NYT: "G.O.P. Envisions Northeast Comeback" (so much for Rahm and the DLC's "blue state" strategy)

[brentspeak]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/31/us/politics/31memo.html

The Northeastern Republican was nearly driven to extinction by political climate change, but the species appears poised to make a comeback.

The successful run of Scott Brown in the Senate race in Massachusetts, coupled with the front-runner status of Representative Michael N. Castle in Delaware in his bid for the Senate and other strong candidacies, could bode well for Republicans in a region that has been shedding them because of a sense that the party had grown too conservative and focused on the South.

snip

But Republicans see Mr. Brown’s win — and an earlier victory in the New Jersey governor’s race — as evidence that independents are moving back their way, a possible harbinger of good things to come. They point to Delaware, where Mr. Castle, a longtime leader among moderate Republicans, is now the favorite to win that race in November since Joseph R. Biden III, the state attorney general and son of the vice president, decided to forgo a challenge.

snip

Mr. Brown’s victory has already produced some new Republican contenders, raising party hopes of reclaiming lost House and Senate territory. Republicans are mounting a strong effort to grab an open Senate seat in Connecticut, as well as two formerly Republican House seats in New Hampshire.

[rurallib]

1. Rahm and the DLC group seem to get their strategies from FUX SNOOZ

which often offers such free advice.
I wish they would listen to some of the people they choose to ignore such as Howard Dean.

[Jennicut]

2. I am sorry, but the Repubs in CT are not Scott Brown. They include Linda McMahon. I rest my case.

Castle is well liked by both Dems and Repubs and will stick around for maybe one term with his age and health.

[SteveG]

14. And he could be in trouble if there is a primary

Christine O'Donnell, who ran against Biden in 2008, is much more popular in Southern DE, than Castle is, especially among those republicans most likely to vote in a Primary. She is extremely hard Right, and would alienate the upstate republicans if she were to be the Candidate. I doubt that anyone can beat Castle in a General Election, other than Beau Biden. Castle has won more Statewide elections in DE than any other politician in history. But he is relatively moderate and is more disliked by the hardliners in his own party than he is by Democrats. He is just about the last of the old style Northeastern Republicans.

All that said, I think it's foolish for the Republicans to think that electing Castle to the Senate could be taken to indicate a Republican Resurgence in the Northeast is just wishful thinking.

[Jennicut]

15. The Northeast elected liberal Repubs for years, it is the Rethug party that drove them out.

Maybe they want a big tent afterall.

[KingFlorez]

3. I think the Teabaggers are going to block that

In order to win the Northeast, the Republicans have to put up moderates and the Tea Party movement will not stand for that.

[Jennicut]

4. Our Repubs here are like Snowe and Collins. Brown is more moderate then they know.

[brentspeak]

5. No, the tea baggers will vote for Republican moderates over a Democrat every single time

They might not be thrilled about less-than-super-conservative Republicans, but they will still support them.

[mikehiggins]

7. I sincerely think you miss the point

Unlike us, they will not support a candidate who doesn't meet their litmus tests. The TBs are looking to replace the established order in the GOP, not maintain it. Like most purist (theoretically) groups they would rather see a heretic punished than go after those Dem pagans.

Think about the most fanatical parties on the left, or even the earlier iterations of the Libertarian movements, who saw anyone not a true beleiver as being an enemy. If needful, they will run their own candidates in primaries to gain their deserved prominence in the GOP.

[brentspeak]

8. The fact that the teabaggers mobilized and voted in droves for Scott Brown disproves that

[johnaries]

17. Actually, they'll run their own candidate instead - splitting the CON

vote. There's no way they can win the NE.

[karynnj]

19. Only when they ARE not in office, they try to primary many who are in office

[golfguru]

16. Did the teabaggers back Scott Brown?

He is pro-choice!

[phleshdef]

6. In other words, they are envisioning becoming more moderate?

Because thats what it would take.

[Perky]

9. Not gonna happen they can envision all they want...not gonna happen

It has nothing....nada. to to with Rahm or the DLC. Brown was an anomaly explained largely but issues of comparative charisma Only moderate Republicans can win in the northeast and they carry a lot of albatrosses they can not easily shed. Bush-Cheney, Southern religious Zealots, and the list goes on.

They are competitive in gubernatorial races, but that is not in any sense referendum on the DLC or the Administration. I have some concerns about Specter's race in PA but that is largely due to his age rather than Toomey's strengths (Dems may not be motivated) and In Delaware Castle will win that race if Beau Biden does not run.

But nnoe of this has anything to do with Rahm or the DLC.

[Davis_X_Machina]

10. Rahm runs *everything*. You haven't been...

...on DU long, have you? He's Obama's Cheney. Except when he's Obama's Rove. Which makes sense because Obama's worse than Bush.

Oh, and KUCINICH!

[Cosmocat]

11. They are going to be a permanent republican majority ...

donchya know ...

The friggen MSM ...

The Rs always are on the prowl, the dems always in trouble ...

Those are their memes ...

They get to run around spewing about a permanent republican majority, and all we heard when the Ds were surging was how much trouble they were in ...

Three months ago, a dem won a house seat that has been held by the Rs since the civil war, did we hear about the extinction of the republican party?

Again, we are going to see what has happened almost ever time in the mid term after a president gets elected - a slide toward the other party ... It is going to happen because Ds are overextended in seats that have more Rs than Ds and turnout will normalize ...

But, it will be ALL about how the Rs in touch with the country and Ds are in trouble ...

[tabbycat31]

22. non moderate Republicans can win the northeast

case in point-- Chris Christie

[treestar]

12. these are moderate Republicans

But then the Democrats, including moderate ones, are making inroads in the midwest and south.

[Name removed]

13. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[wyldwolf]

18. silly premise in the OP

Because the GOP 'envisions' a comeback in the Northeast, you manufacture a DLC/Rahm straw man strategy to knock down. :eyes:

[SoxFan]

20. It's also flat-out wrong on the facts

The DLC always pushed for a strategy that ran hard in red, blue, and purple states alike. Ed Kilgore was speaking out against the habit of hunkering down in blue states a decade ago.

But facts are stubborn things, and get in the way of a tired, stale, and pointless bitch and moan session. Maybe if half of the DLC-bashers had been active in Democratic politics prior to 2003 or so, they could figure out the truth.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

21. When I read all these punditry experts writing opinions and presenting them on T.V.

it's like they're jumping with glee that the Dems and Obama are "losing". They are very enthusiastic, it seems, pushing the Repuke meme! :puke:

[LatteLibertine]

23. IMO like many others have said

most of the movement is anti-incumbent and not merely against the Democratic party.

[depakid]

24. It is amusing to watch folks (and particularly the usual suspects) make excuse after excuse

and rationalization after rationalization about the ass kicking that's currently in the works for 2010 (and beyond?).

How many times do we have to listen to the same failed arguments about the same failed ideology and the "reasons" one after another why Democrats are better off going along to get along with the very people and the very interests who caused the problems that catapulted them back into power in the first place?

I guess at least one more time- with another new generation being suckered by the same bogus arguments that have led to defeat so many times before.