I’ll admit it right here and now: I absolutely LOVE watching conservative-on-conservative action.
No, not that kind of action, you perv. THIS kind of action:
At a Graham town hall in Greenville yesterday, activist Harry Kimball of “RINO HUNT” protested by constructing a display that depicted Graham, as well as moderates like Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), being flushed down a toilet:
KIMBALL: This is for every RINO who has failed to represent us. […] [the toilet represents] flushing them, flushing them
Honey, pop us some popcorn.
At the town hall meeting, Graham basically told his detractors to go Cheney themselves:
GRAHAM: I’m going to grow this party, I’m not going to let it get [inaudible], I’m not going to let it be hijacked by Ron Paul. […] I’m going to find people in Maine, Delaware, Illinois, other places…
AUDIENCE: Move there!
GRAHAM: …that can win as Republicans, and I’m going to go up, and we’re going to move this party, and this country forward, and if you don’t like it, you can leave.
Oh, SNAP!
Or how about this little bit o’ fun?
An argument has broken out, perhaps inevitably, between Tea Party activists and one of the groups that has laid claim to the Tea Party mantle. The self-described grassroots activists in Tea Party Patriots and the American Liberty Alliance see the Tea Party Express as a sham organization, using the political heft of the movement to push a bland, partisan Republican agenda. Privately and publicly, they accuse the Tea Party Express of being an “astroturf” outfit, a scheme for Republican strategists and candidates to take advantage of a movement that was chugging along fine without them.
“Right now,” said Tea Party Patriots national organizer Jenny Beth Martin, “we can’t be involved with PACs. We want to make sure the organizations we align with are in line with our core values–that they’re not just supporting one party over the other. There could be a point to the Tea Party Express, but I don’t think its goal is the best goal.”
Oh, really? The Tea Party Patriots and the Tea Party Expressers are fighting? Oh, that’s just beautiful. Gimme some of that action, Jim.
The local organizers didn’t want the Express to come [to Houston]; the Express put their cities on the map anyway. In response, Houston Tea Party organizer Josh Parker released a blistering statement declaring that his group did “not promote, support, or endorse the activities of the ‘Our Country Deserves Better’ PAC and its ‘Tea Party Express’ bus tour,” and that “a growing number of Tea Party organizers in the country are disclaiming any association with TPE.” A Houston organizer, Judy Holloway, grumbled, “I call it the astro-turf express.”
SNAP, SNAP, and double SNAP!
And then there’s the Republicans threatening Olympia Snowe saying they will deny her an all-but-certain peach position, filling a vacancy in an important Senate committee:
A Senate Democrat on the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee said Republicans on the panel are threatening to vote against Snowe, who is in line for the senior GOP post that is about to come open.
“Wake up,” the Democrat told a reporter last week when questioned if the Republicans would retaliate against Snowe for crossing party lines.
Yeah, dude, wake the eff UP! Snowe is about to pay for her transgression. That’s whatchya might call a “Senate SNAP”!
A little closer to home (for me), here in Michigan, there was much to-do about the Republican Policy Conference that happened recently on Mackinac Island. Turns out some of the contenders got a bunch of college students up there, luring them with free rooms and, apparently, free booze even though they were underage and swayed the straw poll by getting the kids to vote for them. One girl blogged about it and then subsequently wrote an apology letter to one of the candidates saying she couldn’t drink at HIS party, just his opponents’ parties.
Date: Fri, Oct 9, 2009 at 12:29 PM
Subject: Dear Rick Snyder
Dear Mr. Snyder,
It was with great regret when I read the Detroit News story this morning that implied your campaign had anything to do with my blog posting. That couldn’t have been further from the truth. The fact is, when I tried to attend your gathering on Saturday night, I was turned away at the door because I was not 21. Even more so, the only gubernatorial parties I attended were ones hosted by Attorney General Mike Cox and Sheriff Mike Bouchard. While I am not willing to discuss this with the media, I do think it is important that the record is set straight on this matter.
Sincerely,
Vanessa Oblinger
BUT Newsflash: SHE didn’t write the letter, staffers for the candidate did. Apparently it was a nice technique to smear his opponents who include Michigan Attorney General, Republican Mike Cox (yes, that’s his real name.)
Can I get a “Coed-SNAP”???
While all political parties face internecine fighting like this, it has traditionally been progressives that have suffered the most from it. But now it’s the conservatives that are fighting amongst themselves in ways that dilute their strength. I think you can trace the origin of this recent phenomenon to the McCain campaign, particularly after he chose Sarah Palin as his running mate. The sniping back and forth between members of his campaign staff began almost immediately (and quite publicly) and, well, it’s been Popcorn Time since then.
Did I happen to mention how much I love this?
I’m just sayin’…
