Tag: doug hoffman

Doug Hoffman withdraws from NY-23.

Via AoSHQ: state law requires that he’ll still be on the ballot, but he’s calling on his supporters to throw theirs behind Matt Doheny.  This must have been a hard decision for Doug Hoffman; but as he himself noted, the important thing here is to not split the Republican vote against the Democratic squatter currently in it.  It is my humble suggestion that we take the time to thank Doug Hoffman for ending a potential split in this race.  It is also my humble suggestion that we start asking incumbent Bill Owens a question that should have started being asked a month ago: What bribe did Nancy Pelosi give you to get you to break your word on opposing Obamacare, Congressman?

Or was it a threat that Pelosi used to break him?  Although there’s not much choice between greed or cowardice when contemplating the motivations of an oathbreaker: Owen’s word is worthless either way, and he’s just as contemptible, too.

See also JammieWearingFool and The Other McCain.

Moe Lane (Crosspost)

NY-23 not yet certified.

For the record, I expect that in the end the results will probably still show that Owens won in that district – and if the final count does result in Hoffman winning, the campaign did concede and didn’t contest the preliminary election results, so Owens was properly sworn in.  So it thus won’t reverse House Democrats’ health care rationing ‘victory.’

Unless the Democrats want it to. Right now, if I was the Speaker of the House I’d be looking for any excuse to avoid the Democrats’ looming civil war over the Stupak amendment.  This would… do.

Crossposted to Moe Lane.

DOOMWatch: Siena has Hoffman at +5.

Via Jake Tapper’s twitter comes the report that Siena’s latest poll shows that the NY-23 race has gone from 36/35 Owens to 41/36 Hoffman over the weekend, with 18% still undecided.  Those undecided are going to have to break heavily for Owens to let him win this one – and he’s got a day to make the sale.  Given that Owen’s ceiling has been the mid-thirties for this poll, that will be quite the trick for him to pull off…

Moe Lane

PS: Just because it’s DOOMWatch doesn’t mean that you stop.  Get thee hence to NY-23, if you can.

Some more NY-23 links.

It’s going to be a busy few days, up in NY-23. Some of the stuff that’s of interest:

  • PJTV discusses Tea Parties, third parties, and the NY-23 race. Glenn Reynolds, Bill Whittle and Dana Loesch are actually all in agreement that the first creating the second would not be the optimal response right now; what’s better would be that making sure that politicians stop getting to run unopposed in primaries and general elections. (I agree.)
  • Dan Riehl (via Instapundit) wants to point out that the national GOP organizations didn’t pick Scozzafava; the local one did, and the long-term answer is to get actual conservatives in those positions of authority. (I agree: we always need more precinct committeemen.)
  • Jim Geraghty notices one of those odd coincidences, in the process of noting that Scozzafava happened to probably violate state law in filing a false police report.
  • R.S. McCain’s gone to New York. So has Dick Armey.
  • And… there are rumors.

That last one I don’t know if I buy. Yet.

Moe Lane

PS: Doug Hoffman for Congress.

Crossposted to RedState.

NY-23 Hoffman/Scozzafava: What Jim said.

This got triggered by the refutation of Dede Scozzafava’s allegation that John McCormack – John McCormack – screamed questions at her, I think. Jim Geraghty’s had enough, and so have I.

The time has come for the RNC and NRCC to ask for their money back. This goes well beyond any reasonable difference on policy. There’s room in the party for pro-choice Republicans and pro-gay marriage Republicans and maybe even the odd pro-card-check Republican. But not this kind of arrogance, this kind of clumsy dishonesty, this kind of reckless hostility to a reporter and a publication that need not be an enemy.

The RNC and NRCC are better than the Scozzafava campaign; it’s time for them to demonstrate that they know how a candidate and her staff are supposed to react when asked a question, and show that Scozzafava’s team’s behavior is just not acceptable.

It’s time for the national GOP to – reluctantly, and I understand their reluctance! – drop Dede Scozzafava and go with Doug Hoffman.  This isn’t a situation where the national party is overriding the will of local primary voters; it is a situation where a particular choice of candidate turned out to be the wrong one.  Bad choices may be reversed.  It’s also time for Ms. Scozzafava to act in the best interests of first the voters of NY-23; and second, the Republican party; by dropping out of the race.  As it stands she is helping the Democratic candidate, whose presence in Congress and support of the current ruling party would certainly hurt the former.

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.