Tag: Dan Benishek (page 5)

It was merely an attempt at putting one of the most important PRIVATE activities we have.. under government control.

It was also a time where one could see the great divide in idealism exhibited by the Leftist Democrats and their counterparts, the Republicans.  When the dust settled, only ONE republican, a pitiful RINO, Rep. Anh "Joseph" Cao in Louisiana decided voting FOR the progressive takeover "was necessary to keep his job."  Te end result of the vote showed clearly.. there are still great differences between the Republicans and the Democrats, and the fanfare from local and state Democrat party folks here in Michigan demonstrated their allegiance to such anti constitutional tripe.

There are still ads airing by the Michigan Democrat party, but even those were based on buys done earlier.  Expect them to NOT increase.  Conversely, the Benishek Campaign is in full swing.

Readers might find Benishek's pledge to serve only 3 terms appealing as well.

Below the fold are two newly produced ads for Dan Benishek.   Spread them around.

-- UPDATE: --- 2:12

According to the NRCC numbers:

"Michigan's 1st District seat, vacated by retiring Rep. Bart Stupak (D), has also been a target for both parties, as both the NRCC and DCCC have aired ads there. The NRCC survey, conducted by Hill Research Consultants Sept. 19-21, found Republican Dan Benishek leading Democrat Gary McDowell 40% to 24% among 400 likely voters. In this Upper Peninsula district, Obama is viewed unfavorably by 56% in the survey."

Tuesday marked an incredible testament to this fact with an Northern surprise.  And it also gave a glimmer of where non party weaknesses may lay.

The (at this point) win by Alaskan Joe Miller in a squeaker over a sitting US Senator in the Republican primary, would in prior years, be the unthinkable.  In fact, even this year, it was considered merely a remote possibility,  yet it happened with the help of Palin's blessing and the tea party types.  Alternately, some will point to the Arizona US Senate race race as a repudiation of the tea party contingent in THAT state.

In his decision, Allen notes the expense for both campaigns through a recount process lessens the opportunity that a conservative would gain the seat, and that further divisiveness within the party might only result in the same type of poor leadership from that seat through a McDowell win.

"A 15 vote separation through a recount and validation process might easily be overcome if there was a decision to do so.  There are compelling reasons to follow through and honor the wishes of those 27,000 voters who thought I might represent them.  I am humbled, and honored by their support, but at this time feel they might be best served without a recount process that would be damaging to both campaigns and would not serve the district well."

Folks, I am going to lay out something for you to chew on.  If Jason Allen were the nominee, the support structure, coupled with the ability to bridge partisan divides through appropriate compromise would make him a stronger candidate.  The first district overall, has a make up that is more centrist, thus Stupak has been able to hold it for so many years.  Allen has been able to maintain conservative principles while working with those on the other side for what he saw as the best way to serve his constituency.

There have been issues with Jason which many of the faithful here have argued.  But as you may have noted, my tone has been one of a casually supporting one at times.  The big picture, and an understanding of many things that are behind some of the decisions our legislators make is very important.  On absolutes and real rights infringements, Allen has been a stalwart conservative.  Yes I said it.  I have also indicated before that he has seen where his mistakes were and worked to rectify them before they became an issue.   But all the while, I have to some degree maintained a semi neutral tone, and wanted only the best result from a fair contest free of vicious hyperbole, and misleading commentary.

Allen has completely taken the high road with this decision that might well have ended like another campaign which gave us the likes of Dan Scripps for a state rep in the end.

My hat is off to Jason Allen for conceding to a better, and more unified conservative future in the 1st congressional district. He is a true patriot.

---UPDATE----

Dr. Dan Benishek statement on Senator Allen decision not to pursue recount in MI-1 congressional election:

"After a hard fought six way primary where many good candidates, who care about their country, stepped into the arena to fight for a new direction for our country, I am proud to be the Republican nominee for Congress in Michigan's 1st district. All of the candidates are to be commended for their hard work and for the massive number of voters that turned out to vote in our primary on election day- twice as many as voted on the democrat side. When the votes were tallied the count between Senator Jason Allen and myself came down to one of the closest margins in history.

Today Senator Allen demonstrated that he is a man who puts his country, his conservative principles and his party ahead of his own interests. While I am new to this political arena, I have learned very quickly how invested you become in winning, along with your family, your friends and your supporters. It is not easy to step back and do what is in the interest of the party, and ultimately the country, and to give Republicans the best chance of winning by laying down arms as adversaries and moving forward together as allies. To make the decision to step aside when your instincts are to fight, takes great courage and selflessness.

I will never forget, nor should the voters of this district forget, the courage that Jason has shown. Today we stand together as Republicans. I greatly appreciate Jason’s support and would be honored to have him and his supporters stand with us as we work to defeat Gary McDowell and take back our government from the failed policies of Nancy Pelosi and her liberal friends in Congress.”

This is an "official win," however, challenges may still be made, and it is unclear if the Allen team will pursue any beyond this point.

Another hitch in the situation might well be the arrival of a third party candidate, Glenn Wilson, a Rose City Businessman who has indicated he can self fund a reasonable bid of his own.  Conservatives worry that Wilson will siphon off votes from Benishek, and insiders report that an ongoing personality conflict between the UP Doctor and Wilson, might further encourage Wilson to remain in the race as a spoiler.

Not long ago, Jason Gillman wrote on this blog, "As there are often races where a few votes separate 1st place and 1st to lose, it could be YOU that makes a difference."  Last Tuesday, the 1st District proved him right.  In my campaign for the Republican nomination, we faced a tough opponent and fought for every last vote.

And as every count has established more convincingly than the last, we won.

If we must endure an expensive and time-consuming recount, a dedicated few could easily be the deciding factor once again.  That's why today, I need you.

If we want to uphold this conservative victory and retake the seat that Bart Stupak dishonored, we will have two critical needs: the resources to fight the legal challenge, and volunteers standing vigil in all 31 counties of the District.

Right now, we should be uniting around a single conservative banner, making the case for the reforms Washington needs, reforms that Gary McDowell and his allies will resist just as they have for the last four trying years under Speaker Nancy Pelosi.  But should we need one last push to affirm our victory, I hope you will help me see it through to the end.

Already the recount process has begun, and each of the candidates will pay their $10 per precinct they might feel has the greatest opportunity to find a mistake that corrected, would favor them.  In fact the Benishek team has released this message:

"Dr. Dan Benishek now leads Senator Jason Allen by 13 votes after a day of clean-up of election results from the cliff-hanger fight for the 1st District Republican nomination for Congress.

In Gladwin County, correction of a math error on the results sent to the Secretary of State's office resulted in an 11vote boost for Benishek. And when Delta County certified their vote today, Jason Allen added one vote to his tally, while Benishek added two votes to his, for a net gain of one. "

If that is the case, a Hundred or so other precincts may well find minor errors that aggregated, might produce a very definite difference from what we see now.