Thursday, May 10, 2012

The Akin Endorsement

The Tea Party Express ignored local grassroots organizations and endorsed Sarah Steelman in the Missouri Senate race.
Freedomworks, despite vocal opposition from local grassroots activists, is set to endorse John Brunner in the same race, just days after he placed his foot in his mouth by denouncing Sarah Palin (whose endorsement he has been courting for months) and a local grassroots activist practically in the same breath.

 Left behind by the endorsers and check-writers? Todd Akin.

Todd Akin, the longtime local grassroots favorite.

Todd Akin, the man whose nearly flawless conservative record speaks for itself.

Todd Akin, one of the founding members of the Congressional Tea Party Caucus.

One can easily see why Akin doesn't spend much of his time pandering for money and publicity. He spends most of his time boldly going toe to toe with a President whose every move strikes another blow against individual liberty. He comes home and prays for his children,several of whom are currently deployed in military service. And the next day, he returns yet again to his own chosen battlefield.

People are asking why he isn't chasing endorsements. The real question, the one Akin asks himself, is "why should he have to?" His record speaks volumes, and yet the people with money gravitate toward the candidates whose voices are louder than their records (which in some cases are nearly non-existent). The problem is quite a bit more widespread than the Missouri Senate race.

And it isn't limited to the Republican Party. This problem is the reason a community organizer from Chicago was able to forgo experience and receive the Democratic nomination.

So as conservatives, what do we really want? Do we want organizations that bear our names - such as Freedomworks and the Tea Party Express - to offer their endorsements and their money based on record/potential or volume?

5 comments:

  1. Don't kid yourself, they all seek endorsements. Mr. Akin has plenty of PAC money in his coffers. He also received a big endorsement from Huckabee's PAC. How is that any different from Tea party Express or Freedom Works?

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  2. Maybe you're kidding yourself - or perhaps you just aren't reading carefully. I never suggested that Akin has no endorsements, nor did I suggest that he doesn't want them. I was simply comparing the three candidates on their willingness to court endorsements as well as the willingness of PACs and organizations to give money to the candidates who follow them around begging for money rather than to candidates who have earned grass roots support through an excellent record (as Akin has). I made the point in an earlier post as well, concerning the TPX's endorsement of Sarah Steelman. I have met Sarah Steelman, and she's a great lady. But the fact is that the TPX gave her the endorsement over Akin because she begged them for it for about a year, and Todd Akin let his record do the talking. That endorsement in particular hacked off a lot of local grassroots groups, because they were never consulted by a larger PAC that claims to represent the grass roots groups on a national level - and most of them favored Akin over Steelman.

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  3. Akin is the king of PAC money in this race. Look up FEC filings. Look at his corporate earmarks and then compare it to his corporate PAC money. Akin has done nothing for 12 years and survived because people like you buy his rhetoric. It is time for a change and a conservative who will actually roll back government rather than just talk about it.

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  4. I don't "buy" anything. I know Akin personally, and I know his record. He is the last Congressman in need of replacement by a "more conservative" candidate. He currently has the most conservative record in Congress and a perfect rating with National Right to Life. I'm sure you can find a Congressman who's actually a problem to complain about - why don't you do that?

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