Rossi Campaign Cautiously Optimistic As Voter Count Continues

As of 11:57 PM, the Washington Secretary of State was reporting on its website Election Day results showing incumbent Senator Patty Murray leading challenger Dino Rossi by a razor slim margin of only 14,005 votes out of 1,430,787 counted.  At the end of the first day of counting, Murray has a lead of 50.49% to Rossi's 49.51%.  However, Rossi For Senate Campaign Manager Pat Shortridge issued a statement by Email late last night outlining some points that should have the Murray campaign sweating bullets:

• Historically in Washington, the Republican candidates improve their percentages in each county in votes counted after Election Day, usually improving their margins by 2 to 3 percentage points.

• King County, which is providing most of Sen. Murray’s margin, accounts for 30.7% of all registered voters in the state. According to County Election reports, King County only has 26.7% of the remaining ballots left to count. The rest of the state, where Rossi has a comfortable lead, will count proportionately more ballots post-Election Day.

• Spokane County, where Rossi is currently in the lead by more than 50%, still has at least 21.6% of the remaining ballots left to process, with more coming in.

• Rossi is currently leading in Pierce County by nearly 2,500 votes

• According to the Secretary of State, there are still over 508,000 estimated ballots left to process statewide.

• Again, we will know more over the next several days as ballots continue to come in and counties continue to count. We are confident that the margins we are seeing throughout Washington State, combined with the state legislative victories, will put Dino Rossi ahead by an overwhelming margin.

This election is not like previous statewide races that Rossi has run.  It is a midterm, off-Presidential cycle election.  These usually favor Republicans, that traditionally exhibit more faithful voting habits.  In addition, a Republican tidal wave is sweeping the nation, with Republicans gaining a solid majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.  Turnout in more conservative Washington districts is running above normal this year.  This trend is elevating Republican Party hopes, as Washington is poised to send a Republican majority of its Congressional Representatives back to D.C. come January.  Five of Washington's nine Congressional seats appear to be in Republican hands:

• District 2 John Koster is leading his opponent 50.41% to 49.59%.  This is a Republican "gain".
• District 3 Jaime Herrara is leading her opponent 52.92% to 47.08%.  This is a Republican "gain".
• District 4 Doc Hastings is leading his opponent 68.31% to 31.69%.  This is a Republican "hold".
• District 5 Cathy McMorris Rodgers is leading her opponent 64.51% to 35.49%.  This is a Republican "hold".
• District 8 Congressman Dave Reichert is leading his opponent 55% to 45%, this is a Republican "hold".

Republican gains in west-side Congressional Districts are exceeding local Party expectations.  In addition, a number of voter initiatives regarding taxes have shown a conservative voting streak.  An initiative for a state income tax has gone down in flames, while another requiring a 2/3 majority of the state legislature to raise taxes appears to be passing.  In addition, a rollback of Democratic Party approved taxes on food and bottled water appeared to be passing as well.
While the race is still too close to call, it looks like we may be calling Dino Rossi our Senator very soon.

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Cross-posted to BLOGSUNNYSIDE.COM

Yakima Tea Party Activist Calls For Hostile Takeover of Republicans

In an email being circulated by Yakima Tea Party Activist Jere Irwin, he advocates a "hostile takeover" of the Yakima County Republican Party leadership. The 14th Legislative District features a race for State Representative between two Republicans. Incumbent Norm Johnson, and challenger Michele Strobel. Johnson is considered a moderate Republican, and voted in the last legislative session to support the controversial domestic partnership bill. Strobel is running as a conservative, and has made the domestic partnership issue a central point of her campaign.

Irwin, a Strobel supporter, is upset that the Yakima County Republican Party Executive Board has chosen to endorse the incumbent, Norm Johnson. The endorsement itself has been controversial, since some of Johnson's supporters first proposed it during the primary election. Yakima County Republicans have traditionally stayed neutral in partisan primaries, until the general election cycle. However, Washington's relatively new top-two primary system has yielded a race between two Republicans. The County Executive Board decided to make an endorsement decision anyway. In a sharply divided house, the endorsement was given to Johnson. However, the Party also decided to give $500 to Strobel's campaign as well. The campaign contribution to the candidate without the endorsement has apparently not been well received by supporters of either candidate.

In the interest of full disclosure: I have attended Yakima Tea Party functions in the past, and am a recipient of Jere Irwin's mass emails. This is the total extent of my involvement with the local Tea Party groups. I am also a Republican Precinct Committee Officer in Yakima County, but am not on the Executive Board. I do not live in the 14th Legislative District, and would have preferred that the County Party stay neutral when two Republicans are running against each other.

NOTE: Jere Irwin ran unsuccessfully for Precinct Committee Officer this year. He was defeated by Al Schweppe, a member of the County Executive Board, and former candidate for State Representative.

For those that are interested, I am posting the entire text of Irwin's email here:

The case for unity.

I voted for Clint Didier. He was a breath of fresh air. Someone with strong principals and an unyielding commitment to voicing them whenever anyone would listen. I like that, I respect that, and I also realized that you can’t win a statewide election in this state, at least not this year, by doing that.

Still, he got every vote in our household (including the pets, after all this is King County) because I want more people like him running, gaining name recognition, and positioning themselves for future campaigns. We knew that he had no chance to beat the "Mom in Worn Out Tennis Shoes" but this was the time to cast our "protest vote".

Now every hand (and paw) in our home is poised to vote for Dino Rossi this November. It has been a decade since a conservative in this state has had a very real chance to win a Senate race and we are not going to look back on this election with regret because we were not smart enough to do the right thing.

By nature conservatives put logic ahead of emotion. They do what needs to be done even if their heart wishes that they didn’t have to. This is called leadership. It is like the Sci-Fi movie where someone has to stuff the glove to their space suit into the hole in order to save the space ship. They know they are giving up their life but they are saving many more. As Spock put it, “The needs of the many, outweigh, the needs of the few, or the one”.

Right now our country desperately needs to reverse course. We have to shove Patty into the hole in the space ship so it can survive to win the battle with the evil alien dictator in 2012. That means we have to be smart. No matter what we are better off sending someone to D.C. that may not be what we emotionally want, but we logically need.

According to last month’s PPP poll 91% of Democrats in this state are going to vote for Patty Murray. Does that mean that 91% of Democrats like her? Of course not.
The latest Rasmussen poll shows:

• Only 12% of the people in this state are not angry with the current policies in of the Federal Government.
• Just 28% think our representatives in Congress are the best person for the job.
• Only 40% feel that their local representatives in Congress deserve to be re-elected.

So clearly most Democrats can’t stand Murray either but are voting for her because she is the only option they have.

In this state about 30% of the voters are “independent” and Rossi has a solid lead in that area. So what is going to make the difference in this election? Republicans. That same PPP poll shows that only 88% of the Republicans were committed to voting for Rossi. So while most of the polls show this as a dead heat it is a race that is in our hands, under our control, and we can win it and win it decisively not by convincing Democrats to jump ship, or away Independents into voting for Dino, but by simply understanding the simple logic that if you are a Republican you need to step up and do the right thing and leave your emotions at home.

Your “protest vote” was cast in the primary, but come General election anything but a Rossi vote is a vote for Murray, and to continue the course of the Obama agenda.
So for the first time in 10 years the race will be won or lost by how intelligent Republicans are. Some call Dino a RINO, but I contend the real RINO’s are anyone that isn’t smart enough to realize that a vote that isn’t for Rossi is a vote for Murray. Don’t look back on this opportunity with regret. In 2 years Clint Didier can run against Cantwell, or someone else may step up to replace her, but that election will be easier to win if we fire Patty in November.

So join me now in voting for Dino Rossi. He may not be the first choice, but he is the ONLY choice.

Rossi Ready To Grill Patty Murray

U.S. Senate candidate Dino Rossi recently challenged 18-year incumbent Patty Murray to a series of debates. Murray responded to the Rossi campaign by offering to debate only two times, and only in late October, just prior to the election.

Rossi has suggested that they have a total of six debates, to cover all the major media markets in Washington, with an additional debate in Seattle and also on national TV. Murray is refusing to go around the state to discuss issues with Rossi, despite this being the fourth time she is running a Senate race.

This Patty Is Done

Putting Patty Murray on a stage with Dino Rossi is probably the last thing her campaign wants to do. They know that Patty will be cooked, if she has to actually think about what she is saying without consultants providing a script for her.

Didier Favors Impregnation By Rape

Didier Speaking at a Tea Party Event in Yakima, July 2010

As recently as May 28th, Clint Didier was touting how he was a team player, and would support whoever faced off with Patty Murray this November.  This is what he said on the David Boze radio show:

"If it is Patty Murray and whoever - it's whoever. Vote against Patty Murray. And we gotta stimulate this movement in the state of Washington that whoever comes out of that primary we gotta get behind. And believe me, if it's not me, whoever it is, I'm gonna get behind them. I'm gonna work as hard for them as I did for me. Because it's not about me. It's about our kids, our grandkids, and assuring they have that same shot at the American Dream. It's about America."

Following the primary election however, Didier reversed course and refused to endorse Dino Rossi, who will face off with Murray.  Didier instead drew up a list of demands for Rossi to sign, before giving an endorsement.  These demands include having Rossi sign a pro-life pledge, and promising to vote against increased spending and taxes.

Nevermind that these are things that Rossi has stood for all along.  In fact, he has a legislative voting record of balancing the state budget, and holding the line on taxes.  He introduced legislation to protect the unborn while in the state senate, and is a Roman-Catholic.  Rossi is on record as having said that abortion is morally wrong.

Near the end of the primary campaign, Didier attempted to smear Rossi as pro-abortion.  His evidence for this consisted of one vote Rossi took in the state senate.  The vote was to allow women who are victims of rape, to take the morning-after pill.  By opposing this, are we to assume that Didier is in favor of impregnating women by rape?  If we follow the logic of the Didier campaign, this is the case.

Rossi might make exceptions for women who are victims of rape and incest.  Didier is making clear he favors impregnation by these methods.  I would expect better of a farmer from eastern Washington.

Rossi is a bona-fide fiscal conservative.  He has signed the Tea Party backed "Contract From America."  He has a voting record in the state senate that showcases his philosophy.  In addition, his two statewide campaigns for governor have gotten voters acquainted with him.  Now that he is the top dog for the U.S. Senate race, Didier is showing us how much of a sore-loser he is.

Didier is also showing how dishonest he is, not only in trying to paint Rossi as a tax and spend politician, or questioning his pro-life beliefs, but also breaking his own promise to support the Republican facing Patty Murray in November.

As a person who is pro-life, I would rather have Dino Rossi in the Senate, than Patty Murray.  What's wrong with you, Clint Didier?

References:

Palousitics: Didier: "Whoever it is (who wins the primary), I'm gonna get behind them"

NWDigest.com: Fuiten: Dino Rossi IS Pro-Life

Red County: The President, Patty and the Primary

Rossi Challenges Murray To Debate

Dino Rossi speaking at the 2010 Washington State Republican Party Convention

Dino Rossi is challenging Patty Murray to a series of debates to be held in Washington in the weeks leading up to the November general election.  This is according to a letter that Dino Rossi sent to Senator Patty Murray:

Dear Sen. Murray:

The U.S. Senate race is one of the most important elections in the State of Washington in 2010.  Given the importance of this election, and the desire for voters to make an informed decision this fall, I propose we hold five debates in Washington State, in addition to one nationally televised debate.  I further propose we hold one debate in each media market hosted by local civic organizations, with two debates in the Seattle area. 

The five debates in Washington State would be Lincoln-Douglas style, in which we would be allotted equal time to make opening statements, ask questions of each other, introduce new ideas, or defend policy positions.  A timekeeper would ensure each side adheres to time limits which are mutually agreed upon.

This is an opportunity for us to question each other on various policy positions in a manner which allows the public, not the press or interest groups, to dictate the issues covered. 

In order to ensure the maximum number of voters see the debates so they are able to make an informed decision, we should invite television stations in each market to broadcast the debates.  Additionally, as there is limited time before general election ballots are mailed, I propose that we hold one debate a week beginning the week of September 6, 2010.

 Will Patty Murray accept the challenge?  Stay tuned...

Patty Murray Launches Negative Primary Ad

Patty Murray, 18 year Senate veteran, has launched a negative ad against Dino Rossi, even before the primary election has been held.  This is in contrast to Dino Rossi, who launched a positive ad today, calling for change in Washington D.C. that will actually help people in the state of Washington.

US Senate Candidate Dino Rossi

During a press conference today, Dino Rossi said that the functional unemployment rate in Washington is 17.4%.  This number includes those receiving unemployment, people giving up looking for work, as well as underemployed skilled workers that are delivering pizzas.

Rossi said that two out of 10 Washington workers being functionally unemployed is too high.  As he goes around the state, talking with people and business owners, they talk about being worried about making their mortgage payments, and feeding their kids.

He went on to discuss how the healthcare reform is a tax and spending bill, with a little healthcare sprinkled on top.  Murray’s 60th, and deciding vote on this has killed jobs in Washington.

“Even the Chinese government is telling us we are spending too much money” said Rossi.

“We need private sector jobs”, explained Rossi, “instead of more government spending.”

Rossi called for extending all tax cuts enacted under the previous administration, and simplifying the tax code to make it fair and predictable so small businesses can hire more people.

He noted that in Murray’s ad, she is criticizing some of the same legislation that she voted for, such as bailouts of failed businesses.

Rossi said that Murray has not had a private sector job in her adult life, and does not understand entrepreneurs willing to risk it all in order to chase after their dream of making a better life in America.

When asked about energy policy, Rossi responded by saying we need an “all of the above approach”, which includes wind, solar, and even nuclear power in order to achieve energy independence.  He specifically called for continuing to use the vitrification plant at Hanford to turn radioactive sludge into a glass product that can be safely stored at Yucca Mountain in Nevada.  Murray has remained silent on Senator Reid’s attempts to shut that down, until Rossi made it an issue in his campaign.

Dino Rossi’s Ad:




Patty Murray's negative ad attacking Dino Rossi:

Coffee Talk With Dino Rossi

Dino Rossi came to Sunnyside, Washington today, and we had a conversation about his campaign at Guerra's Coffee Co. on South First Street.



U.S. Senate Candidate Dino Rossi with Aaron Guerra, owner of Guerra's Coffee Co. in Sunnyside, WA.

I asked Mr. Rossi how small businesses, such as the one in which we were enjoying some refreshing beverages, could benefit by his election to the U.S. Senate: