The Other McCain

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At Least One Florida Republican Party Official Who Is Not Batsh*t Crazy

Posted on | September 29, 2011 | 20 Comments

“Sunshine State Sarah” reprints an e-mail from Republican National Committeeman Paul Senft:

Republicans have always been law abiding people who obey the rules. If we don’t want to go by the rules — if we want to be arrogant and only abide by the rules we like or agree with — then we should consider another party. As long as we are a member of the Republican Party we should go by their rules. If we want to change things, we should do it through the proper channels and procedures, not break the rules because we think we are better than other states. . . .
If we break the rules again (this will be two in a row) we will alienate the remainder of the country.

Please read the whole thing.  You know who you’re going to “alienate”? Me, and every other political journalist in the country. If these crazy [obscene epithets] in the Florida GOP move their primary from March to Jan. 31, then the Iowa caucuses, currently scheduled for Feb. 6, will also have to move up, perhaps as early as Jan. 3.

January Third! Do you know what that means? The final two weeks of the Iowa campaign will stomp all over the Christmas holidays!

New Hampshire will then move up to Jan. 10 – stomping all over the BCS National Championship game Jan. 9! And considering that the undefeated Alabama Crimson Tide are looking very much like they’re ready for another national title, that would piss me off bad.

A Wall Street Journal article lists state House Speaker Dean Cannon and state Senate President Mike Haridopolos as the vicious swine responsible for this crazy idea. So who are these big shots?

What does this look like? In four words: The fix is in.

By moving up their primary, these big-shot Florida GOP power-brokers are in effect protecting the front-runners and preventing any other candidates — including Herman Cain, who stomped Cannon’s boy in Saturday’s straw poll — from gaining traction. Despite all their noise about wanting to make sure Florida is represented in the process, blah, blah, blah, Cannon and Haridopolos are actually pushing a plan that would strip the state of half its delegates to next year’s GOP convention.

Certainly wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen such shenanigans from Florida GOP bosses, eh? Remember how they wanted to fix the 2010 GOP Senate primary for Charlie Crist? The state party chairman tried to strangle Marco Rubio’s campaign by endorsing Crist 15 months before the primary and got his buddy in Washington, NRSC Chairman John Cornyn, to join in. And that state GOP chairman — now ex-chairman — Jim Greer is awaiting trial on corruption charges.

So forgive me for suspecting that these two GOP big shots are running some kind of hustle. I’m not saying they’ve done anything criminal. But it sure as hell looks shady, and even if they aren’t crooked, they’re planning to ruin Christmas and wreck the college football bowl season.

It’s un-American! They must be stopped!

MIKE HARIDOPOLOS — (850) 487-5628
DEAN CANNON — (850) 488-2742

(Please note that when calling their offices, you should be polite. Avoid profanity, personal insults and accusations of perverse sexual habits. Leave that to us professional journalists, because if Haridopolos and Cannon don’t back off this insane Jan. 31 nonsense, the political press corps will cuss these guys to hell.)

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Category: Election 2012, Florida, Republicans

Comments

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  • Joe

    Strangely enough Hermain Cain might actually benefit from something like this (he might surge at the right time) but so what.  That is not why we set primary dates (to favor one canidate over another).  We set them to be orderly. 

    I am all for getting rid of the Iowa heggemony.  It is stupid and becoming increasingly irrelevant on its own.  I am for a system that rotates primaries with the small states first and the bigger states later (to be open to those with low budgets). 

    But there is a right way and a wrong way to do it. 

    Plus we can’t mess up Stacy’s Christmas.  He has to be home in Maryland to get his cha cha heels. 

  • jwallin

    Let them hold their primary when they wish. Get the candidates to show their merit by refusing to participate.

    They don’t want to play by the rules then ostracize them.

    Now I’m assuming that they tried to make changes through whatever process is provided to do so.
    I personally believe that Iowa has a bit of an ego problem in that they seem to believe that for some reason they are entitled to have their primary first. I would guess this came about because they threatened or actually did keep moving their primary ahead of every other state’s so they were capitulated to and appeased.

    I think the first primary state should be done on a lottery basis so that every state gets a chance to be first. This should be thought about.

    So it’s not just Florida that is acting like two year olds. Iowa and New Hamshire are also part of the problem.

    And it’s all about the money, not the party.

  • http://thecampofthesaints.org Bob Belvedere

    I think the first primary state should be done on a lottery basis so
    that every state gets a chance to be first. This should be thought
    about.

    Damn good idea.

    But it’s not all about the money: it’s more about politics.  These guys want to give every advantage to their Establishment candidates.  The GOP Elites (1) want to show we TEA Party folks who are the bosses and (2) fear us.

  • Kitty Myers

    The GOP/RNC lost me long ago. I’ll never vote for a “D,” although if Zell Miller had been a NYer, I might have reconsidered. But I give NOTHING, not a red cent to the GOP/RNC. Nada. Zip. Zilch.  I save my precious few $$ for the candidate of my choice.

  • http://www.facebook.com/remerson Russ Emerson

    As noted in the linked-to letter, if Florida goes out of the agreed-upon order their delegate count will be summarily reduced at the convention.

    I’d suggest that it be reduced to zero, but cutting it in half is pretty severe, too.

    If Florida wants to cut off their nose to spite their face, let ‘em.  Idiots.

  • http://twitter.com/ThatChristyChic Christy Waters

    Have you been injured in an accident? Call the law firm of Cannon and Haridopolos. We’ll get you the compensation you deserve.

    Never trust a guy with perfect hair (John Edwards), especially when his name is “Hair”idopolos. Bald is beautiful. Just ask Herman Cain… and Smitty!

  • Anonymous

    No it’s a terrible idea. It’s insane for a big state with multiple expensive media markets (Texas, PA, Florida, New York, and especially California — where I live — come to mind, though there are others) to go first or even early; that  gives yet another big advantage to candidates who are able to secure funding before people start voting. You want the early states to be the ones that are the cheapest to campaign in, and it helps if they’re fairly competitive in the general (which is why I don’t really object much to IA and NH going first all the time).

  • http://youhavetobethistalltogoonthisride.blogspot.com/ keyboard jockey

    Herman Cain endorsed Romney, while he is running against Romney that’s absurd.

    Imus Guest Chris Wallace, The GOP & The Theater Of The Absurd.

    Mitt Romney can’t poll above 25% that leaves 75% who want someone else for their Presidential nominee. Chris Wallace, made reference to the Republican base ”Waiting For Godot”. The play by Samuel Beckett, that is performed in the Theater Of The Absurd. The Republicans still haven’t found who they’re looking for. 

    http://youhavetobethistalltogoonthisride.blogspot.com/2011/09/imus-guest-chris-wallace-gop-theater-of.html

  • lowercaseM

    I’ve never liked Haridopolos and never understood why people do. Though I may be biased. See, I met him years ago at church (I was but a youngin’ at the time, still in Jr. high I believe) and my first contact with him was with the youth group playing a game with some of the adults. Can you guess who seemed to have no problem cheating at the game to improve his team’s chance at winning?Seriously, what sort of person cheats at a /game/ at a /church/ while playing with the /youth/?Perhaps that seems small to others, but I firmly believe that if you can’t trust someone to do right in small things, you can’t trust them in big things.

  • DaveO

    “The fix is in.”

    Maybe. It may also be an attempt to undercut the Ronulans throwing the primary to McCain-II.

    I get the scheduling crisis. Reminds me of the time we pulled the still-living remains of a teenager from a minefield.

    No. Not really. Not at all.

  • https://plus.google.com/114041580398058374552/posts McGehee

    Amendment: Any state that goes first is “excused” from the lottery for five presidential election cycles and has to hold its primaries after Super Tuesday during that period.

    However, a state may opt out of the lottery permanently if it holds its primary no earlier than one week before Super Tuesday.

  • Joe

    Have you ever been injured by a troll?  Call Wombat with some troll-b-gone and get the relief you need (just remember the “tips” jar–to insure prompt service). 

  • http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/EU5DQWQTTHTPO4A4ZYSL3AAV2U Adjoran

    The problem with any such ideas is enforcing them.  Unless the various state parties come to agreement there just isn’t any way.  The loss of delegates is an empty threat because the nominee in either party will seat them so he doesn’t tick off a whole state.

    New Hampshire has a state law requiring them to be the first primary.  How can a party rule trump a state law?

  • http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/EU5DQWQTTHTPO4A4ZYSL3AAV2U Adjoran

    This is just nuts.

    Florida is already an early state, and was in fact the clincher for McCain last cycle.  They need more influence than that?

    Of course, to basically accuse the Romney team of attempting this as a fix when Florida has tried exactly the same thing before is just plain dishonest unless you have evidence.  Not that the total lack of evidence ever got in the way of a good smear.

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  • Anonymous

    Just transfer the deleted Florida delegates to a state which holds its primary later in the cycle.

    Cheers

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