Five Things you should know today August 30, 2012

#2 - Well, well, well! (0.00 / 0)

So a delegate lets the mask slip and says he won't vote for Romney while on the floor. I'm shocked! You should have been more harsh in your criticism. This kind of fiasco shows that the MassGOP was right to be suspicious of this group.

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by: edfactor @ Thu Aug 30, 2012 at 12:22:09 PM UTC

It WAS ONE GUY (0.00 / 0)

Ed,

There was one guy.  I've talked to people on both sides and its this ONE GUY.  

I thought I was pretty harsh.  I said he pulled a Tarr.

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by: Rob "EaBo Clipper" Eno @ Thu Aug 30, 2012 at 12:32:21 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I forgot (0.00 / 0)

That you were way too harsh on Senator Tarr. ;-)

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by: edfactor @ Thu Aug 30, 2012 at 12:41:40 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

yeah (0.00 / 0)

So you pick on some insignificant delegate and it's ok.  And one of the leaders of our party won't endorse a republican over a democrat and i'm the harsh one.  yep.  

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by: Rob "EaBo Clipper" Eno @ Thu Aug 30, 2012 at 12:53:21 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

No one should endorse just because of party (0.00 / 0)

It's not so hard for someone to become a Republican candidate for the legislature, is it? I would hope that it takes more than just hearing that someone is also a Republican to get Tarr's endorsement, and he would make sure they were serious and worthy and not strange libertarian cultists claiming to be Republican with no understanding or respect for government.

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by: John Howard @ Sat Sep 01, 2012 at 22:29:33 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

???? (0.00 / 0)

Too harsh on Tarr? You can't be serious. Both of these clowns need to get their acts together.

Gary Johnson is just as much as a joke as David Torrisi. No Republican in a place of authority (a delegate, or Senate Minority Leader) should be wavering in their support of a Republican for office.

I'm the first to say that I think the RINO hunting stuff has been taken way to far. But this is actually the sort of damage caused by disloyal Republicans that needs to be called out.  

(R)- Outside 495

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by: MerrimackMan @ Thu Aug 30, 2012 at 15:55:26 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

edfactor - I seriously don't think you (0.00 / 0)

are familiar enough with either Rhoton or Torrissi if you can say that.  Please consider doing your own due diligence, and then tell me if it is possible to be too harsh on Tarr.  It defies everything R should stand for that Tarr could in any way support Torrissi, never mind the obligatory aspect of supporting all Rs.

Full disclosure, I do not believe in unilaterally supporting all Rs if they are RINOS or even Ds in disguise.  It is the person, values, their integrity and more.  In this instance Rhoton has it all and Tarr has NO EXCUSE.  

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by: Term Limits @ Fri Aug 31, 2012 at 03:06:18 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Sigh (0.00 / 0)

Boy, there is no room for a nuanced opinion in the Republican party, eh?

I know almost nothing about Senator Tarr, the sitting Democrat, or Ms. Rhoton.

This "scandal" is about this:

Senator Tarr goes to a fundraiser for Karin Rhoton, to listen to what she has to say. (Going to an event to hear someone speak is sure not coming out against them!) At that fundraiser, he tells the newspaper that he wants to encourage Republicans to run for office. (so far so good)

He points out that it isn't easy to endorse someone against a Democrat whom you like personally, disgree with, but have worked together on legislation for a long time.

Rhoton, on her website the next morning says, "Senator Tarr has been very supportive of my race thus far."

At the time, on Facebook, I said that Tarr's attitude was disappointing, but it is often difficult to publicly endorse the opponents of people whom you work with, because if you're not careful, it can make it harder to work with those people. I pointed out, as an example, that in the U.S. Senate, for many years, sitting senators did not actively campaign against other sitting senators from the opposite party, in order to help the senate work better.

I said that this is most likely the philosophy Tarr was adhering too. That all being said, I said that Tarr should do more, and surely there is some way to get behind her in a way that isn't toxic to relationships on Beacon Hill.

So why is this such a big deal to activists? Because they say, with some justification, that some long-time Republicans on the hill have become too accommodating to the Democrats and don't fight hard enough to get more people in our party in office. (The near-empty senate PAC account is another example.)

I think there is merit to this argument, but that does not mean, as some say, that our sitting legislators are a big reason we don't have more Republicans in office. I think it is a very, very small reason. There are much larger and more powerful forces that explain our pathetic numbers.

As for Tarr - I think that he should have been given a chance to explain himself better. (Perhaps he has and I have missed it.)  On RMG, it's almost always shoot first and ask for comment later. The worst motives are too often assumed. But to be so rough on a Republican Senator - when getting to the Senate is nearly impossible for us - I thought was too harsh. I would have liked to hear from him on this site. If his explanation was terrible, and he could not point to evidence of helping new people be elected, then yes, he deserves criticism for that.

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by: edfactor @ Fri Aug 31, 2012 at 15:15:40 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

its easy ed (5.00 / 1)

He is the MINORITY leader.  He doesn't get to non endorse.  If that was say Bob Hedlund no harm, no foul. Tarr is the MINORITY LEADER it is his JOB to endorse every GOP candidate. If he doesn't want to, he simply can give up the extra pay and go back to being a backbencher.  

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by: Rob "EaBo Clipper" Eno @ Fri Aug 31, 2012 at 16:03:36 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Question (4.00 / 1)

Can you have a back bench with only four people?

"Those are my principles. If you don't like them I have others."
-Gabriel Gomez

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by: Jefferson Nix @ Sat Sep 01, 2012 at 20:17:30 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

ed, appreciate your (0.00 / 0)

expanding on your thoughts.  Agree to a large extent, but because of the record of the two candidate/incumbent (s), I find Tarr's lack of full support AND THEN SOME, a disgrace. That and "The near-empty senate PAC account is another example."

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by: Term Limits @ Fri Aug 31, 2012 at 19:00:36 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

About that Senate PAC.... (0.00 / 0)

While we're on the subject....

Can someone tell me why it matters that the MassGOP Senate PAC is empty or that Senator Tarr hasn't raised money for it?

So, let's first cover the reasons PACs exist:

1. They help people who have maxed out to individual candidates give more money.

2. The support a particular cause.

3. Maybe you think the PAC manager is smarter than the person managing the campaign (and the money would be spent better)

A MassGOP Senate PAC is pretty redundant, vis-a-vis giving to candidates. It is purely to help Senate candidates outside the giving limits for individuals and other party organizations.(i.e. it is not about any particular issue - just the candidates)

So, I would ask this:

How often do our contributors to Senate candidates run up against the limits? Is this a really big problem? I imagine it is not.  

The Senate PAC is probably empty because there is no real need for it. People just give to the candidates.

Of course, it sounds like a scandal - out of context - that it is empty. I think it would matter more if Senator Tarr wasn't helping candidates in other ways, behind the scenes. I have no idea what he is doing. But I think that blaming him for the Senate PAC seems unfair without claiming what purpose it would serve.

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by: edfactor @ Fri Aug 31, 2012 at 20:13:43 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

ED!!! (0.00 / 0)

We have next to no Rs in the senate, and the ones we have seem to be becoming, or already are, LIFERS, thus very cozy with their D counterparts which is what started this discussion, i.e., Tarr's 'loyalty' to Torissi! There is an open seat, Baddour's, a D, (who was one of Tarr's closest buddies), that has been a D seat for over a decade.  If you don't think that Senate PAC money will be desperately needed to stand a chance by not just the machine, but the ultimate, well connected and entrenched hack Manzi, I assure you the dems are practically a shoe in.  

Sure they MIGHT get help from the GOP, but likely minimal, and a dedicated fund to increase our numbers in the Senate would, or could make all the difference, because someone like Sam Meas, an excellent choice for that position, cannot raise close to what is needed to defeat Manzi.

While we're on the subject....  from the Herald:  On the Republican side, Sam Meas's fitness for the nomination goes far beyond his compelling personal history (he escaped the Cambodian killing fields as a teen). Meas, of Haverhill, supports rolling back the state income and sales taxes and decries the closed-door culture on Beacon Hill. He is an excellent choice for Republicans.

 

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by: Term Limits @ Sat Sep 01, 2012 at 08:19:00 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

OK (0.00 / 0)

Glad to hear about Meas. I hope he does well.

As for the Senate - the reason we lose so often is that these districts are large enough to include urban voter groups who won't vote for us (unmarried young women, gays, Hispanics and other minorities, etc). Let's face it - in the cities the GOP brand sucks. We're just the angry, self-righteous white guys!

As for the Senate PAC - show me the fundraising records for MassGOP senate candidates, and you will probably find very few people who maxed out - making the PAC unimportant.

And this isn't all about money.  We need better infrastructure, and a better brand. The amount of money necessary to win without those things is extraordinary.

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by: edfactor @ Sat Sep 01, 2012 at 11:27:17 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Thats bunk (0.00 / 0)

The money buys insfrastructure.  The money buys brand.  The money helps.  The senate PAC is the infrastructure that is broken.  it's not all about electrons.


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by: Rob "EaBo Clipper" Eno @ Sat Sep 01, 2012 at 17:36:10 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

OR (0.00 / 0)

Term Limits would go a long way to not only get rid of all the Dem incumbents so well funded and entrenched, but to avoid the few Rs we have from being there so long they forget they're not supposed to help spearhead the Dems socialists' agenda!

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by: Term Limits @ Mon Sep 03, 2012 at 03:42:08 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

First chance to watch the speakers last night.... (0.00 / 0)

I like Paul Ryan, but he is a bit canned in his delivery of a speech.  Overall his speech was a 7 on a 10 scale.

On the other hand Dr Condi Rice was a 8.5 on a 10 scale.  I really, really like, appreciate and admire that great lady.  It was fun watching her wratchet up her tone during the speech to bring it to a big finish...

We are headed for a 'Fiscal Cliff' and the country just elected a dope whose motto is 'Forward'.  

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by: Vote3rdpartynow @ Thu Aug 30, 2012 at 12:29:40 PM UTC

All of us are representatives (0.00 / 0)

Unfortunately and unfairly, any one of us who makes a statement that can be used to help Obama becomes part of the problem in this tight race. Recalling how we tea partiers were embarrassed by one senior citizen carrying a sign "keep the government's hands off my Medicare". Each one of us is an ambassador to the undecideds for the Good Side.
Aside from this, congratulations Republicans on a fantastic speaking roster. Condi Rice, yes! And wasn't Susana Martinez terrific? she was my candidate for VP until I learned how difficult it would be for her to leave her family now. Someday though....

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by: Barbara Anderson @ Thu Aug 30, 2012 at 14:00:31 PM UTC