Reid's sneaky 'Tea Party' candidate

[Emit]

Right wingers here in Nevada are convinced that Harry Reid is behind the Tea Party candidate, Jon Scott Ashjian, claiming Reid set up Ashjian's run to siphon votes from the Republican candidate. They point to the fact that Ashjian is Mormon and his attorney is a registered Democrat. Folks in the comments sections of our local rags claim he supported Obama ~ all the makings of a grand conspiracy. Meanwhile, we find out that Ashjian http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/mar/05/political-newbie-could-split-gop/">owes more than $200,000 in back taxes.

Can Nevada politics get any more exciting? :D

Sneaky Sen. Reid

And finally, don't fail to read this morning's story in the Las Vegas Review-Journal on this so-called Tea Party candidate who is allegedly going to run against Harry Reid.

Repped by a Democrat, a Las Vegas businessman no one has heard of has found the statewide organization to potentially get the "Tea Party" on the ballot and run as its standard bearer.

C'mon, man! You buying that?

Nationally, the Tea Party movement has avoided party status and candidates. Except Nevada? You gotta believe the Reid campaign, or some form thereof, is behind this tactic.

And frankly, it's a brilliant tactic. If Reid can get the Tea Party name on the ballot, it will absolutely shift some votes away from the Republican candidate, who in a head-to-head matchup right now beats Reid hands down.

Look, Reid has more money than God for this race. But because almost everyone in Nevada has made up their minds about Reid, that money isn't going to move the needle for him much.

That money is going to be used primarily to move the needle away from his Republican opponent. After the primary, Reid will unleash a negative campaign the likes of which has never been seen in this state. And, if a few million dollars can also be used for sneaky campaign tricks like propping up phony campaigns or sponsoring faux news sites (paging Erin Neff, there's an envelope for you at the front desk), well that's just old-fashioned addition by subtraction.

But even if reporters sniff out the Reid connection to this so-called Tea Party, getting the party to appear on the ballot will be a coup for the struggling Reid campaign.

http://www.lvrj.com/blogs/sherm/Sneaky_Reids_Tea_Party_candidate__and_other_Monday_morning_musings.html

[Catshrink]

1. Is Reid that smart?

Does he have enough spine to try something like this? All evidence points to no, not from what we've seen in his performance as Senate Majority Leader.

[Emit]

4. I have a feeling we may find out soon enough

There are strong forces working against Reid here in NV, so I am certain they will be turning over every rock in an effort to connect Reid to this guy. I have read that Reid is very powerful here in NV ~ most of that talk goes way back to when he was younger, with stories of connections to the Mob, etc. Who knows, really, where this guy came from. Who knows where any of these tea 'baggers come from.

On edit, that being said, I, for one, find the claim unlikely, lending itself to much of the right wing paranoia we are currently witnessing with the Repugs and 'baggers.

[joeybee12]

2. Reid is sneaky, but the Review_-Journal is to the right of Mein Kampf...

...they've been out to get him since day one, so your guess is as good as mine as to who is behind this businessman.

[Emit]

3. Yes, conspiracies are flying left and right, lol

~snip~

In a recent poll done for the Review-Journal, a conservative paper in Las Vegas that is openly hostile to Senator Reid, the poll shows that both front runners from the Republican Party, Sue Lowden and Danny Tarkanian have a double digit lead over Senator Reid.

Lowden 52%
Reid 39%
Tarkanian 51%
Reid 40%
But when the poll includes a third contestant from the Nevada Tea Party, a dramatic change appears.

Harry Reid 36%
Republican 32%
Tea Party 18%

So it’s understandable why Tea Party members here in Nevada not associated with the Nevada Tea Party might want to see a conspiracy, real or not.

Another point or conspiracy to consider, is that the GOP has planted operatives here who are trying to discredit the Nevada Tea Party, because they know that a vote for a Tea Party candidate, is a vote lost by the Republican candidate. So the Republican Party has a vested interest in declaring that this group is a fraud and a front for Senator Reid.

~snip~

http://www.examiner.com/x-21777-Las-Vegas-Democrat-Examiner~y2010m3d3-Nevada-Tea-Party-candidate-Jon-Ashjian-files-for-Reids-Senate-seat

[joeybee12]

5. I tend to think he's not a Reid plant, because Repukes are criminally insane,

and were already celebrating taking this seat, and now their open courtship of the Tea Baggers is coming back to bite them on the ass.