Sunday, May 3, 2009

The Man With The Plan

Dear Phil Valentine:

I am intrigued by your ideas and would like to subscribe to your newsletter:
First, there's the matter of Specter's motivation. If he was down by 15 points against his potential GOP primary rival, that alone speaks volumes about where Pennsylvania Republicans are heading.

Conservatism is dead? Hardly. Pennsylvania may be the proverbial canary in the coal mine. Specter didn't jump from the GOP ship. He was shoved overboard.

And Specter may not be the last moderate Republican to leave the party simply to keep his precious seat in Washington. Chris Simcox, founder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, has cranked up his campaign to unseat John McCain next year in the Republican primary. Former congressman-turned-talk-show-host J.D. Hayworth may also jump in. If McCain sees himself coming in second or third in a Republican primary he may just pull a Specter in order to save face.

Shhh ..... don’t tell Phil Valentine that as the Republican Party gets ever more conservative, they also become less appealing to the majority of voters. Sure, Pennsylvania Republicans shoved Arlen Specter overboard. But this purge of moderates doesn't signify the GOPs strength, but rather it's self-destruction.

I hope they keep it up. If John McCain is too liberal for you, heck if George W. Bush is too liberal for you, then you’re about to go off a cliff. And if you’re going to launch fringe-right primary candidates against folks like John McCain, then you’re going to take the GOP over that cliff with you.

So I have just one question: where can I send a donation?