As usual, when some big Republican news pops up, I pop over to Freeperville to see how the mouth-breathers are responding. With Arlen Specters defection, I suspected there would be a lot of "Good riddance to bad rubbish" commentary. There is. But what's interesting is that there's more and it's not very self-serving for the conservatives, I must say. Self-injurious is more like it.
Crazy Talk fun after the jump.
I realize that the Free Republic is a ultra-conservative site, not a Republican site. But they don't appear to appreciate the fact that, given their rapidly shrinking base, they really need the Republicans at this point. Need them to get through at least parts of their right-wing nutso agenda. I mean, really, who else is going to do it? The Ron Paul party? The Eric Cantor party? Hmmm...I don't think so.
They need the Republicans if they have any hope of accomplishing their crazy goals.
What's interesting (to me, anyway) is that they hold so-called RINOs in such low esteem, they loathe them so much, that they will help any moderate Republican out the door as fast as they can. In other words, cutting off their nose to spite their face, they are encouraging the Republican party's numbers in Congress to shrink even further.
The following are a selection of quotes from an article quoting Maine's moderate Republican Senator, Olympia Snowe. First, here's Snowe's quote:
IT is disheartening and disconcerting, at the very least, that here we are today — almost exactly eight years after Senator Jim Jeffords left the Republican Party — witnessing the departure of my good friend and fellow moderate Republican, Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, for the Democratic Party. And the announcement of his switch was all the more painful because I believe it didn’t have to be this way.
When Senator Jeffords became an independent in 2001, I said it was a sad day for the Republicans, but it would be even sadder if we failed to confront and learn from the devaluation of diversity within the party that contributed to his defection. I also noted that we were far from the heady days of 1998, when Republicans were envisioning the possibility of a filibuster-proof 60-vote margin. (Recall that in the 2000 election, most pundits were shocked when Republicans lost five seats, resulting in a 50-50 Senate.)
I could have hardly imagined then that, in 2009, we would fondly reminisce about the time when we were disappointed to fall short of 60 votes in the Senate. Regrettably, we failed to learn the lessons of Jim Jeffords’s defection in 2001. To the contrary, we overreached in interpreting the results of the presidential election of 2004 as a mandate for the party. This resulted in the disastrous elections of 2006 and 2008, which combined for a total loss of 51 Republicans in the House and 13 in the Senate — with a corresponding shift of the Congressional majority and the White House to the Democrats.
Now for the Crazy Talk (all typos left intact [of course])...
From Chet99:
Can imagine John Adams penning an editorial lamenting the "loss" of Benedict Arnold?
Right, 'cause it's not like you can use all the votes you can get, right, Chet?
From uptoolate:
The clock is ticking, Ms. Snowe.
Yes, the clock is ticking. For the uber-conservatives and, more importantly, the Republican Party.
From Ghost of Philip Marlowe:
You're next, Snowe job.
Bye-bye, nose.
Signed,
face.
From clamper1797:
Hey Olympia if you go too we got 2 outta 3 ...
No, actually you got 39 outta 100.
From flingwingflyer:
Sorry Olympia, Yes we did. It was for the good of the party. It’s time to dump all far left-leaning RINOs. Sphincter started out as a ‘RAT so he has now come full circle. He’s home again.
Ooo! Clever! See what he did there? He used "rat" to describe the Democrats because "Democrat" has the word rat in it. Clever! And he called Specter "Sphincter" 'cause they kinda sound alike. Clever!
From Victor:
Shaddup, Snowe....you’re next.
Yeah! Shaddup, Snowe! We can't hear you lalalalalalala...
From Beowulf9
Here’s the real headline:
Snowe weeps for Benedict Arlen.
Ooo! More Clever!
From MamaLucci:
Exactly.........let the RINO purge commence.
And let the far right death march commence, as well, MamaL.
From Ancient Drive:
and I wish all the freaking Rhinos would do the same... go to the other aisle. Stop pretending to be what you’re not. come out of the closet and go Liberal. freaking Rhinos are the reason the conservative movement is in the gutter atm.
Right. Has nothing to do with the fact that the rest of the country has walked away from you because of your gutter politics. Rii-iight...
From Reformation Fan:
"witnessing the departure of my good friend and fellow moderate Republican, Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania"
Come on Olympia. Why are you so afraid of the L word. Say it. LIBERAL Republican.
I like how Dr. Michael Savage describes Senator Snowe as what Snow White would look like after she smoked a pack fo camels every day for 60 years.
Like I always say: if you can't argue with logic and facts, tell 'em they're ugly. That always works.
From pallis:
Arlen left because he was going to lose to Toomey, and Snowe turns it into a screed about the mean, conservatives in the Republican Party. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out Olympia. You and your ilk are the reason the Republican Party and America lost in 06 and 08. If the Republican Party had stood firm upon its conservative virtues and values, making America better, the Republicans would have their filibuster proof majority, minus a few RINOs like yourself who would rather play ball with the leftist. Name one major Democratic objective that you don’t support. Name the last time you penned a screed against Democrats. Can’t think of anything? That’s why Republicans don’t need you.
Oh, that's rich. You lost to the most progressively liberal Democratic presidential candidate in recent history because you weren't far-right conservative enough? Really? REALLY???!
From fkabuckeyesrule:
I have not said anything about the Spector thing. Let me say this loud and clear:
TEA PARTIERS 1 RULING CLASS ELITES 0
Okay, I'll admit it. I have no idea what that even means...
From Frantzie:
These people think these Senate seats are lifelong entitlements. The truth is Pat Toomey is more in-sync with most (real) Republicans and conservatives loathe Specter.
Win, lose (thanks to ACORN probably) or draw - we are better off with Specter. Let him run as a Democrat.
Ah, yes. ACORN. The Republican Party: felled by the mighty ACORN. [dramatic eyeroll]
From piytar:
Could we please "lose" Snow, too? Let’s give the donks their filibuster proof Senate. zero has set in motion policies absolutely guaranteed to wreck our economy (at the least), and this would deprive them of ANY dodge for the responsibility for the crash that is looming...
More Clever! from piytar. "donks" = donkeys. Get it? And it kinda sounds like "dongs".
And Obama = O = "zero". Get it? How nice for them to cheer on a collapse of our country. Very classy, piytar, very classy.
From ballplayer:
Well Olympia you can go too. Get the Hell out,I am sick and tired of you phonies ,I AM AN AMERICAN, A VETERAN, I LOVE MY COUNTRY !!! I am not going to sell out my principles to get along with socialists and Marxists intent on destroying this country . I defy anyone to show how the Republicans have MOVED TO FAR TO THE RIGHT. I believe in the Constitution AS WRITTEN ,I believe in God and I would like to Pray where and when I want ,I do not want my grand children indoctrinated in school in perverted ways of life against my wishes ,I dont want millions of innocent babies slaughtered ,old people put to sleep like dogs because of Budget constraints ,judges appointed to the Bench for life to twist the meaning of the Constitution to their warped interpretations .
The democrats have sold out to the Devil ,good riddance,just because we AMERICANS wont follow you down the road to destruction dont blame us for your guilty conscience,as for Olympia Snowe,Susan Collins,Lindsay Grahm,Arlen Spector, Michael Steele,John Mcain you can all go ,Get Out and dont let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.
I am an American and I am PROUD of it and I am not apologizing to anyone for it !!!!!
Easy, ballplayer. You'll get your spaces ahead of your commas there, big guy.
Wait. "...old people put to sleep like dogs because of Budget constraints"??? Eh? Where the hell did that come from?
From Just a Nobody:
Like it or not, which I don't, the "republicans" have a rule that they will support an incumbent, period.
We lost a valuable and conservative senator in Rick Santorum over this nonsense.
Rii-iight. Rick "Man on Dog" Santorum was sooooo valuable to you guys. Bwahahahaha!!!
From pleikumud:
Snowe and Collins of Maine are both RINOS who consistently vote with the Socialists, so they should make the "formal" switch too. Obama is forming the National Socialist Party.
It’s better if voters understand that Demos and Rhinos are really Socialists, who oppose capitalism and freedom.
What, you thought you would get through all this without someone throwing out some ridiculous Socialist accusation? Silly Kossack...
Okay, that's all I have the stomach for. Watching the conservatives tearing apart their own shrinking party is fun. But it's not that fun.
I'm just sayin'...