Democratic Reaction to Gilmore Nomination, Frederick Victory

By: Lowell
Published On: 5/31/2008 4:07:10 PM

Mark Warner's campaign has issued a statement reacting to Jim Gilmore's 65-vote "victory" today.

When Jim Gilmore was governor, he showed he could not work with a legislature controlled by his own party on important issues like the budget, so it's not surprising that members of his own party do not want to work with Jim Gilmore now. That's also why we're seeing unprecedented Republican and independent support for Governor Warner's honest and responsible record of leadership.

UPDATE #2: I'm on a conference call with Democratic Party of Virginia Chairman C. Richard Cranwell and Virginia House of Delegates Minority Leader, Del. Ward Armstrong to discuss the Republican Party of Virginia's decision to nominate Jim Gilmore as their candidate for the US Senate.

UPDATE #3: Dick Cranwell said it amazing that Jim Gilmore could only win the nomination by 65 votes.  Cranwell added that the slash and burn politics Gilmore engaged in are no longer in vogue.  Gilmore's not breaking out of the starting gate in a way that would win the Triple Crown.

Ward Armstrong said that it was remarkable that the former governor couldn't muster a better vote than that.  Of course, "he nearly wrecked the finances of the state."  Mark Warner inherited a $6 billion shortfall, spent the rest of his term cleaning up Gilmore's mess.  Gilmore has very slim support in his own party. Moderates have flocked to Mark Warner in droves; who's left to vote for Jim Gilmore if conservatives don't like him and moderates are far Mark Warner?  Maybe Jim Gilmore and his wife?

On Jeff Frederick, Del. Armstrong said that his seat is a Democratic seat by demographics, and that Frederick's either going to resign or not seek reelection. Definitely a possible pickup for Democrats.

Either Cranwell or Armstrong commented that the Republican concept appears to be, we're selling watermelons for $1 and people it costs us $2, let's get a bigger truck.

Cranwell said these guys are "reaping what they've sowed," including 4 of 6 years in which they've had to extend the session to get a budget agreement.  Virginia is a microcosm of what's going on nationally with Bush and Cheney.

Armstrong said that anyone who follows politics would say that Virginia will be in play for president this year.  "Clearly, this state is turning bluer by the minute."  Republicans in this state are "severely fractured," in disarray and moving further away from the mainstream.

Comments



Warner's Positive Politics (cycle12 - 5/31/2008 4:34:53 PM)
Just a few diaries below this one, please take a look at Mark Warner's first TV ad:  He mentions the budget mess that he inherited and solved as Virginia's Governor, but he never mentions who made the mess...

Ahhh... Mark Warner and the power of positive politics...

Steve



DPVA press release (Lowell - 5/31/2008 4:52:42 PM)
Virginia Democrats Congratulate New GOP Chairman
Del. Jeff Frederick promises to march a far-right party even further toward the fringe  

Richmond - Today, after months of brutal infighting, the Republican Party of Virginia has a new chairman: Delegate Jeffrey M. Frederick of Prince William County.

Frederick's victory follows a campaign of the sort we Democrats are used to seeing from him - vicious, mean-spirited, and built on falsehoods.

We expect to see plenty of the same from Jeff in the coming weeks and months, but his first challenge will surely be healing a massive number of self-inflicted wounds across the state GOP. Joining his efforts will be another slash-and-burn campaigner, Jim Gilmore, who received the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate earlier in the day with just 50.3% of the vote.

Here's a sampling of what his fellow Republicans have said about their new chairman:

   "[T]his is the central problem with Jeff Frederick's campaign for Chairman.  He will say anything - launch any attack - to satisfy his own ambition.  He has viciously attacked the Republican Speaker of the House, local Republican volunteers, and our volunteer Congressional District Chairmen.  Anyone who doesn't support him is subject to these outrageous attacks." - John Hager, former Republican Party Chairman and Lt. Governor

   "Try as I might, I could find almost nothing that Jeff Frederick actually plans to do, or how he intends to rally our party after he has spent weeks blaming anyone and anything that stands in his way." - Lee Talley, 2nd Senatorial District Chairman

   "From where I sit, your entire campaign has set out to besmirch the Party as a whole, threaten or ridicule those who do not support you and apparently just makes things up when the truth doesn't suit." - Mike Wade, 3rd District Committee Chairman

Frederick has also promised that he will not run for reelection to the House of Delegates in 2009.

"We congratulate Jeff Frederick for his victory, and wish him luck in presiding over his greatly fractured party," said Democratic Party of Virginia executive director Levar Stoney. "Virginia Republicans now have a far-right chairman to match their far-right candidates. I like our odds."



I heard all three candidates interviewed on Hearsay (Johnny Longtorso - 5/31/2008 5:11:58 PM)
And there was an obvious difference. Warner and Marshall actually talked about issues -- granted, Marshall spent the entire hour going on about abortion and immigration, but it was better than Gilmore's performance, which was "tax cuts tax cuts tax cuts" and "Mark Warner is bad because blah blah blah" for the entire hour, not once bothering to actually say anything positive.


Excellent comment by a Republican (Lowell - 5/31/2008 5:53:29 PM)
over at NLS:

I am a Republican, but I'm still not comfortable with the wacky GOP I encountered south of the Mason-Dixon line. I've lived in Virginia for years, but I can't get used to it. This is not the Republican party I grew up with, not by a long shot. In Virginia they define themselves by what they are anti- rather than what they stand for. Like individual rights and responsibility.

Honestly, I am a toss up for Mark Warner versus Gilmore. I said I never vote for Gilmore again, not even for dogcatcher, and believe he was a lousy governor and don't apologize to anyone in my party for feeling that way. I don't know what I'll do. I guess I'll ignore that race and do what my conscience tells me in the voting booth.

Also, I will say that I am very tired of seeing people like George Allen paraded out like they are the face of my party. Allen lost. He deserved to. He said a very stupid and inappropriate thing that cost him a lot of votes. Not one of our high points. As with any person who chooses public service, he has my thanks for what he did in the past (some of which was good), but he is not where I see a healthy Republican party looking for answers.

This is not a good day for Republicans. I'm sure some of my colleagues are too off in la-la land to see it, but we're getting less and less relevant in this state every day.



I totally understand how that writer/commenter feels (snolan - 6/1/2008 9:30:24 AM)
My wife and I were both Republicans from very liberal regions.  She from the Detroit area of Michigan, and me from all-over (Air Force brat) and graduating high school in New York state.  It could be argued that I was only conservative to piss off an overly zealous and pushy liberal Femocrat 11th grade history teacher, but that subversive nature stuck with me for many years and I actually voted for Reagan and Bush the elder when I was in the Air Force myself (though I regret both votes now).

I could not bring myself to vote for Clinton (Bill) because I did not trust him, but I completely despised Bush the elder and the entire Republican party by the time Clinton ran a second time...  because by then I'd moved to Virginia, and discovered the abomination against the separation of church and state that is the Republican Party of Virginia (and probably in many Southern states).

I believe in individual rights, fiscal responsibility, having a strong military, staying out of people's private lives.  When I grew up that is what I thought the Republican party was all about.  Over the years I have learned that my belief was founded on propaganda, and that the Republican party is against most of the things I believe in.  Our military suffers from neglect at the hands of profit-motivated Republican administration and lawmakers.  Government spending is higher than ever under Republican leadership.  Our individual rights and even our private sexual and family lives are being intruded upon by bedroom activity legislators like Bob Marshall.  Yes he lost the convention this weekend, but it was a very close thing.

Thank you to the Republican Party of Virginia for waking me up to some fundamental truths and slowly nudging me through Libertarian, Reform, and Green parties to be a Democrat.  Still pretty independent, but actively Democrat by contribution, volunteer effort, and research.



Greetings (citizenindy - 6/2/2008 9:16:02 AM)
I strongly urge you to go back and study the issues

Hopefully Obama and McCain will debate and the differences between them will become true

Also in 2009 for the governors race there will be significant differences especially as the CW suggests Moran ends up being the D nominee



May 31st, 2008... (Kindler - 6/1/2008 9:07:04 AM)
...the day that the Republican Party of Virginia officially jumped the shark!