CA-11: NRCC Statement of Neutrality
NRCC staffer Rebecca Mark was kind enough to reach out regarding the characterization of David Harmer as the "establishment candidate" in the race. Her statement:
We are excited to have several great candidates who are sharing real solutions for the issues that matter to Californians. To date, the NRCC has not been involved in the primary and will remain uninvolved so that the GOP voters of California’s 11th district may decide who is best suited to go up against Jerry McNerney in the Fall.
The characterization of Harmer as the "establishment candidate" comes from a claim Harmer himself made about "prominent Republicans" that urged him to run even though he was "relieved to return to private life" after his defeat to John Garamendi last November. Harmer claimed that "Republican leaders have asked him to run for the 11th District seat."
It strikes me as curious who these "prominent Republican leaders" that Harmer claims encouraged him to run.
CA-Sen: NRSC Rips Prima Donna DeVore
Chuck DeVore's war with the Republican establishment and their meddling in the California Senate primary in support of Carly Fiorina continued to heat up as the two sides lobbed insults at each other. Some stronger than others.
First, DeVore weighs in:
All they got, according to the DeVore camp: An offer to meet with NRSC exec. dir. Rob Jesmer after Cornyn was unavailable for a sit-down. DeVore would not take the meeting.
"As someone who is already an elected official who represents half a million people who is running for the Senate, I don't know about your read on protocol, but my read on protocol is that I meet with elected officials," DeVore said in an interview Wednesday. "I'm not going to meet with a staffer, especially given what they've been saying about me for the last year. What would it accomplish? I mean, they're already in the tank for Fiorina." [emphasis added]
Chuck DeVore sits down for no staffer! He has other demands, too. He wants a basket of shower gels, a bottle of water (none of that piss you get out of the tap), and a bowl of M&Ms with the brown ones picked out -- all waiting for him at NRSC headquarters.
NRSC spokesman Brian Walsh, meanwhile, essentially labeled DeVore and his campaign as a bunch of incompetents.
But sitting down with Jesmer instead of Cornyn is standard operating procedure, NRSC spokesperson Brian Walsh said. [...]
"Remarkably, every one of them knew how to set up a meeting with the exception of Chuck DeVore who apparently believed sending a fax to Senator Cornyn's official government office was the most direct route. That alone might demonstrate a lack of seriousness, or at least raise questions of competency, by a statewide Senate campaign," Walsh said in an email.
"[W]hen you compound it with the misinformation his campaign spokesman has deliberately spread through allies in the conservative blogosphere -- suggesting it's the NRSC who has rebuffed his efforts to meet -- it's hard to draw any conclusion other than that this is a campaign that likes to play games," Walsh added. [emphasis added]
Advantage: Walsh and the NRSC.
National Republicans called DeVore and his team inept. DeVore's strategy, on the other hand, seems rather odd. He's stamping his feet at the notion of meeting with a staffer. (GUFFAW!) But one could understand his indignation. Executive Directors are peasants of any organization, I always say.
CA-Sen: NRSC, Fiorina Link Fundraising
Cue the award-winning new media operation of Chuck DeVore blasting the establishment Republican forces arrayed against his insurgent conservative campaign after this CQ Politics piece:
The NRSC and the Fiorina campaign joined forces to form the Fiorina Victory Committee, according to paperwork filed with the Federal Election Commission on Dec. 4. The committee allows the party and Fiorina to split funds raised via joint events or appeals.
The NRSC has not endorsed a candidate in the primary race between Fiorina, the former CEO of Hewlett Packard, and conservative state Assemblyman Chuck DeVore, but it has been at odds with the DeVore campaign over its perceived favoritism of Fiorina. As a result, DeVore questioned the "utility in further outreach" to the committee, a DeVore spokesman told CQ-Roll Call in October.
The national party also tapped Fiorina to give the weekly Republican radio address Dec. 5.
The NRSC told CQ-Roll Call it is "willing to conduct joint fundraising events with virtually any Republican candidate who asks, provided they have the potential to help the Committee raise money in addition to their own campaigns."
CA-Sen: Chuck DeVore, Rush Limbaugh Candidate
Chuck DeVore's campaign for U.S. Senate released a new web video that attacks primary opponent Carly Fiorina as a supporter of "liberal causes," and includes a clip of her on FOX News stating, "I actually agree with some of Obama's goals."
Apparently DeVore aims to be the Rush Limbaugh/"I hope Obama fails" candidate. Expressing any support for the President's efforts to get the country moving forward is betrayal to conservative obstructionist tactics to derail his presidency.
Conservative thinkers such Brian O'Connell from The American Spectator believe DeVore could make the Republican primary competitive against Fiorina should he capture support of national conservative leaders. By positioning himself against the Obama administration succeeding at all, DeVore aligns himself with a whole host of conservative leaders that stated their support of Limbaugh's initial declaration hoping Obama fails.
Fiorina is lining up Washington support in the form of a slew of sitting U.S. senators and running as the Republican establishment candidate, while her conservative opponents attempt to paint her as the next Dede Scozzafava. That would make DeVore the Rush Limbaugh candidate?
Steele Issues Notice to Moderates: “We’ll Come After You”
Moderate Republican candidates and elected officials are on notice: Michael Steele says "we'll come after you."
"[C]andidates who live in moderate to slightly liberal districts have got to walk a little bit carefully here, because you do not want to put yourself in a position where you’re crossing that line on conservative principles, fiscal principles, because we’ll come after you,” Steele told ABC's Top Line in response to a question about Republicans who support the White House's stimulus and health care plans.
It is believed Steele ended his comments with "Whatcha gonna do when Tea Party mania runs wild on you?"
The gentleman from Florida, "Macho Man" Randy Savage, promptly issued this statement:
