Backroom Battles

I’m a little behind on this one _[1]because I’ve been busy and had my mind on other things. Tonight I saw this mentioned again and again (and am, of course, jumping on the bandwagon- wahoo!). If this doesn’t get people fired up and ready to start their own damned party, I don’t know what will…hmmph! What a dream to get all the “good” Dems together, form another party, and let the DINOs play amongst themselves (they might actually admit their Bush-bots at that point).

I’m so about to beat a dead horse (sadly missed, by the way) so if it’s ugly to you then look away now.

But no sooner did Hackett enter the Senate race last October than Brown announced his candidacy for Senate, reversing an earlier decision he had made to stay out of the race.

With Brown, a party insider, on board, the Democratic establishment quickly began pulling away from the fiery Hackett. Schumer, after having wooed him in August, called again in October. â€œSchumer didnâ€™t tell me anything definitive,â€ Hackett told me at the time. â€œBut Iâ€™m not a dumb ass, and I know what he wanted me to do.â€ Hackett, a maverick who relishes the fight, decided to buck the Beltway insiders, and stay in the race.

And so, because Hackett decided he was going to go his own and (fatally) let Ohioans decide who we wanted for our Democratic candidate the “Swift Boating” began in whispers. I do have to admit that I hadn’t heard the rumor that Hackett was guilty of war crimes, still it’s sickening that someone would do that again. Now it seems that it was Hackett’s allies-at-the-time who were doing the smearing.

Swift boats soon appeared on the horizon. A whisper campaign started: Hackett committed war crimes in Iraqâ€”and there were photos. â€œThe first rumor that I heard was probably a month and a half ago,â€ Dave Lane, chair of the Clermont County Democratic Party, told me the day after Hackett pulled out of the race. â€œI heard it more than once that someone was distributing photos of Paul in Iraq with Iraqi war casualties with captions or suggestions that Paul had committed some sort of atrocities. Who did it? I have no idea. It sounds like a Republican M.O. to me, but I have no proof of that. But if it was someone on my side of the fence, I have a real problem with that. I have a hard time believing that a Democrat would do that to another Democrat.â€

Oh, I feel your pain, Paul, I feel your pain. There is nothing worse than a betrayal by one of your own. Like middle-school children the underdog didn’t go along with the clique so the clique went to work behind the scenes. Unfortunately they ultimately won. But it was not just to Paul Hackett’s detriment. It hurt us, too. Because if we can’t trust our own to help us defeat the Bush-bot predators then who is there? Paul Hackett fell because of D.C. and their power-mad frenzy. It must be in the water there.

Brown campaign spokesperson Joanna Kuebler declined to respond to the rumors. She offered this prepared statement: â€œThis campaign has never been about Paul Hackett or about Sherrod Brown. This campaign is about the hard working people of Ohio, and what Republican corruption has done to them.â€

Isn’t that quaint? The “hard working people of Ohio” who were not afforded the opportunity to choose our own Democratic candidate. I don’t believe for one second that there wasn’t some kind insider trading happening with regards to this race. Someone’s going to benefit greatly from Sherrod Brown losing this race and it’s not the people of Ohio.

Following Hackett’s withdrawal, Republican Senator Mike DeWine has gained ground in his campaign for re-election. DeWine now leads Democratic Congressman Sherrod Brown by nine percentage points, 46% to 37%

…Brown’s support among Democrats has fallen from 77% in January to 69% this month. Next month’s Ohio election poll will provide a hint as to whether this is just a temporary hiccup in the wake of the Hackett withdrawal or an ongoing problem for the Democrats’ likely nominee.

(Rasmussen Reports)

Looks like it’s Mikey for us again, folks. With Mike DeWine in the Senate it’s not just Ohioans that should be angry because our voices were stifled.

Some voting history for our soon-to-be reelected.

S AMDT 244 to S Con Res 18: To expand access to preventive health care services that reduce unintended pregnancy (including teen pregnancy), reduce the number of abortions, and improve access to women’s health care.= No(on funding legislation that would create and expand teen pregnancy prevention programs and education programs concerning emergency contraceptives)

S Amdt 2292 to HR 3010: To provide additional funding for part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.= No

S J Res 40: A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relating to marriage.= Yes ( Prohibits individual states from recognizing marital status and or legal benefits from any other unions other than that of a man and woman.)

S Amdt 2735 to S Amdt 2707 to HR 4297: To support the health needs of our veterans and military personnel and reduce the defiit by making tax rates fairer for all Americans = No ($14 billion for the Veterans Benefits Administration for Compensation and Pensions for the years of 2006 through 2010$6.9 billion to the Department of Veterans Affairs for the Veterans Health Administration for Medical Care between the years 2006 through 2010$1 billion for the establishment of the Veterans Hospital Improvement Fund)

Ok, I know that I sound bitter, but that’s because I am. I was denied my voice by the National and Ohio Dems that started this swift boating crap. I don’t blame Hackett at all for dropping out, because this kind of betrayal is what the Republicans do to our side. We don’t need our side doing that to our side.

The hosts of a Beverly Hills fundraiser for Hackett received an e-mail from the political action committee of Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) that concluded, â€œI hope you will re-consider your efforts on behalf of Hackett and give your support to Sherrod.â€ Waxmanâ€™s chief of staff, Phil Schiliro, said the e-mail was only sent to a handful of people and that â€œit probably came from a suggestion from the Sherrod Brown campaign.â€…

…Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) spokesman Phil Singer stated, â€œNeither the DSCC nor Senator Schumer reached out to donors to ask them to take sides in this race. Paul Hackettâ€™s statesman-like decision will help us win one of the most important Senate races in the nation.â€

Ok, I don’t know if this guy has even stepped foot in Ohio, but the further left a candidate goes here the less likely he/she is to be elected. I’m sorry, I know that Northeast Ohio is a nice shade of blue, but come down past Canton and you’ll get smacked in the face with red. Around here they like people they know and if it’s not someone they know then they want someone like them (even kinda-sorta like them is ok). Paul Hackett is a veteran and a hunter and sometimes that’s all people need to know when they enter the voting booth (as sad as that sounds).

Yes, I suppose there are more important things to worry about in this country, like trying to get Bush to answer for his illegal wiretapping of Americans, but this is important to me. I feel betrayed too. I feel let down. I thought this was typical of “them” and that we would only stoop to that level against “them”. I guess I was wrong. DINOs indeed.

_{[1]I was literally in my own little world yesterday and today. I hate it when the fog rolls in.}

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