Tag Maryland GOP

Hey Lookee! We Have Wingnuts Here, Too!

From Think Progress, here’s a video interview taken at CPAC of Eric Wargotz, who’s running for Senator of Murland. In the video, he reveals himself to be a birther:

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jz8wn8_8-w&hl=en_US&fs=1&]

Actually, the interviewer asks the questions from the recent Daily Kos poll of Republicans. For the benefit of those who don’t want to watch the entire video, I’ve summarized Wargotz’s answers. I’ve tried to be fair to him, god knows why:

  1. Should Barack Obama be impeached?
    If there’s sufficient cause.
  2. Has he been accused of anything that would warrant impeachment?
    No.
  3. Do you think Barack Obama is a socialist?
    Due to his foreign upbringing, he has more socialist tendencies than most Americans. People in other countries have different perspectives on social issues.
  4. Do you believe Barack Obama was born in the United States?
    No.
  5. Do you believe Barack Obama wants the terrorists to win?
    No.
  6. Do you believe ACORN stole the 2008 election?
    There were irregularities. Don’t know to what extent.
  7. Do you think Sarah Palin is more qualified to be president than Barack Obama?
    I don’t think she’s less qualified.
  8. Do you believe Barack Obama is a racist who hates white people?
    No.
  9. Do you believe your state should secede from the United States?
    No.
  10. Should Congress make it easier for workers to form and join labor unions?
    It’s already pretty easy.
  11. Would you favor or oppose giving illegal immigrants now living in the United States the right to live here legally if they paid a fine and learned English?
    No.
  12. Do you support the death penalty?
    Yes.
  13. Should openly-gay men and women be allowed to serve in the military?
    No.
  14. Should same-sex couples be allowed to marry?
    No. Civil unions, yes.
  15. Should gay couples receive any state or federal benefits?
    Depends on how the civil unions are worked out.
  16. Should openly-gay men and women be allowed to teach in public schools?
    What do you mean by “openly”?
  17. Should sex education be taught in public schools?
    Yes. But it should emphasize abstinence.
  18. In public schools, should it be taught that the book of Genesis in the Bible explains how God created the world?
    Evolution should (also) be taught.
  19. Are marriages equal partnerships, or are men the leaders of their households?
    In many cases, women are the leaders of the household.
  20. Should women work outside the home?
    It’s up to them.
  21. Should contraceptive use be outlawed?
    No.
  22. Do you believe the birth control pill is abortion?
    No.
  23. Do you consider abortion to be murder?
    In some cases, yes.
  24. Do you believe the only way for an individual to go to heaven is through Jesus Christ, or can one make it to heaven through another faith?
    I respect all faiths.

It’s tempting to give him credit for getting a number of answers right, but frankly, this is such an easy test that no one should get any answers wrong. Yes, I’ll spot him the questions on whether abortion is murder and whether illegal immigrants should have a path to legality. I’ll concede that there’s room for informed honest disagreement on those. But if he thinks Sarah Palin is as qualified to be president as Barack Obama, he’s wrong. If he thinks there’s any doubt as to whether gays should be allowed to teach, he’s wrong. Sorry if my bluntness offends, but there it is.

Why Don’t the Republicans Want My Vote?

I like Dean’s Fifty-State Strategy. For those who haven’t been following along, the idea is that for years, the Republicans and Democrats have been concentrating their campaign money where they think it’ll do the most good. Thus, for instance, the Democrats would realize that they’re not going to win some rural seat in Georgia, and therefore there’s no point in campaigning there. Then the Republicans would see that there’s no Democratic competition for that seat, and would concentrate their resources on a more disputed election, perhaps in Ohio or Missouri.

We all saw the 2000 and 2004 elections. So Dean apparently decided that the old was weren’t working so well anymore, and that the Democrats should actually spend money on every race in 2006, even the ones they can’t reasonably win.

The effect is at least twofold. For one thing, remember that dogcatcher race in rural Georgia? If the Democrats are actually spending money on it and putting up a fight, that means the Republicans can’t just take it for granted, and are going to have to spend money there as well, which is money they can’t spend in Missouri or Ohio.

The other effect is that stories are coming out about a resurgence of the Democratic party in unlikely places, like Alabama. Places where, in past election cycles, the Democratic party presence consisted solely of a PO box now have actual paid staffers, and people are getting to meet real live Democrats for the first time. This is all well and good and in the spirit of democracy, giving people a choice of candidates.

But I guess the Republicans didn’t get the memo. This November, I’ll be voting for or against Steny Hoyer, who has said a few stupid things recently. So I thought I’d see who the competition is.

As far asI can tell, there’s no Republican in that race. Apparently Ron Miller was running, but decided to switch to the Senate race. But no Republican will take the Maryland 5th house seat, because they haven’t put up a candidate.

I sent them mail yesterday asking about that, but I’m not terribly hopeful. I sent them mail in April asking for a platform document (no snark or anything; just a straight request), and never heard back.

Which brings me to the question in the subject: apparently the Republicans don’t want my vote. Why not?

Update, Aug. 11, 2006: I actually got a response from the MD GOP. My request:

Hi! I’ve been trying to find out who will be the GOP candidate in Maryland’s 5th Congressional district this November. I’ve searched the mdgop.org web site, but haven’t been able to find this information.

If you could help, I’d appreciate it.

Thanks.

Their response:

There is no Republican candidate going against Steny Hoyer this year. We originally had one candidate, Ron Miller, running but he decided that running against Mike Miller in the state Senate presented a better opportunity for success and impacting the people of the district. There was one other candidate who thought about getting into the race, but decided at the last minute that his time and energy was better spent re-electing Governor Ehrlich, electing Michael Steele to the U.S. Senate and bringing more Republicans into the General Assembly.

Thank you for your email. I hope this information helps.

Sincerely,

Audra Miller
Communications Director
Maryland Republican Party