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Posts Tagged ‘Bill Owens’
January 14th, 2010 at 1:39 pm
Barney Frank is Still Crazy
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The ostentatious Representative Barney Frank from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts never shies away from reporters or combative political opponents.  He once said to a constituent at a town hall meeting, “Ma’am, trying to have a conversation with you would be like trying to argue with a dining room table.  I have no interest in doing it.”

Now, amidst rumors that Democrats are planning to delay the swearing-in of Republican Scott Brown if he were to win the special election in Massachusetts, Frank issued yet another linguistic tour de force.

Representative Frank opined, “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve been asked in a long time.  That is insane, the suggestion could only come from a demented right wing source… That is conspiracy theory at its most contemptible.”  BAM!

Barney, you’re wrong.   ‘Conspiracies’ like this happen all the time in Washington’s political meat grinder.

Remember, Massachusetts Democrats changed the rules on filing Senate vacancies twice, once in 2004 when it would have aided Democrats, and again in 2009 to ensure a 60th Democratic Senator.

Remember, Representative Bill Owens (D-NY) was sworn in on a weekend so that Speaker Pelosi could secure his vote for health care reform.

Remember, Representative Vern Buchanan (R-FL) almost had his swearing-in delayed because Speaker Pelosi wanted to reduce the number of Republicans.  Pelosi ultimately decided to seat Buchanan so that his district would have representation.  After Buchanan’s election, however, one Democrat noted, “No one who’s in a disputed election like this should get too comfortable in the House of Representatives.”

Because Massachusetts can take its time with certification and because the Senate, under Article I §5, “shall be the Judge of Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members,” then there is plenty of legitimate legal ground for Democrats to delay the ceremony.

However, since the public backlash against even the idea of a delay is so strong, it appears that the eventual winner will be sworn in the normal course, but “normal” might not occur until February if the Senator happens to have an “R” after his name.

Barney, you might be entertaining but you’re still crazy.

November 12th, 2009 at 11:45 am
Is it Over in NY-23?
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Conservative candidate Doug Hoffman might end up winning the race for the upstate New York House seat that he supposedly lost last week.  Bill Owens, the Democrat, was sworn in last Saturday.

Apparently, Hoffman conceded based on inaccurate reports from his base in Oswego County and early returns.  As it turns out, Owens’ lead is down to 3,026 votes (from over 5,000 on Election Night), with still more than 10,200 absentee ballots at large.  The chances are slim, but if Speaker Pelosi hadn’t planned a health care vote for last Saturday night, this race might still be up in the air.

From the news report:

Now Hoffman, who campaigned against the health care reform bill, is carefully watching as the 23rd District race tightens and he is left to wonder if he conceded too soon.

“I don’t know if we would have conceded on election night,” Rob Ryan, Hoffman’s campaign spokesman, said Wednesday while discussing the latest results of the recanvassing. “I’m someone who doesn’t like to look back. But would we have taken longer to make a decision on election night? Probably, if we knew it was only 3,000 votes making the difference.”

Ryan, while acknowledging that Hoffman’s chances of pulling off a come-from-behind victory are still remote, said the campaign is looking at its legal options.

November 4th, 2009 at 9:14 am
NY-23, A Bridge Too Far, Too Fast
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No waffling, we were flat-out wrong about the possibility of Doug Hoffman winning the special congressional election in NY-23.  That rather significant part of the equation was a bridge too far, too fast, and we just got carried away by the effort, by the momentum (which was genuine) and by the weird dynamics of a race that behaved like a game of pinball rather than politics.

In the end, the Wicked Witch of the North, Dede Scozzafava was able to exact revenge by backing Democrat Bill Owens and drawing away enough votes to deny Hoffman the victory.  Regardless, her future is not going to be that of “a great leader,” Bill Owens’ appreciative words from one clueless backbench hack to another.  Owens will get his lapel pin and his year, during which we suspect he won’t become one of Nancy Pelosi’s acolytes.  No one could be that dumb.

For conservatism, however, the victory of shoving a dose of grassroots reality down the throats of Republican Party bosses cannot be underestimated.

As someone once said, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.”  Now, who’s paying attention to the Florida Senate race?

October 26th, 2009 at 1:16 pm
New Poll in NY-23
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For readers following the race in New York’s 23rd congressional district (upstate NY), the Club for Growth has released a new poll showing conservative candidate Doug Hoffman leading by four points.

Hoffman, with 31.3% in the poll, leads Democrat Bill Owens (27%) and Republican challenger Dede Scozzafava (19.7%).

This race in rural upstate New York has garnered national attention and endorsements from prominent conservatives.  Newt Gingrich has endorsed Scozzafava, while Sarah Palin and Dick Armey have endorsed Hoffman.

More info here and here.