Daily Kos

Snowe and Collins are not moderates and I hate them!

by Alna Dem

Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 01:33:40 PM PDT

(cross posted at The Alna Erratic)

To my fellow Mainers and other New Englanders:

Yes! A BuzzFlash editorial finally puts into words my hatred of Snowe, Collins, and Chafee. I am so tired of genuflecting at the altar of their "moderation" and "courageous votes." They are sitting in our seats, people! They put DeLay and Frist into power. They campaigned for Bush. They voted for the bankruptcy bill. They confirmed Abu Gonzales. So they're not frothing at the mouth like most of the Senate... they're still Republicans, and that's bad, okay?

Here's BuzzFlash:
When you have a one-party national government, you aren't voting for an individual candidate anymore - even if they were independent - which these three aren't really. You are voting for Bill Frist, Mitch McConnell, and Rick Santorum - the top three Republicans in the senate leadership. And they all report to the White House. You are enabling a Biblical Supreme Court. You are helping wreak havoc on foreign affairs. ... These are not moderates; they are just people who want to keep their jobs - even if it's within a morally bankrupt party that's bankrupting America and democracy.

They're tainted and morally bankrupt. Get them out. Let's get behind Tom Allen or Steven Rowe or anyone else with the courage to challenge Snowe in 2006. Give them your money, your time, whatever you can spare. Believe it can happen: we will take those seats back.

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Permalink | 20 comments

  •  Has Tom Allen officially thrown his hat in (none / 0)

    the ring or is it still just 'talk'?

    It's a neighborly day in this beautywood. Relentless!

    by ablington on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 01:26:42 PM PDT

    •  It's still just talk. (none / 1)

      Didn't mean to start any rumors. Also, you beat me to the punch with your first comment (server is very slow). I didn't mean to sound rude, either. I should have said, "Let's give them OUR money & time and whatever WE can spare."

      'Cause we're in this together.

      John McCain supports Bush's Iraq policy

      by Alna Dem on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 01:29:55 PM PDT

      [ Parent ]

      •  Oh I heard the Tom Allen rumors awhile ago (none / 0)

        and have been periodically asking my Maine family if he's offical yet (I'm in MA now), because he has a GOOD chance to beat Snowe. I hope he runs, I will absilutely donate to his campaign.

        I think it will be a very tight race this year. Snowe ia my high school's most distinguished alma mater, and that aint saying much about my high school...

        It's a neighborly day in this beautywood. Relentless!

        by ablington on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 01:34:52 PM PDT

        [ Parent ]

  •  Make that a tight race NEXT year (none / 0)

    It's a neighborly day in this beautywood. Relentless!

    by ablington on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 01:35:07 PM PDT

  •  couragious votes (none / 0)

    I read that it is a standard practice for party whips to keep track which members of his/her party need to "couragiously oppose" the bill that is currently in the works.

    Then, if there is a sufficient number of votes, permission to cast couragious votes is granted.  In case of GOP, the cases of genuine defiance are very, very rare.

    by Piotr on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 01:57:22 PM PDT

  •  Agreed (4.00 / 2)

    I used to be of the mindset to vote for the "person" and not the party, but I have changed with the last election.  My US Rep is Fred Upton, a reasonably moderate Republican; but he voted for DeLay as Speaker and joined onto the Schiavo circus.

    I have now come to the conclusion that moderate Republicans hold seats that are winnable by good, solid Democrats.  If these "moderate" Republicans cannot stop their party from choosing brainless leaders like DeLay and Frist, then they need to go away.

    "Hope and fear chase each other's tails." --Buddha

    by Grodge on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 02:06:02 PM PDT

  •  Woo, hatefest! (none / 0)

    I'm always up for ripping on Snowe and Collins.  Collins had the audacity to send me a letter dated after the confirmation of Abu Gonzales, saying she planned on voting in favor of the guy due to his impeccable record or some such nonsense.

    I'd really like to see Snowe face respectable competition in 2006.  I'd almost be sad to see Tom Allen leave his current seat, as I'd hate for a Republican to somehow gain from his exit, but if that's what it takes...

    What the hell was with Michaud backing the MBNA bill?  Is he not looking for re-election?

    When will we find a chord as resonant as to shake the sheets and make us move?

    by fivesideagon on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 02:10:25 PM PDT

    •  Allen's district is safe, (none / 0)

      whereas getting the "other Maine" on board in a statewide is a little more challenging. So if he can do it (I'm begging!), we can get someone else in the 1st district without much risk. Anyone know if Chellie Pingree is coming back? She'd be great there.

      I got the same odious Gonzales letter from Collins, btw. And she has an op-ed in our local weeklies virtually every week. Good organization; party hack. But Snowe doesn't even write back anymore. As for (for you non-Mainers, conservative, pro-life) Michaud, I don't know what's up.

      Any of you Mainers in Lincoln County or nearby willing to contribute to my blog, which was set up as a feeder to the blog and (soon) to the state? The state site would like to take on some diarists who are already posting. Any of you with knowledge of Maine politics (mine is limited), your state is calling you!

      John McCain supports Bush's Iraq policy

      by Alna Dem on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 02:37:23 PM PDT

      [ Parent ]

  •  they should be under pressure (none / 0)

    People should be educated about the trick of independence under special permissions.

    To avoid such accusation, moderates should abandon their party, every so often, on crucial votes.  If the scrutiny forces them to do it, it can be already worth it.

    At least Chaffee, Snow and Collins did not do what Specter and Guliani did --- making up for moderate positions with exemplary viciousness.

    by Piotr on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 02:13:32 PM PDT

  •  my point exactly (none / 1)

    these rinos do nothing for us except keep the republicans in the majority.

    snowe, collins, chafee, arnold, ehrlich, shays, and every other republican in name only are no better than tom delay and bill frist because their continued presence allows these thugs to remain in the majority.

    by balletshooz on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 02:22:27 PM PDT

  •  Jeffords (none / 0)

    Remember that Reid had a big hand in Jeffords leaving the Republican party.

    I wouldn't put it past him to be working on Snowe, Collins, and Chafee behind the scenes.

    If he can get one or more to leave the Republican Caucus it would be a major coup.

    But other than the so-called "Jeffords" option there is no reason not to try to take their seats for our party.

    by ces on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 03:16:01 PM PDT

  •  Amen! (none / 0)

    We'll do our best down here in Roe Dilund to get rid of Chafee, whether it be with Sheldon or Matt Brown.

    Oh, I've also got some friends back in CT working on Lieberman and Rep. Rob Simmons.

    Support Temporary Workers' Rights - Change to Win! - -6.12, -4.77

    by Scoopster on Tue Apr 26, 2005 at 03:56:52 PM PDT

  •  Way Too Harsh and Overstated (none / 0)

    I wrote this response to the BuzzFlash mailbag..I am a fan and regular reader... but after more than 36 hours, no posting on their site.  I was going post this as a diary entry, but responding here is fine.

    Dear Buzz,

    Your editorial on the "Northeastern Senators" was rather harsh, and a bit overstated.  As I transplanted Maineiac, I must protest. I have never been registered as Republican, supported Republican candidates, or voted a Republican ticket, but I was quite surprised by your editorial position.  I personally would prefer to be represented by Olympia Snowe over Mel Martinez any day.

    I see a difference between radical neo-cons masquerading as Republicans, and Republicans of the ilk of a Bill Cohen, who was moderate and rational enough to be Bill Clinton's Secretary of Defense.  (BTW, Cohen also gave Olympia her first taste of political life when he hired her as his district office manager in the early 70's).

    By my measure, and using the voting tabulations and ratings from Public Citizen, http://action.citizen.org, a site that I find trustworthy and reasonably in sync with my progressive viewpoint, both Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe ARE moderates.  That is not to say that they are at all liberal, but that they seem to function with an enough concern for their constituents to choose to vote for the benefit of all people, as opposed to the wealthy or corporate interests, nearly half of the time.  When the voting records of the ladies from Maine are compared with those of a few registered Democrats in the Senate, Snowe and Collins have records that are definitely centrist.  

    For example when compared to the voting record of Blanche Richard (D-AR), Olympia Snowe rates six percentage points higher on Public Citizens key vote scorecard for the 108th legislative session, and beats out both Democrats from Louisiana, Senators John Breaux and Mary Landrieu by twelve and six percentage points, respectively.   (I probably shouldn't even consider mentioning Zell Miller's voting record for the same session...but Public Citizen shows him as supporting key humanist legislation only 6% of the time.)  Shouldn't we be more concerned with DINO's than RINO's?

    Senators Snowe and Collins have also been staunch supporters of women's reproductive rights and each received a rating of 83% on her voting record from National Abortion and Reproductive Rights League (NARAL) Pro-Choice America in 2003.  That rating rivals many Democrats. http://www.prochoiceamerica.org/publications/congress_record_2003.cfm

    Maybe these two Senators do not hold enough power to sway votes and block neo-con legislation, but they have voted against Republican sponsored bills in the areas of the environment, women's health, renewable energy, ANWR drilling, tax cuts for the wealthy, and fuel efficiency standards, while also sponsoring their own environmentally friendly, socially conscientious legislation.  I certainly do not agree with all of their positions, but neither woman is a Wellstone.... or a Miller.

    Michelle
    Florida

    by mtibb0910 on Wed Apr 27, 2005 at 07:23:43 PM PDT

  •  Now, see, I disagree, and I have been GOP (none / 0)

    in my lifetime, registered in fact when I lived in the 2nd district and worked in Bangor. I've voted for Snowe and I respect her as a person and I respect her long and pretty honorable career. She's done a lot for the people of Maine. But not this time around. Not this Congress, Not this president. If she really cared about her state and her country more than about keeping her job, she could have pulled a Zell Miller, voted apart from them again and again and finally switched parties. She could be speaking out right now in direct language about corruption, abuse of power, torture, lies, thievery.

    Collins I see as more of a party hack, though she occasionally stands on her own.

    But even if they were Mahatma Ghandi and Mother Theresa in the past, they would be tainted now. Remember all those good, ordinary Germans that did nothing and how we look at them today? Well, that's Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins.

    Maine is a blue state. Those are our seats. I'm tired of making nice to them. I want them out.

    John McCain supports Bush's Iraq policy

    by Alna Dem on Wed Apr 27, 2005 at 07:49:36 PM PDT

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