Delaware Republican minions convened at the Dover, Delaware Sheraton Inn & Conference Center for their state committee dinner on Friday night. The speaker for the event was Robert G. Elder, a Wilmington banker who was a member of `Swift Boat Veterans for Truth,' the military men who were assigned to river craft during the Vietnam War, as was Senator Kerry. As we all know, these veterans attacked and disparaged John Kerry during the campaign with false accusations and lies, all because they were angry at his anti-war activities after the war.
But hours before he took the podium, a mysterious group calling itself Swift Boat Republicans for Truth sent an e-mail to party members with a visceral assault on state GOP Chairman Terry Strine.
The message criticized Strine's residency and claimed he supported Democratic candidates in last fall's election in Kent and Sussex counties through his family's business interests.
Strine, a former businessman with ties in real estate and development, said he has separated himself from his business interests since assuming the party's chairmanship in 2003. He said he lives in Delaware, and not Pennsylvania as the e-mails assert.
The contributions to the Kent and Sussex Democratic campaigns were made by his adult children, Strine has said, while he and his wife have given more than $43,000 to GOP candidates around the state.
This email was sent from a mysterious "Bobby Rogers" on behalf of the aforementioned new group called the "Swift Boat Republicans." This email was a three page attack piece that basically declared that Strine was unfit to be the party's chairman. Indeed, the Swift Boat Republicans sounded like something I would say when they referred to Strine as wanting a GOP that stands for Greed, Opportunism and Personal Gain. The email also contained a picture of Ronald Reagan with the quotation "Mr. Strine, 'tear down that wall' of lies."
Strine, who got the post two years ago when no one else wanted it, is running for re-election April 23 at the state party convention. He is being challenged by Jeffrey E. Cragg, the New Castle County Republican co-chairman, who said he had nothing to do with the Swift Boat e-mail.
Some old time state Republicans came to Strine's defense.
With an election for a new party chairman just weeks away, Delaware GOP National Committeewoman Priscilla Rakestraw said the e-mails violate the party tenet that members should not speak badly of one another.
"There are people who are out to destroy our party," Rakestraw said in a quick speech before Elder took the stage at the Dover Sheraton. "There are people who are using the Swift Boat name to advance their own political agenda. If we're going to have a campaign, let's campaigning on the issues - not engage in smear campaigns."
And Bobby Elder, the Swift Boat veteran, quickly turn to dissociate himself from the Swift Boat Republicans.
Speaking to a crowd of about 250, Elder said he was disappointed that someone would dishonor his group's name. But he said the group wouldn't try to track down the person responsible for the e-mail because it did not want to dignify the sender with that level of attention.
Is this happening in other states? Are the radical neocon theocratic Club For Growth types who oppose moderate or liberal Republicans using the Swift Boat name in your neck of the woods.
If anything, it is nice to see the Delaware Republican Party destroying itself. It is also nice to see it finally revealed that the Swift Boat Liars are indeed Swift Boat Republicans.
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