GOP Make Obama Focus In House Special Election

Hoping to hang on to a Congressional seat in a tight special election here on Tuesday, Republicans in this mostly white and very conservative district are trying to make the vote more a referendum on Senator Barack Obama than on the candidates themselves.

In advertisements and speeches, Republicans have repeatedly associated Travis Childers, the white Democrat threatening to take the seat away from the Republican Party, with Mr. Obama. Republicans say Mr. Obama's liberal values are out of place in the district. But for many Democratic veterans here, the tactic is a throwback to the old and unwelcome politics of race, a standby in Mississippi campaigning.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[Trollstakeyourmeds]

Doesn't Mississippi have a huge African American population? What's to say that this won't totally and completely backfire on the repubes!!!

[hmmmmmer]

How easy is it for the press to find ignorant Southerners, that is all they seem to talk to.

[harriscrl3]

If Childers win the GOP is in Serious trouble thats 3 they lost that is associated with Obama.

Carol

[jupitor]

I think every one is tired of these dirty tactics! Hope Miss. tells those Repub's they won't have any of it in their state! It's time the people took our Goverment back and tell the Polititions that change is on the way, and that they can clean up their act or be voted out! I hear change in the air! let see if it sstands up from state to state! It works in nebraska folks.

[personalpolitical]

Good for Childers!

On, and unless you are rich none of the Dems are advocating raising taxes, in fact Obama supports a tax CUT for those who actually need it.

[billrott]

So if all the Republicans have to offer is this type of campaigning, they are doomed.

When Newt took over congress, he offered various proposals linked to the "Contract with America." As much as you may disagree with the 1994 Republican Revolution, the Republicans demonstrated that they were able to not only identify voter frustration with congress, but also provide proposed legislation to address such concerns.

Now when Republicans are in a very hostile environment, all they offer is don't vote for the other guy because he is for the Democratic nominee. This type of campaigning offers nothing of substance in relation to the concerns of voters. It has failed already twice during the special elections and will fail this fall as well.

Rep. Ron Paul is so right that if the Republicans go forward with more of the same, they are doomed this fall.

[Trollstakeyourmeds]

Please don't mention Newt. I just ate lunch!!!

[robXdion]

They can't help it. Race-baiting is all they've known for the last 44 years.

[poco767]

Just another sign of the cash strapped GOP cutting corners. They can't afford to campaign against the Obama machine, hence all the calls for public finance. So any time they put out an ad they will use it as a change to hit obama, no matter how ridiculous or tenuous. I particularly liked the "too extreme for south carolina" ad.

[AdamND]

Yea this is a sign that the GOP is in trouble because this should be a soild no brainer win and now they have to fight for it. Which I think the GOp never thought that they had to do.

[ronspri]

"Folks in Mississippi just don"t want Obama in there," a Davis supporter, Ken Franklin, said at a barbecue restaurant in Hernando, a Memphis exurb. "He"s too liberal."

Yeah, aren't they always...the most liberal person ever in history.

No Obama is NOT to liberal, it's the fact that you are looking at it from a far to conservative, almost fascist or anarchist, radical right wing perspective. YOU are far, far too conservative, and conservative is not a good word as we have found out first hand over the last 20 or so years. Give me liberal anyday.

[robXdion]

That's just code for "too black". Obama is soooo liberal he has many Republicans voting for him.....smh.

[NeoStar9]

Didn't they try this in another state and it didn't work?

[billrott]

Yes, they tried it many times.

Illinois Special Election:
They tried it in the special election for Hastert's seat. The outcome was the Democratic Challenger, Bill Foster, a physicist with no real political history, won.

Louisiana Special Election
They tried this tactic in a special election last week, and the result was Cayoux, the Democratic Challenger won. The seat was in a strong CORRECTION VERY STRONG Republican district.

Does anyone know of others?

[gomonkeygo]

This is just a taste. This and the (I'm sure - how about you?) Rove-sponsored distortions of Obama's position on Isreal that the GOP leaders are dishing out now, making Obama out to be anti-Semite.

It's going to be the ugliest election in American history.

But maybe we need that. Maybe we need to re-expose the face of American racism. It's been hiding under the surface for decades now, "bitter" and angry and just waiting for a chance to re-emerge. If we try hard, if we fight hard, we can deal it a crushing blow, maybe one that - politically at least - it may never recover from.

That's part of change, I think.

[Zhonni]

I don't see it as a harbinger of things to come. If this was a neutral territory then it would have made sense. It is just like Sen. Clinton saying that W.Va represents America and if Obama can't win then something must be wrong with him.

No body told Clinton she had to win Mississippi nor South Carolina. I also this that the attempt of the democratic candidate to seperate himself from Obama was a mistake. He should have embrassed Obama and have Obama appear in an ad for him. I certainly hope he wins.

[Americanium]

This race is a harbinger of things to come. In a solid GOP seat this smacks of desperation which is good for the General Election.

That the GOP has to spend millions to defend a reliable seat speaks to the unfavorable ratings they are getting across the nation.

The cat has been belled.

[Trollstakeyourmeds]

From your mouth to the ear of the Goddess!!!