Chairman's Update
Long before there was Barack Obama, the media gave us Democrat Mark Warner. Sure, they may not seem all that similar at first glance – but look again, and you’ll see a kinship between them that made Warner a natural to be chosen by Obama to give the keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention in Denver next week.
You may recall that it was Obama’s role as the keynote speaker for the 2004 Democrats that launched “Obamania” into the national spotlight.
But more than each giving the “honorary” Tuesday night convention speech, their true kinship comes in the form of press treatment that largely ignores the substance of each man in favor of puff coverage focusing on their gregarious personalities and “moderate” political tendencies. And this is exactly what Obama has in mind.
Obama is no dummy when it comes to political theatre. He knows that when Mark Warner appears on TVs all across America (those TVs that are not tuned to something more interesting, like the National Spelling Bee contest) the media will laud the former Governor as a moderate bridge builder, or a Democrat who won the hearts and minds of “Red State” Virginia. Warner, they’ll say, is a model for the type of bi-partisan, non-ideological politician that Obama aspires to be, thus marginalizing criticisms of Obama’s liberal positions on the issues.
But who are we kidding? We know that you don’t get rated by National Journal as the MOST liberal U.S. Senator for no reason. And in case you forgot: this means that Obama is more liberal than an avowed socialist, Independent (Socialist) Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.
Yet this is the man who Mark Warner chooses to honor in the form of giving his keynote address. For years the Democrats in Virginia said they were different from their national counterparts who were on the far left; people like John Kerry, Jesse Jackson, and Barbara Boxer. But the convention in Denver will once and for all dispel any myth to the contrary.
The fact is that Mark Warner is the perfect choice to keynote the Democrat convention. As the guest of honor of a far-left gathering, Warner can give a clinic to Obama and the national Democrats on how to campaign as a bi-partisan, non-ideological candidate, but then push through a hard core liberal agenda once elected; he can show the Democrats how to make campaign promise after campaign promise, and then break every one of those major promises and have the media never hold you accountable.
Barack Obama and most of the liberals in the room that evening will want to push through record tax increases on America, but Warner has already done it. Obama and the Democrats want to kill offshore drilling for energy independence, but Mark Warner has already vetoed offshore drilling. The Democrats want to push a liberal social agenda without catching heat in return, and as Mark Warner put up his own money to (unsuccessfully) defeat the marriage amendment, he can help here too.
Let’s not forget how skilled Mark Warner is at manipulating people. This is the politician that promised he would not raise taxes, and then hid favorable state financial forecasts to push through the largest tax hike in Virginia’s history. Now, imagine – for example – you hid facts from your insurance company to get more money from them as Mark Warner hid facts to get more tax money out of Virginia taxpayers. You wouldn’t get elected to the Senate, you’d go to jail!
So, Barack Obama could not have picked a better person to unveil the blueprint of how to fool voters, the press, and even the legislative branch. Mark Warner is the perfect choice.
And this is why it is so important we make sure we get all of our family, friends, and co-workers to vote for both John McCain and Jim Gilmore this fall. Our message must be that it makes absolutely no sense to vote for McCain, only to cancel your vote by supporting a Barack Obama clone for the U.S. Senate like Mark Warner.
One thing you certainly won’t hear from the media is that Mark Warner may be worth millions, but his word is worth about as much as a $3 bill.
Jeffrey M. Frederick, Chairman
Republican Party of Virginia
You may recall that it was Obama’s role as the keynote speaker for the 2004 Democrats that launched “Obamania” into the national spotlight.
But more than each giving the “honorary” Tuesday night convention speech, their true kinship comes in the form of press treatment that largely ignores the substance of each man in favor of puff coverage focusing on their gregarious personalities and “moderate” political tendencies. And this is exactly what Obama has in mind.
Obama is no dummy when it comes to political theatre. He knows that when Mark Warner appears on TVs all across America (those TVs that are not tuned to something more interesting, like the National Spelling Bee contest) the media will laud the former Governor as a moderate bridge builder, or a Democrat who won the hearts and minds of “Red State” Virginia. Warner, they’ll say, is a model for the type of bi-partisan, non-ideological politician that Obama aspires to be, thus marginalizing criticisms of Obama’s liberal positions on the issues.
But who are we kidding? We know that you don’t get rated by National Journal as the MOST liberal U.S. Senator for no reason. And in case you forgot: this means that Obama is more liberal than an avowed socialist, Independent (Socialist) Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.
Yet this is the man who Mark Warner chooses to honor in the form of giving his keynote address. For years the Democrats in Virginia said they were different from their national counterparts who were on the far left; people like John Kerry, Jesse Jackson, and Barbara Boxer. But the convention in Denver will once and for all dispel any myth to the contrary.
The fact is that Mark Warner is the perfect choice to keynote the Democrat convention. As the guest of honor of a far-left gathering, Warner can give a clinic to Obama and the national Democrats on how to campaign as a bi-partisan, non-ideological candidate, but then push through a hard core liberal agenda once elected; he can show the Democrats how to make campaign promise after campaign promise, and then break every one of those major promises and have the media never hold you accountable.
Barack Obama and most of the liberals in the room that evening will want to push through record tax increases on America, but Warner has already done it. Obama and the Democrats want to kill offshore drilling for energy independence, but Mark Warner has already vetoed offshore drilling. The Democrats want to push a liberal social agenda without catching heat in return, and as Mark Warner put up his own money to (unsuccessfully) defeat the marriage amendment, he can help here too.
Let’s not forget how skilled Mark Warner is at manipulating people. This is the politician that promised he would not raise taxes, and then hid favorable state financial forecasts to push through the largest tax hike in Virginia’s history. Now, imagine – for example – you hid facts from your insurance company to get more money from them as Mark Warner hid facts to get more tax money out of Virginia taxpayers. You wouldn’t get elected to the Senate, you’d go to jail!
So, Barack Obama could not have picked a better person to unveil the blueprint of how to fool voters, the press, and even the legislative branch. Mark Warner is the perfect choice.
And this is why it is so important we make sure we get all of our family, friends, and co-workers to vote for both John McCain and Jim Gilmore this fall. Our message must be that it makes absolutely no sense to vote for McCain, only to cancel your vote by supporting a Barack Obama clone for the U.S. Senate like Mark Warner.
One thing you certainly won’t hear from the media is that Mark Warner may be worth millions, but his word is worth about as much as a $3 bill.
Jeffrey M. Frederick, Chairman
Republican Party of Virginia
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