GOP Infighting Goes To Another Level

[Yeggo]

It's no surprise to anyone that as the GOP is wrenched rightward by the Tea Party, more and more moderate Republicans aren't taking it particularly well...

Dede Scozzafava endorsed a Democrat in the NY-23 Special Election rather than her Tea-Bagger, giving the district to Democrats for the first time in 100 years.

Numerous Nevada Republicans are not only holding back on endorsements of Sharron Angle, but are endorsing Harry Reid instead.

GOPers Bob Inglis and Bob Bennett were forced out for being insufficiently angry at the president and lashed out at the extreme right.

And now, far-right wing Congressional candidate Allen West not only sees his primary opponent endorse the Democratic incumbent, but in the process call him out for being far too extreme for a very moderate district. West won an overwhelming victory in the primary, so if remains to be seen how much this endorsement will hurt with his Republican base. But any moderate considering a vote for West has to be second guessing themselves today.

http://conversation101.squarespace.com/florida-22/2010/10/11/the-enemy-of-my-enemy-is.html

[SpiralHawk]

1. Ya can't blame them for dissing the Republicon Party O' Plutocrats & Propaganda

I mean, really...glad a few of them are returning to an American Sense of Decency and Honor.

[tanyev]

2. They're gonna need a Thunderdome for their 2012 convention.

:popcorn:

[Old and In the Way]

3. The New Republican Party.

Fronted by a dwindling collection of dimwits, rubes, rasists, bigots, homophobes. and various other anti-socialists - powered by a multi-million dollar corporate campaign finance machine dedicated to lying about the economic reality to get their agenda elected.

Sorry Bobs...your vision of a Republican Party left the station a long time ago...

[Yeggo]

4. And yet...

West is still competitive, and has raised $4 million + for his reelection. I know the squeaky wheel gets the grease, but why do the nuttiest candidates get the most money?

[Old and In the Way]

5. The breakout on contributions would be enlightening...

For instance, was the $4MM raised by small contributions of district voters....or did he get $3.95MM from various corporate astroturf/PACs with help from Koch Industries? This ought to be be an important yardstick for measuring candidate ownership levels.

[gratuitous]

6. It's retail politics

By the way, welcome to DU.

There was a time when "retail politics" used to mean a candidate who kept an exhaustive schedule of personal appearances. No venue too small or out of the way if there were voters to connect with. Now, after the Citizens United decision, retail politics means that some special interest somewhere thinks that it's worth a $4 million investment to get a nut like West into Congress. It may be for only one vote or one sequence of votes, but if they can make a couple of billion off that vote, then the relatively small expenditure will be very worthwhile. Meanwhile, West gets to be a nut, has people call him The Honorable Nutjob for a couple of years, and then he's off to well-deserved obscurity, the damage to the Republic having been done.