Clint Didier, the third place finisher in Washington’s “Top Two” Senate primary last week, is refusing to endorse the Republican establishment pick and second place finisher, Dino Rossi.
As would I.
Clint Didier, the candidate Sarah Palin backed in the Washington state Senate race, today said he’s not yet ready to support Dino Rossi, the GOP victor in Tuesday’s primary.
“I want to endorse Dino Rossi; I really do,” Didier said at a Seattle press conference. But he said he came away from a long conversation with Rossi the evening before without the assurances he needed. “At this moment, I cannot endorse Dino Rossi,” Didier said.
Didier wants three promises from Rossi:
1 – Block any new federal spending.
2 – Oppose any new taxes on all income brackets.
3 – Introduce a copy of Ron Paul’s very foolish and not at all Libertarian “Sanctity of Life Act” in the Senate.
That is his price for his endorsement. An endorsement that Rossi cannot win without. I am pretty sure that Rossi knows this and every day he doesn’t acquiesce makes him weaker with the Didier crowd.
I only want the first two, and without them I don’t know what I’m going to do on election day. Am I “very likely” to end up inking the bubble next to Rossi’s name simply because he’s not Patty Murray? No. It is possible, but I want to think on it between now and then. I don’t want to vote for a Republican version of Murray simply because he’s not Murray. That is not what the 2010 elections are about.
And Rossi needs to figure this out soon. A large percentage of other Didier supporters I’ve spoken to locally aren’t as “flexible” as I am and will simply stay home or leave that area of the ballot blank.
I know how you feel, but there is one thing that makes it easier for me to vote for him –
don’t want any more Kagans on the court
Same reason a lot of Nevadans are going to swallow their bile and vote for Harry Reid: they don’t want Chuck the Schmuck Schumer as the next Senate Majority Leader.
Politics is all about compromises. Those with a “pure vision” usually can’t see this, and that is why damn few of these “pure visionaries” ever form an effective political party.
It’s also why we need pure visionaries: without their pressure, we would wind up with one humongous party, on the order of New Labour in england, which, like the Borg, assimilated the entire Left and then some. Look at the results.
So you’d rather have Murray? I’m sure she will be for “no new taxes” and “no new spending”.
Before Rossi got into the race, Didier said he’d support / endorse whoever was facing Murray if it wasn’t him. Now he’s not, and he wants to keep the spotlight on himself a while longer. I’m not fond of either one (Rossi or Didier) because I’m not a social conservative (more a radical moderate), but just about anyone would be better than the former kindergarten teacher who failed Econ 101, Sci 101, and History 101 we have now.
Preventing more Kagans is one of the reasons I will vote for Rossi, as well as just removing the bad taste of having Murray be the Senator from my state of residence.
Bill,, Rolf and Barb: There is nothing that Rossi has said that shows me he wouldn’t do what two other Republicans (Olympia Snowe and her usual cohort whose name escapes me at the moment) did to get Kagan on the SCOTUS. Not a single thing.
Fiddy: that is one of the reasons I am having a hard time saying I’ll vote for him: He won’t say he won’t be another Scott Brown (R-MA) or Cao (R-LA).
To you all: At least Murray is predictable. If you’re thinking there is going to be a Republican majority in either the Senate or the House, just put those tissues by the radio/TV now and save yourself the hassle of having to do it on that particular Tuesday night.