Sarah Palin Endorses RINO in California Primary

Graphic swiped from Texas Fred, who has an interesting article about Sarah. Read it.

Sarah Palin waded into the California Senate race on Thursday, endorsing former Hewlett-Packard Chief Executive Carly Fiorina, a Republican, over another candidate who has curried favor with conservative grassroots activists.

“Please consider that Carly is the conservative who has the potential to beat California’s liberal senator, Barbara Boxer, in November,” Palin said on Facebook.

Fiorina is in a tough race against moderate Republican Tom Campbell and Chuck DeVore, who has garnered support from Tea Partiers.

Source: The Daily Caller

Commentary

Are you surprised? Seriously, she has endorsed one of the biggest RINOs of all time, John "King of the RINOs" McCain.

I don't think she realizes that we will remember if she makes a run for President in 2012. 


The real conservative in the California primary is Chuck DeVore. 


Note: I officially broke with Palin when she endorsed John McCain. 




Previously...

Senator John McCain Versus the Arizona GOP

Chris Simcox Drops Out of US Senate Race;
Endorses J.D. Hayworth's Run Against John McCain

The Case Against John McCain in 2010
Or, The Top Eight Reasons to Defeat John McCain

Joe the Plumber:
Against John McCain AND Sarah Palin

John McCain: Enemy of the Conservative Grassroots

Read More

The Case Against John McCain in 2010 Or, The Top Eight Reasons to Defeat John McCain

Photo Credit: A McCain Barf Bag I made during the 2008 Primary to express my disgust

Get ready for a epic rant, because I've received another plea for help from John McCain, despite repeatedly indicating my animosity toward his re-election campaign.


Here is the latest plea from Senator McCain:

My Friend, 

Throughout my life I have faced many challenges that have tested my character and my values. I have met each of these challenges with resolve because I believe that service to our country is my calling in life. I have long said that I owe America more than she has ever owed me and I never doubt that our country is the greatest in the world. 

Today, we face perilous challenges that threaten our nation's economy and security. We are being led down a dangerous path as the current Democratic leaders continue to spend at an unprecedented rate. I have been the leading opponent against them, fighting everyday against wasteful spending and government expansion. However, if I am to continue fighting for our shared values, I must win reelection to the United States Senate. 

I want you to know that I never take any election for granted, and this will surely be the toughest reelection battle I've ever faced. Today, I'm counting on your support for my campaign. Your endorsement means a great deal to me and today, you can show your support by following this link to add your name to the growing list of men and women supporting my campaign. 

I am thankful for each and every person who extends a hand in friendship as I campaign for reelection. I'm proud to have the support of such strong conservatives like Governor Sarah Palin, Grover Norquist, Bill Bennett, and my Arizona colleagues Senator John Kyl and Congressmen Jeff Flake, John Shadegg and Trent Franks. I'm also proud to announce the support of 31 mayors from across Arizona who joined my campaign this week. 

I hope I can count on you to join them by adding your name to our online list of supporters. Please follow this link to add your name today. [link deleted] 

Unfortunately, my primary opponent chose to launch his campaign this week with a litany of lies calling my record of service into question. So I'd like to set the record straight. I'm a fiscal conservative. I'm the one who has fought against earmark projects that my opponent has supported. My opponent's relationship with the disgraced lobbyist, Jack Abramoff led the voters of hisCongressional district to vote him out of office in 2006. And if he is elected to the U.S. Senate, it will be a substantial setback for the conservative values you and I share. 

Today, I sincerely hope you will stand with me by endorsing my candidacy. [link deleted] After adding your name, I ask that you make a generous contribution of $25, $50, $100, or any amount up to the legal limit. Your support, regardless of the amount, will enable me to spread the truth about my record of service across Arizona. 

My friend, this race will be tough, and I believe that I have to earn the votes of the people of Arizona in order to return to the Senate. If you stand with me today, I pledge that I will continue to fight for our shared conservative values. I am a man of my word, and when I make campaign pledges, I keep them. I hope you will show your support for my campaign today. Thank you.

Sincerely,

John McCain, aka The RINO (see photo)

P.S. I never take any election for granted, and I know I must earn the votes necessary to return to the Senate. I am grateful and humbled by the outpouring of support I have received thus far. But, I need to know that you stand with me as well. Will you follow this link to sign our online endorsement form? [link deleted] Your immediate support means a great deal to me. After signing the form, you will be given the opportunity to make a financial contribution to my campaign. Any amount you can give up to the legal limit is greatly appreciated. 

Commentary

 (go grab a cup of coffee and settle in for an epic length post, at least by my standards)

Let me start this rant off by chastising the people he's listed as endorsing him: Governor Sarah Palin, Grover Norquist, Bill Bennett, Senator John Kyl, Congressmen Jeff Flake, John Shadegg and Trent Franks.


What are they thinking??? Why on earth would these conservatives lend their name to a RINO who has damaged the Republican party worse than perhaps any other Republican in a generation? Their names are sullied, stained and brought low by their association with Senator John McCain as supporting his re-election bid. 


John McCain has been in elected office since 1982, when he won the race to become a US Representative. He won re-election in 1984 and in 1986, won an election to the US Senate, where he has been ever since, having won re-election bids in 1992, 1998, and 2004. 


He has been in the US House for 4 years, in the US Senate for 24 years for a total of 28 years spent in our nations capital as an elected official. It is time to retire this guy. 


Here are the major reasons I oppose Senator John McCain's re-election for a fifth 6 year term as a Senator from Arizona:




#1 McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform (Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act)


The act was designed (according to  McConnell v. Federal Election Commission) two issues:


 The increased role of soft money in campaign financing, by prohibiting national political party committees from raising or spending any funds not subject to federal limits, even for state and local races or issue discussion; (this was a violation of Free Speech & a censorship of political speech)


The proliferation of issue advocacy ads, by defining as "electioneering communications" broadcast ads that name a federal candidate within 30 days of a primary or caucus or 60 days of a general election, and prohibiting any such ad paid for by a corporation (including non-profit issue organizations such as Right to Life or the Environmental Defense Fund) or paid for by an unincorporated entity using any corporate or union funds. (this was also a violation of the principle of Free Speech and a Censorship of Political Speech in favor of incumbent politicians)


Part of this act has recently been overturned by the Supreme Court, and I expect most of the rest will eventually be overturned by future courts.




#2 Support of Gun Control Legislation and Banning Small Arms


John McCain supported several efforts in the late 90's to restrict American Second Amendment Rights and even wanted to ban 'cheap handguns' and force people to keep forearms locked up in the privacy of their own homes. He supported legislation that would send a person to prison for traveling through a school zone with a firearm in their vehicle or taking a 15 year-old target practicing with a firearm. 


See "John McCain's Gun Control Problem",  "John McCain  is a Liberal Gun Grabber", and the "GOA's Take on John McCain" (includes a graded score card) for more information.




#3 John McCain's Record Against Tax Cuts and Progressive-style Class Warfare Rhetoric Against Capitalism and the Free Market


He opposed George W Bush's tax cuts in  the 2000 election and in 2001 and 2003, saying "I don’t believe the wealthiest 10% of Americans should get 60% of the tax breaks. I think the lowest 10% should get the breaks", "I am disappointed that the Senate Finance Committee preferred instead to cut the top tax rate of 39.6% to 36%, thereby granting generous tax relief to the wealthiest individuals of our country at the expense of lower- and middle-income American taxpayers" 


For more information, read "John McCain's Top 10 Class-Warfare Arguments Against Tax Cuts", "McCain Switched on Tax Cuts".




#4 Climate Stewardship Act (proposed by John McCain and Joe Lieberman in 2003, 2005, and 2007 Obama was a cosponsor of the 2007 attempt)


The act (if passed) would have capped Carbon Dioxide emissions and crippled US Industry. 


For more information, download PDF's of the proposed legislation according to version (click on the year), 2003, 2005 and 2007. The list of co-sponsors reads like a who's who of RINO Senators and Progressive Democrats...birds of a feather when it comes to proposing legislation that would cripple America Industry if enacted.




#5 The Gang of 14


His membership and leadership of the Gang of 14 in 2005 was the leading factor that destroyed the Republican Party's ability to campaign on Democrat obstructionism in 2006 and cost the Republicans their majority in Congress and (ironically enough) led to the victory of Barack Obama in 2008.


For more information, read "McCain and the Gang of 14" and "The Road Not Taken: Forfeiting a Majority". 




#6 Comprehensive Immigration Reform (first introduced in 2005 as the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act [download PDF], and re-introduced as The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006 [download PDF])


I do not even know where to begin to address all the ways these two bills would have been disastrous for America. The first one was never voted on, and both led to a large uprising of opposition in the Republican Party that rang the phones off the hooks in Washington, DC and filled the email and voicemail boxes of members of Congress to capacity. 


Co-sponsors were Ted Kennedy, Lindsey Graham (who earned the nickname "Grahamnesty" over his participation, and read like a who's who of Progressive Democrats and Progressive Republicans.


The legislation would have allowed Illegal Aliens to jump in line in front of immigrants who had been following the law in becoming citizens of this nation. It would have prohibited state and local law enforcement agencies from assisting federal law enforcement in enforcing immigration law and would have made every town and city in America Sanctuary Cities. Think about that.


#7 Voted for the 2008 US Senate $700 Billion Bailout Bill  (‘‘Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 [download PDF)]


The bill had billions of dollars in earmarks for everything from Wool Research, Wooden Arrows, and Auto Racing Tracks, not to mention that it would have rewarded the poor decision making of businesses and punished business that made smart decisions.


For more information, read "Senate Passes Economic rescue Package", "McCain Says Bailout bill Must Pass".




#8 He is not really a conservative. 


The Almanac of American Politics rates congressional votes as liberal or conservative on the political spectrum, in three policy areas: economic, social, and foreign. For 2005–2006, McCain's average ratings were as follows: the economic rating 59 percent conservative and 41 percent liberal, the social rating 54 percent conservative / 38 percent liberal, and the foreign rating 56 percent conservative / 43 percent liberal.


The American Conservative Union rates John McCain as the 39th most conservative Senator, with  Chafee (formerly R-RI), Collins (R-ME), Snowe (R-ME) and Specter (R-PA) the only Republicans scoring lower than him and more than one Democrat scoring ahead of him. [Download a PDF of the ACU Report] Or, read "McCain's ACU Ratings" for a basic run-down of the ratings given McCain.


So those are the most important reasons conservatives should be seeking to defeat Senator John McCain in 2010.


Further, I would call upon those formerly esteemed conservatives to drop their support of his re-election bid before their names and reputations suffer irreparable damage.

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Conservatives: Beware of McCain Regression Syndrome (He wants to hijack GOP, Tea Party)

By Michelle Malkin

Friday, January 22, 2010

Pay attention: In the afterglow of the Massachusetts Miracle, there are flickers of peril for the right. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but like Paul Revere’s midnight message, consider this warning “a cry of defiance, and not of fear.” Conservatives have worked hard to rebuild after Big Government Republican John McCain’s defeat. But McCain isn’t going gently into that good night.

Red Flag No. One: A reader from Arizona informed me the day after the Bay State Bombshell that he had received a robo-call from Massachusetts GOP Sen.-elect Scott Brown. “He basically wanted me to vote for John McCain in November,” the reader said in his description of the automated campaign call supporting the four-term Sen. McCain’s re-election bid. “No wonder [Brown] said he hadn't had any sleep. … He was busy recording phone messages!”

Red Flag No. Two: Also in the wake of the Massachusetts special election, the nation’s most popular conservative political figure Sarah Palin announced she would be campaigning for her former running mate in Arizona in March. Palin told Facebook followers that she’s going to “ride the tide with commonsense candidates” and help “heroes and statesmen” like McCain.

Facing mounting conservative opposition in his home state and polls showing him virtually tied with possible GOP challenger and former Rep. J.D. Hayworth, McCain welcomed the boost: "Sarah energized our nation and remains a leading voice in the Republican Party."

Savor the irony: After a career spent bashing the right flank of the party, McCain is now clinging to its coattails to save his incumbent hide.

And pay attention to the hidden, more troubling irony: While he runs to the right to protect his seat, McCain’s political machine is working across the country to install liberal and establishment Republicans to secure his legacy.

Source: KTKZ 1380-AM

Commentary

Everyone from Freedom Works to the Ron Paul types have tried to hijack BOTH the GOP and the Tea Party.

We must do whatever we can do make sure John McCain loses his primary this year. I support Chris Simcox. Check him out.

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John McCain: Enemy of the Conservative Grassroots

**4.01am** I just noticed that this is my 4,000th post here at Thunder Pig, made sweeter that it is an anti-McCain piece. WooHoo!!! 

The timing was impeccable. On the day after HarperCollins released the cover photo for Going Rogue — Sarah Palin’s highly anticipated autobiography — Steve Schmidt, John McCain’s former chief campaign advisor, predicted that if Palin were to win the 2012 GOP nomination, “we would have a catastrophic election result.” It was Schmidt, a veteran Republican strategist, who first advised Senator McCain to select Palin as his running mate in 2008. And it was Schmidt who first criticized Governor Palin within the McCain camp as “going rogue.” Asked how Palin’s book might describe their relationship during the election, Schmidt suggested that perhaps he was the “anti-rogue in the running of the campaign.”


Schmidt’s comments provide a nice backdrop to a recent report at Politico (”McCain’s Mission: A GOP Makeover.”) It turns out that the Arizona senator has been positioning himself as a major power broker within the Republican Party hierarchy. He is identified in the article as the party’s titular head; and the erstwhile presidential nominee has been raising money for moderate GOP candidates and hitting the campaign trail for pragmatic allies. As noted in the article:


“I think he’s endorsed people with center-right politics because he has an understanding that the party is in trouble with certain demographics and wants to have a tone that would allow us to grow,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina Republican who is McCain’s closest friend and ally in the Senate.


“At a time when our party is struggling and has a lot of shrill voices and aggressive voices, he’s one that can expand our party,” said John Weaver, a longtime McCain friend and strategist.


This meme of McCain’s reemergence as the GOP’s elder statesman and centrist savior is not likely to go down well among grassroots conservatives. As Bruce McQuain has noted, with reference to Schmidt’s comments above:


Good lord … that’s like Jimmy Carter wanting to reshape the Democratic Party. McCain stands for everything that is wrong with the GOP today. If ever there was someone who found the wrong message for presenting the GOP to the voters, it was John McCain. And the economic problems the country has gone thorough since his defeat have only made his message less acceptable. Schmidt can bellyache all he wants about Sarah Palin, but without her McCain’s election night returns would have been much more dismal than they were.

Source: Pajamas Media (Donald also has an excellent blog called American Power, which has become the go-to site for us NeoCon bloggers)




Commentary


Be sure to read the whole thing at Pajamas Media. As a grassroots activist, I can testify that John McCain is the second most detested Republican on my list. He is exceeded only by the charlatan snake oil salesman from Texas, Ron Paul..


In my eyes, he threw away the 2008 Election when he supported HR 1424 (TARP, aka Troubled Asset Relief Program) and voted for it's passage on October 1, 2008. He showed me that he couldn't be trusted to make the right call when it came to our economy...that vote was a signal to me to keep my recently withdrawn money out of the US Stock Market because, no matter who was elected in January would be a friend to those who wished to invest in the Free Market. 


A personal anecdote regarding McCain being bad for the conservative grassroots. The team of people he had working for him in Western North Carolina (especially the person leading the charge in  Buncombe County...a young college student from SC) could not have been any worse had he gone out and asked the WNC For Change people to run his campaign. They seemed to be more focused on establishing a patronage system for after McCain won the election than actually getting the guy elected. 

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Cheney Chooses Limbaugh over Colin Powell

I love Dick Cheney!!! This video shows that this man calls it like he sees it, and has no time for political correctness.

Former Vice President Cheney wasn't afraid to pick sides this morning on Face the Nation. When asked who he supported in the recent back-and-forth between Rush Limbaugh and Colin Powell, Cheney backed Limbaugh.

Here is more from the CBS News website:

On the heels of an interview with a North Dakota radio station this week in which he advised it would be a mistake for the Republican Party to seek broader appeal by moderating its stance on issues, former vice president Dick Cheney today said there is room in the GOP for moderates.

"I think partly it's a semantic problem," he told CBS News chief Washington correspondent Bob Schieffer on Face The Nation. "I don't think the party ought to move dramatically to the left, for example, in order to try to redefine its base.

"We are what we are. We're Republicans. We have certain things we believe in. And maintaining our loyalty and commitment to those principles is vital to our success."

When asked by Schieffer how the party could broaden its appeal, Cheney said there have been efforts made.

"Jeb Bush, I know, has been working on it," he said, "Eric Cantor, Mitt Romney, trying to find ways to appeal to a broader range of people. I don't have any problem with that. I think that's a good thing to do. But the suggestion our Democratic friends always make is somehow, you know, if you Republicans were just more like Democrats, you'd win elections. Well, I don't buy that. I think we win elections when we have good solid conservative principles to run upon and base our policies on those principles."

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Time for a Third Party?

Longstreet thinks so...

We have heard it said that a third party in America doesn’t stand a chance and that the only hope for conservatives is to stay in the Republican Party and work to change it.

Although, that is a good argument, I hold that it is wrong.

Look, we conservatives have been in the Republican Party in vast numbers since at least the Nixon Administration and we have ALWAYS been treated as the “red-headed-step child.” They tolerate us, so they can get our votes every couple of years, and once the ballots are cast, we are shoved back into the basement and out of sight. I can’t speak for you, but I’m tired of it.

Source: Insight on Freedom

Commentary

Republican Party leaders are most excellent at calling themselves conservative while eschewing the most basic tenets of conservatism. Unless things in the Republican Party change, I predict an exodus of conservatives.

Conservatives will do what Ron Paul should have done in 2008, build a party from the ground up that will be kingmaker or deal breaker for the Republican Party in general elections, and once they started winning seats in a few years...legislation.

I have heard rumblings of a desire to leave the Republican Party since before 2006, and have seen many people change their voter registration to unaffiliated in disgust with the GOP.

The Republican Party has thwarted conservatives like Pat Twoomey, and supported elected RINOs like Arlen Specter (who kept demanding more and more from the party to accommodate HIM), and when Specter left...they look for another RINO, Tom Ridge, because they care more about winning elections over the short term than they do anything else.

The party refuses to engage in a battle for the political soul of America in an effort to "look nice" for the cameras and to "get along" with the political opposition.

Politics is warfare by other means, and it is time the RINOs in the GOP found that out.

Our political system only allows for two power parties as the stable position, especially with FPTP elections. A third party must grow and take the place of one of the other parties in short order (two or three decades) if it is to survive and become a power party. The Republican Party started as a third party...with disgust over the Whigs and a burning desire to end slavery. Christians were in that number of people who started the Republican Party, and they number a good deal of those who are disgusted with the Republican Party now.

So, my fellow conservatives, if we really want to start another party, we must do so on the ground, and compete for election from the local level to the national. Other notable third parties have withered on the vine [Libertarian, Constitutional, etc] because they do not see that what makes up a party is the people on the ground, working in the precincts...unsung heroes who pave the way for candidates at all levels.

With the advent of social networking, we have the tools available...

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Simcox to Challenge McCain in 2010 Primary

Good news! Good news! Good news!

Social conservatives tolerated John McCain as the party's nominee, but never trusted him, and he now appears to be facing a serious primary from the right in Arizona next year.

Chris Simcox, the founder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps and a prominent figure in the movement to clamp down on illegal immigration, will announcing tomorrow at an event on the Mexican border that he's resigned from the group to run in the 2010 Senate primary.

From a forthcoming release:

"John McCain has failed miserably in his duty to secure
this nation's borders and protect the people of Arizona from the escalating violence and lawlessness," Simcox said. "He has fought real efforts over the years at every turn, opting to hold our nation's border security hostage to his amnesty schemes. Coupled with his votes for reckless bailout spending and big government solutions to our nation's problems, John McCain is out of touch with everyday Arizonans. Enough is enough."

Source: Ben Smith's Politico Blog
Hat Tip: Drudge Report


As an aside, I checked Facebook to see if there was a support group...and found one and was the 6th one to join. I will be looking into the proper legal hoops to jump through in order to hold a fundraiser for Chris Simcox...

"I believe in the principles of limited government, strong national defense, and traditional family values. The Constitution remains the law of the landand as a member of the U.S. Senate, my primary goal, if elected, would be to maximize freedom and ensure security and prosperity."

- Chris Simcox

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The Real McCain Emerges, Again

The official McCain Barf bag
What follows is just one more reason that Senator John McCain was a fantastically bad choice for our nominee last year...he just can't help himself when it comes to selling out Republicans and crossing the aisle:

Speaking to the Financial Times, Mr McCain said that the “perfect storm” over AIG “has been as explosive in a short period of time as anything I have seen”.

Mr McCain, who was one of the few Republican senators to vote in favour of Mr Geithner’s nomination after revelations of tax arrears, was speaking at the end of a week in which the Republican Party has targeted Mr Geithner amid mounting public anger over Wall Street bonuses.

“Everyone acknowledges he needs help,” said Mr McCain, in reference to the Obama administration’s difficulty in recruiting nominees to the Treasury department, where Mr Geithner remains the only official to have been confirmed.

Source: Senatus

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Human Events Lists Top 10 Senate RINOs

I'm not really surprised by any of the names on the list as compiled by Human Events based on their ACU ratings...

1. Olympia Snowe, Maine: (ACU Rating: 12) (Only one point higher than liberal Democrat Hillary Clinton who the ACU scored an 11, and an astonishing 4 points lower than Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid’s 16.)

2. Susan Collins, Maine: 20
(Collins received the same score as liberal Claire McCaskill, and 4 points lower than Russ Feingold’s 24)

3. Arlen Specter, PA: 42 (Only 10 points higher than Mary Landrieu’s 32)

4. George Voinovich, OH: 52

5. Lisa Murkowski, AL: 58

6. Mel Martinez, FL: 60

7. John McCain, AZ: 63

8. Richard Lugar, Ind: 63

9. Robert Bennett, UT: 64

10. Thad Cochran, Miss: 68

Hat Tip: PoliPundit

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An Open Letter to Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN)

But first, a portion of the article from Politico:

To simplify the process, Alexander called on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to review how to “consolidate and simplify the forms so that we learn only what we need to know.”

One thing that Alexander said the public didn’t need to know was the tax issue dogging Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk, who is Obama’s nominee to be the U.S. trade representative. Kirk was hit for failing to list as income speaking fees that he gave away to charity — and later was forced to pay back taxes.

“The matter is so trivial as to be irrelevant to his suitability to be the trade nominee,” Alexander said.

Obama is still facing a number of vacancies, including top deputy positions at the Treasury Department, which is helping to direct the government’s efforts to stabilize the economy.

Dear Senator Lamar Alexander:

I read this morning in Politico that you wish to simplify the vetting process for members of Presidential Administration teams. That you wish to “consolidate and simplify the forms so that we learn only what we need to know," and that you consider Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk failing to list income for speaking fees as "so trivial as to be irrelevant to his suitability to be the trade nominee."

I am beside myself with utter incomprehension of why you would fail to see the point of properly vetting these people for public service.

Someone with tax problems could be a target of an espionage operation (foreign, domestic, or industrial) designed to take advantage of threatening to expose those lapses of moral judgment in order to gain information or pollute the decision making process of an administration, or in a department of an administration. And that is just the first thing that comes to my mind.

Could you please provide for me a list of laws and regulations we can ignore and still be considered for a position in public service?

There should be nothing about the vetting or approval process that should be "easy", "streamlined", or designed to designate certain tax law violations as "trivial."

If you were a normal person (or even a conservative), you would realize that there is nothing trivial about a tax problem if you have ever had the experience of dealing with the IRS.

Please think a little on what party you belong to, and what that party is supposed to stand for, Senator.

If more Republicans were like you, I suppose President Obama would feel free to nominate Bill Ayers for Secretary of Education and George Soros for Secretary of the Treasury.

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