot.com
1. Dede forked us bad. She took it personal that a conservative refused accept the decision of the county heads and she believed that because she has been a good little soldier at the state level, she had earned the step up to the big leagues.
When she got beaten like a red headed foster kid, she got vindictive and tossed her support behind Owens instead of following the lead of the Jefferson county and national Republican parties.

2. She was out messaged and out campaigned by both sides. Owens and Hoffman were successful in dictating the message, and Dede didn't do squat in the race. Her signs looked bad, her commercials were weak, and I didn't see much energy from her offices.

3. Doug, while being a good guy to talk to in a one on one situation, is NOT a public speaker. I  cringed  every time he was on TV, because he is an accountant, and lives up to all the accountant stereotypes.

4. Many of us Hoffman volunteers are afraid that since Hoffman lost last night, the next election up here is going to contain another DIABLO (Democrat In All But Label Only).
]]> 2009-11-04T17:41:41Z 2009-11-04T17:41:41Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95022 jim b http://www.v4asa.org Some thoughts.

In two cases traditional Republican candidates defeated Democrats for a governor slot. One was in VA and one in NJ. They were the beneficiaries of the TEA Party uprising.
The one so many people had hopes for in New York went down.
“ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Democrat Bill Owens has captured the special election for a New York congressional seat that became a fight over the identity of the Republican Party.
Owens defeated Conservative Doug Hoffman and Republican Dierdre Scozzafava (skoh-zuh-FAH'-vuh) in the heavily Republican 23rd congressional District in rural northern New York. Scozzafava abruptly withdrew Saturday and supported Owens.”
The TEA Party people were heavily invested in this one. It was a traditional “Republican” district. So what went wrong? Since everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, here is mine:
1. Doug Hoffman had one of the worst on camera presences that I have ever seen. It was as if when words came out of his mouth, he was surprised. He repeatedly referred to himself as a “Reagan Republican”. The comparison between him and Reagan visually did not compute.
2. Hoffman lacked (pardon me for using that cliché) gravitas. He lacked depth and spontaneity.
3. Six percent of Republicans voted in protest for Scozzafava. I believe a lot of “Blue Blood” Republicans sat out altogether.
4. I believe that this reinforces my contention that few if any third party candidates have a chance.
5. That also reinforces my contention that the only way to play this is to run conservative Dems and Republicans for office.
6. The Independent vote is critically important. It carried the day both in VA and in NJ.
7. Hoffman was also the exact opposite in the way of appearance of a “rock star” which this country has come to crave.
8. Summary, it is amazing that he got as many votes as he did, he appeared to be weak and unsure of himself.
The Tea Party movement made a difference in VA and NJ. The lesson learned is that not just any candidate, even when supported by the TEA Party movement, can win. I know Hoffman claimed to be a life- long Republican, but he did in fact run as an Independent. I believe a lot of people are not comfortable for whatever reason with “third party” types. Also the obvious presence of the “TEA Party” mobilizes the Moonbats.
]]> 2009-11-04T17:05:36Z 2009-11-04T17:05:36Z tag:www.thedonovan.com,2009://1.11532-comment:95019 Barb http://barbette.blogspot.com 2009-11-04T15:26:18Z 2009-11-04T15:26:18Z