Well, Mittens' 2012 aspirations are alive and well. He's got MittPAC™ or whatever going on, just to make sure we all know he's, like, a really influential republican and stuff.
I have no idea if anyone in the GOP takes him seriously, but we all know that money talks. And Mitt is using his "influence" by shoveling money into races across the country this election cycle. In Oregon alone, MittPAC™ has spent $17,500 on republican candidates. Interestingly, most of it has been on the Governor's race.
The PAC also announced that it is sending Dudley’s gubernatorial campaign a $10,000 contribution, and that it is sending the Congressional campaigns of Walden, Bruun, and Cornilles each a $2,500 contribution
Who are Walden, Bruun and Cornilles? More to the point, why is Mittens donating to them and not, say, Delia Lopez? Because he thinks these candidates actually have a chance, which means whatever other nonsense he may be claiming about COH advantages and such, we should be paying attention to the races he endorses.
So what is Romney's vision for Oregon and likely your state as well? Let's start with Cornilles, one of the NRCC's "Young guns" who is running against David Wu on OR-1. He's a business owner, which everybody knows makes one eminently qualified to govern! His Website's "Issues" page doesn't even have a section on the environment, but it does tell us this:
I support a plan which would: Allow Americans to shop for health insurance across state lines to increase competition among private insurance companies, thereby driving prices downward...pass meaningful tort reform to put an end to frivolous medical malpractice lawsuits
We must take America's energy needs into our own hands. The days of relying on the whims of rogue governments and dictators must end. Oregon continues to be a leader in renewable energy produced from water, wind, solar, geothermal, fuel cells and biomass. Oregon's energy future will include all of these new forms of energy, as well as the natural gas that will be needed to backstop these renewable sources when the wind is not blowing or the sun is not shining.
Such as up your arse, Mr. Cornilles? What part of "both the Palomar and Bradwood LNG projects just got shot the hell down" do you not understand? Are you paying any attention to your own back yard?
Moving right along, let's have a gander at incumbent * sigh * Greg Walden, running in OR-2. He doesn't even have an issues page! The closest we get is "Meet Greg," wherein it appears Walden's greatest qualification is his lifelong residence or something. Oh, and his comprehension of forest ecosystems wouldn't get him past the 5th grade:
Let’s manage the forests, not stand around and watch them burn up.
* Facepalm * Hey, Waldumb...newsflash: when forests are naturally evolved climax ecosystems, as opposed to rows upon rows of bradiata pine, forest fires don't do like they do. In fact, fires keep a
normal forest ecosystem healthy. That is to say, it is precisely the obsession with logging that makes forest fires so dangerous. Sadly, Mittens is probably right about this race; Walden is a 6-term incumbent, but he does have a Democratic challenger for his seat in
Joyce Segers.
In OR-5, U.S. Rep Kurt Schrader has a GOP challenger in State Rep. Scott Bruun. First thing on his issues page? Federal spending. It's the second topic on his issues list, too, only he thought he was writing about National Security (emphasis mine).
When I look to Congress right now, I'm concerned. We seem to be losing some of our clarity when it comes to national security. It feels like the only place where Congress is becoming more frugal is with defense spending. While we spend tremendous amounts on defense, Congress has flat-lined allocations here in real dollar terms, and cut vital strategic programs. This doesn't bode well with the responsibilities and growing threats that our nation must consider.
Congress is spending less on defense in order to spend more on bailouts, failed stimulus, nationalized healthcare and pet projects. This wrong-headed prioritization will make it more difficult to sustain our nation's military and national security advantages. Simply put, we cannot afford to have both a European-style welfare entitlement state and a world-class military that adequately protects the American people.
Whoooowhee...the wingnut is strong in this one! It's no wonder Mittens is smittenz. And Chris Dudley against John Kitzhaber for governor? Like a former NBA player knows how to govern at all, let alone better than our former Governor who pioneered the Oregon Health Plan and has spent the interim years working on the Archimedes Movement? Say what?
Be on the lookout, people: what has Mitt got his mitts on in your state? Oregonians, you know what to do: send this to everyone you know, write letters to the editor and show these campaigns some love:
David Wu
Joyce Segers
Kurt Schrader
John Kitzhaber