Campaign Update - August, 2011

SPECIAL ELECTIONS

CALIFORNIA 36^th – The GING-PAC endorsed candidate lost in the special election held on July 12^th for the 36^th congressional district in California. Craig Huey had won an amazing victory in the primary race by finishing second with half a dozen candidates seeking the post. In the runoff election Huey faced Los Angeles City Councilwoman Janice Hahn, who was bankrolled by unions, pro-abortionists, Hollywood limousine liberals and many leftist groups.  

The far left Hahn got 55% of the vote to Huey’s 45%.  Even this was surprising considering that the 36^th is a heavily Democratic area running from Venice to San Pedro and includes Torrance. Hahn will still have to run for re-election in 2012. By then she will have established a radical voting record in the House which Huey can expose if he chooses to run again.

Going into the race Craig Huey was a long shot. GING-PAC supported him because he was delivering a pro-life, pro-family message in an area where schools don’t teach and newspapers don’t print anything that would be considered pro-Christian. Every dollar was worth the investment in educating people in that district that there is a different point of view. The seat had been held by the far left for decades.

NEW YORK 9^th – A Republican who is also on the Conservative party line, a radical left Democrat and a socialist are running to fill the seat held by disgraced Democrat Anthony Weiner whose career ended with his naked posts on Twitter.  Andy Sullivan, a construction worker who has led the effort to stop the Ground Zero mosque from being built in New York City tried and failed to get on the GOP ticket. Bob Turner was picked by the New York Republican Party and the Conservative Party to challenge Democrat NY Assemblyman David Weprin, an Obama-style radical. Weprin has been described in the New York media as a machine politician. He’s been endorsed by the smarmy Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY). Christopher Hoeppner of the Socialist Workers Party turned in 7,080 signatures to put his name and party on the ballot in the September 13 special election.

Former New York Mayor and lifelong Democrat Ed Koch has vowed that he will vote for the Republican Bob Turner in order to punish President Obama for his anti-Israel policies. According to Koch: “If Jewish New Yorkers and others who support Israel were to turn away from the Democratic Party in that congressional election and elect the Republican candidate to Congress in 2011, it might very well cause President Obama to change his hostile position on the state of Israel and to re-establish the special relationship presidents before him had supported.” Turner is now running a TV ad attacking Weprin for his support of the Ground Zero mosque.

GING-PAC has not yet endorsed either Republican for Weiner’s seat. Although Bob Turner is a pro-life conservative Catholic who stands against same-sex marriage, he was also the producer of TV programs that are rather hard to justify, such as the Jerry Springer Show.

Help elect social conservatives to office

 OREGON 1^st – While many of the Democrats in the House such as Nancy Pelosi are sort of nuts, Congressman David Wu was truly nuts. Unlike Democrat Anthony Weiner who sent out photos with no clothes on, Wu sent out photos of himself in a tiger suit. He is also accused of making unwanted sexual advances to an 18-year-old girl. After his reelection most of his staff quit in disgust with his actions. Democrat leaders in Oregon said they were “relieved” by his departure as he continued to embarrass their party and the entire state on Capitol Hill.

A primary will be held on November 8^th and the special election on January 31^st, 2011. The winner will have to immediately begin to campaign for reelection in November of 2011. Unlike in California’s 36^th which is overwhelming Democrat, there is an opportunity for a Republican to win in Oregon despite its liberal tendencies. Wu won in November of last year with 54% of the vote. Republican businessman Rob Cornilles has announced he will seek the seat. Cornilles, ran unsuccessfully against Wu in the 2010 general election. John Kuzmanich, an entrepreneur who owns U.S. Nationwide Mortgage in Beaverton, is also a possible Republican candidate as is Doug Keller, a Naval Academy graduate who served for 20 years in the Navy. As soon as we have more information on these candidates, hopefully an endorsement can be made.

THE PRESIDENCY

I get all kind of letters, e-mail and calls asking me who social conservatives should back in the presidential race. The race is confusing at present and a lot is going on behind the scenes. Here is some inside information you will not read anywhere else:

There are evangelicals and then there are “insider” evangelicals. The insiders are the evangelicals with connections inside the Republican Party establishment and include many household names.  I do not not considered myself an “insider,” because I toss in the trash the talking points I get form the Republican Party headquarters. This is also why I am often not “on the same page” as other social conservative leaders, most of whom want Rick Perry at the top of the GOP ticket.

Right now virtually all of the evangelical “insiders” are either already working with or somehow associated with Governor Rick Perry in Texas. Some of my best friends have literally been working several days a week in Texas to help him get ready to run for president.

Here is their logic: Evangelical Michele Bachmann is “only” a congresswoman and probably too conservative to win. Evangelical Herman Cain has no political experience. Conservative Catholic Rick Santorum lost his last Senate bid in his home state. Converted Catholic Newt Gingrich has had a few too many wives. Ron Paul is a libertarian who would legalize drugs and prostitution, and the rest of the candidates are too liberal. The “insiders” believe they need an evangelical with a political background and a history of winning big, at least state wide. This is exactly how the evangelical “insiders” picked George W. Bush in 2010.

Will Rick Perry run? Yes. By the time you receive this update he may have already announced. As he travels from state to state you will see notable evangelical leaders standing with him. Governor Rick Perry is probably a good guy, but I have reservations that he may be just another career politician looking for his next promotion. I could be wrong; he may be a better version of President George W. Bush, but I want to hold off for a few months on making that call.

I know Michele Bachmann and in fact I have had lunch with her. She is real. I have met Herman Cain numerous times and held in depth conversations with him. He is real, but his lack of experience has caused him to shift positions and make enemies in the evangelical community. I have worked closely with Rick Santorum on projects when he was a Senator. He is solidly pro-life and will stand against radical Islam, but he is also horribly underfunded. As for Gingrich and Romney, I would not even consider backing either one. Gingrich has lost his touch and his campaign is sort of a joke. Romney is just an opportunist. Mitch Daniels and Jon Huntsman should probably not even be running as Republicans. As the race unfolds I will report honestly on the candidates.

             GING-PAC will be involved deeply in the 2012 election. Your help is appreciated.

 William J. Murray, Chairman
Government Is Not God – PAC
P.O. Box 77237, Washington, DC 20013

202.554.2358

House and Senate Pass Budget Control Act

In a 76-26 vote, the U.S. Senate passed the Budget Control Act and sent it to President Obama for his signature on August 2, 1011:

GINGPAC founder William J. Murray issued the following statement following the vote:

Voltaire: Le mieux est l’ennemi du bien. We are seeking a perfect solution to a situation that is beyond repair. At this point, if the government drastically reduces spending, the nation will spiral into depression. If the government continues to borrow at the current rate, the nation will go bankrupt. The “perfect” Tea Party solution crashes the economy. The “perfect” liberal solution crushes America under debt and drives away investment. Unfortunately, nothing in the middle works either as long as it is a collective government action of some sort. The only solution is the natural one, which involves decline and reconstruction. Regrettably, the rebirth of a nation economically can take decades.

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), the chairman of the conservative Republican Study Committee, issued a similar statement. Jordan noted:

After months of debate, the House and Senate have reached a deal to raise the debt limit (read about the plan here).  In the end, I could not support the legislation.  While it contains cuts and caps, they should be much more robust.  Additionally, the framework of “triggers” and a new 12-member House-Senate committee opens the door to dangerous national security cuts and raises the possibility that six Democrats and one misguided Republican could rush tax increases to the House and Senate floors.

Most importantly, this deal is not a solution.  The Cut, Cap, and Balance Act remains the only plan that protects our AAA credit rating from the risk of a downgrade.

Our debt is a permanent, long-term problem, and it requires a permanent solution in the form of a Balanced Budget Amendment.  While the House and Senate will be required to vote on one this fall, there is no requirement that it pass and be sent to the states for ratification.  Unless we send a Balanced Budget Amendment to the states, however, promises to cut spending today can always disappear tomorrow.  (Watch our quick video on Washington Spending 101). 

Just a few weeks ago, the Balanced Budget Amendment wasn’t even a part of the conversation, despite the overwhelming support it has among the American public.  The growing momentum toward requiring Washington to actually balance its budget is encouraging, but there’s still a lot of work to be done.