Let Me Get This Straight....

Debbie Wasserman Schultz is attending a fundraising reception to HONOR Suzanne Kosmas, a Democrat running for Congress against someone, Tom Feeney (a Republican), who is described by Democrats as one of the most corrupt members of Congress. I'm just reading what I saw in that copy of the invitation.

So, Wasserman-Schultz had the AUDACITY to go to a fundraiser for a fellow Democrat running against a 'corrupt' Republican. Now, I really don't understand what your problems are with this woman!

Is there something I'm missing?

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by: Gatenmaru @ Tue Mar 25, 2008 at 13:16:04 PM UTC

I think there is some snark in play!

Debbie Wasserman Schultz (and Kendrick Meek) have both recused themselves from supporting the three South Florida Cuban Democrats running against the three Cuban Republicans.  The DCCC has defended DWS, saying it's customary for representatives to remain neutral in the re-election campaigns of the other members of their state delegations.  Yet, here DWS is campaigning against a member of her state delegation.  There's some hypocrisy, here.

Follow the elections in Georgia at the 2010 Georgia Race Tracker.

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by: TheUnknown285 @ Tue Mar 25, 2008 at 13:48:30 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

The problem

DWS had previously claimed that it was gauche for her to campaign against Florida Republicans because it was not done in proper society.  Well, bingo, here she is campaigning against Tom Feeney, a Florida Republican.  The "rule" is obviously some made up clap trap.

The problem, of course, is that DWS will only campaign against some Florida Republicans, even though she holds a high level position within the DCCC.  The Cuban trio of Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and the Diaz-Balart brothers are  protected.  Or Feeney is somehow persona non grata.  Perhaps,it is a bit of both.

Feeney, you see, was a particularly obnoxious leader of the state Senate who threatened to install a separate slate of Bush electors in 2000 no matter how any recount turned out.  He never did it but he would have and like Katherine Harris he was rewarded with a specially gerrymandered seat in the House designed just for him.

Dividing Florida into nice Republicans who have their seats for life and naughty Republicans is arrogant as all get out.  It should be up to the voters in Florida to decide who represents them and not be some compact among the political elite.  What makes this worse, of course, is that in the highly gerrymandered world of Florida districting all the Democratic seats with the exception of the two captured in 2006 are super safe.  DWS personally benefits from this behavior although Democrats as a whole and the local voters do not.

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by: David Kowalski @ Tue Mar 25, 2008 at 13:50:45 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I think you're blogging enough on this issue, where you could

make a new blog entirely dedicated to this.  

www.debbiewassermanshultzfloridaproject.com

Tah-Dah!

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by: JeremiahTheMessiah @ Tue Mar 25, 2008 at 17:51:16 PM UTC

And is this snark or what?

I totally agree that DWS made big f***ing mistake with her highly quotable bouquet to Ileana Ros-Lehtenin and then declaring that she would NOT do anything to help the good Dems running against in her area. Then the DCCC was put on the spot for insufficient aggressiveness reminding us all of the capitulation Congress and sort of dropped the ball.

By now I'd think the DCCC and DWS might well like a way out of the mess they got themselves into. But now we have a two-part issue:
1) Should the DCCC and DWS find a way to change her ways quietly and give support the three South Florida challengers?
2) Must DWS be made to change her ways with some public crow-eating statement?

If we go for 1), we might give this issue a rest soon, to allow DWS a graceful exit from the corner her wrongheaded statements have put her in.

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by: WoodyNYC @ Tue Mar 25, 2008 at 22:10:21 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I think getting something changed would be nice

But a pissing contest on blogs and in press statements isn't doing anyone much good.  

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by: JeremiahTheMessiah @ Tue Mar 25, 2008 at 23:49:14 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I am inclined to agree with other people...

...that you're starting to sound like an issue pusher.  We get the idea, and so does the press.

Now, if DWS does anything new that's this obnoxious, or actively reiterates the same crap, I would like to hear about it.  If she corrects herself, I would also like to hear about that.

But not if she's doing this.  This is pushing the news-item-significance line.

(And I don't like issue pushers--people who express the same point or opinion over and over again on some issue.)

At least give the issue some time before you bring it back up.

party: Democratic, ideology: moderate, district: CT-01

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by: Glenn Magus Harvey @ Wed Mar 26, 2008 at 03:11:24 AM UTC

Others who didn't get Brian Wolff's memo

Brian Wolff, executive director of the DCCC, says the bloggers are making "much ado about nothing," noting that it's "customary" for members to remain neutral in races involving GOP members of their respective congressional delegations.

From best looking, clockwise: WV-02 candidate Anne Barth (against Shelley Moore Capito), Sen. Jay Rockefeller, Rep. Alan Mollohan, Rep. Nick Rahall, Sen. Robert C. Byrd.

Quickpost this image to Myspace, Digg, Facebook, and others!

This was from Barth's fundraiser tonight in Charleston. They're holding other fundraisers for her elsewhere in the state this week. She'd make a great candidate for the big blogs to support too.

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by: Carnacki @ Wed Mar 26, 2008 at 04:10:36 AM UTC

Way To Do It

This shows the way to do it! Congratulations for the West Virginia Democratic Team unanimous support for Ann Barth! Looking good!

And thanks to you, Carnaki, for making the point with subtlety.

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by: WoodyNYC @ Wed Mar 26, 2008 at 04:43:20 AM UTC

[ Parent ]