A Year Later

The Greyfalcon would like congratulate Bob McDonnell, Chris Christie, and Doug Hoffman for their ground breaking performances in the November 3 elections.  Bob McDonnell won the Virginia gubernatorial race in a landside, defeating the incumbant Creigh Deeds by 20 points.   Chirs Christie triumphed in the New Jersey race, besting  govenor Jon Corzine.  And most impressively, Conservative  Party candidate Doug Hoffman forced liberal compromise Republican Dede Scozzafava out of contention, and nearly won the NY-23 election against the highly funded,  establishment backed Democrat Bill Owens.

McDonnells’ victory was the most decisive, receiving 1.1 million votes.  Last year Barrack Obama became the first Democrat to win this state since 1964.  But McDonnell’s positive, issue backed campaign overcame Deeds, the DNC, and an “always got time for a good fund-raiser” Obama.   The administration claims that this was not a reflection on his performance, and that it was not that big of a deal.  Then what was Obama doing there in the first place?

This is actually an example on the administration’s chronic unwillingness to take responsibility for anything that goes wrong.  If Deeds won, don’t you think that they would have taken credit for his success?   Of course they would.  They’re always good for that. 

Chris Christie’s race was the most colorful in terms of the actual content.  Corzine spent $30 million in one the most negative, ugly, and irreverent campaigns in recent history.  He even resorted to making references to Christie’s weight, comments which he deflected using his media savvy and great sense of humor.  Christie simply outclassed Corzine, identifying the  state’s high taxes and outrageous state expenditures as the sitting governors’ primary weaknesses.  In his acceptance speech, he summed up the Democratic governors’ derisive tactics with the phrase “Enough is Enough”.

Late in the race Obama abandoned Deeds to focus on backing Corzine, seeing that as the more winnable and consequential contest.  It didn’t work. 

Again Obama supporter’s insisted that this was no statement on his agenda.  How does Deed’s or Corzine’s agenda differ from Obama’s, and why did Obama back him?  Was he bored?  I guess he didn’t have anything better to do.

The New Jersey race also demonstrated an important contrast between our movement and theirs.  This new citizenship awaking is driven by politically engaged people who are arguing from an intellectual and historical framework.   Their campaigns are based on name calling, grandious rhetoric, and an association with a pop-culture icon president who is no longer en vogue.   Conservatives have taken the mantle of idealism away from the Left.

Finally, Doug Hoffman’s run in the infamous NY-23 battle is one for the ages.  After entering the race as a concerned citizen to oppose Owens and the GOP pick Dede Scozzafava, he became the hero of principled conservatism.  The Republican old gaurd claimed that Scozzafava had the best chance to win beat Owens, even though she was pro-choice, pro cap and tax, and pro card check.  The district conservatives rejected this notion, embracing the independent Hoffman. 

Scozzafava pulled out, but in a bad faith scorched earth move she threw her “support” to Owens, who in many polls was trailing Hoffman.   This is after the GOP gave her a million dollars.  A million dollars wasted on one of the weakest liberal republican congressional candidates of all time. 

In spite of this double-cross Hoffman persevered, receiving endorsements from Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck.  On Tuesday night he lost to Owens by  four points. 

Geraldine Ferraro and others call this a repudiation of the “far right” and claims it shows that NY-23 are moderate Republicans.   This absurd position actual shows that their movement is politically and morally bankrupt.

Hoffman, just another guy, actually ran against both parties at the same time and almost won.  They are claiming victory over someone who didn’t have any national party support and almost beat their Obama backed Democrat.  

And they needed the Republicans’s  help to beat him.  If this is their idea of victory then they are in serious trouble.