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I’ve been saying it for a while now – no way that I’m betting that 2014 is going to replicate 2010 and a large reason why is, IMHO, that the Establishment Republicans joined with the Democrats in excoriating the TEA Party / Libertarian wing of the Party.  That would be the same people that dragged a lot of Republicans over the finish line both at the Federal level and bushwhacked the Dems at the State level.  More and more I am hearing, in effect, that these folks are starting to say “screw you – why vote for you when you fight against us?”  Thus, when this came across the transom, I was not surprised – somebody high in the NH GOP is getting really antsy and anxious, eh?  Reformatted and emphasis mine:

Got this today from the Brookline-Mason GOP.  Someone is nervous…..I wonder how high up it goes?

On Aug 29, 2014 6:52 PM, “Thomas Humphreys”wrote

BMRC Members, The purpose of this email is to urge you to do the following:

1. Vote in the Republican primary election for the candidate(s) of your choice.
2. Vote in the general election for the Republican candidate, even if they were not who you voted for in the primary election. Staying home and/or not voting for a specific candidate/office is the same as voting for their opponent.

In the 2012 presidential election, there were approximately 220 million registered voters in the United States. Final voting results for president (rounded) were, Obama-66 million, Romney 61 million. Which means 93 million people did not bother to vote.  Assuming an even split (Democrat, Independent, and Republican) among the 93 means that about 31 million Republicans stayed home. If just 20% (6 million) of those had gone to the polls and voted for Romney, the outcome would have been different, we would have a much better individual in the White House and our country would be far better off than it is today.

And of course, I had a response!

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Consistency breeds Trust yields Votes

We have been rather stingy with endorsements thus far this season; the writers at GraniteGrok decided that our bar for such would be set so high that few would be able to meet it.  We discussed that we would only settle for “Champions” – those people that we can Trust; those candidates that we would never have to worry about the questions of where they are with respect to the NH GOP Platform and, more importantly, both the words and spirit of our Constitutions when it comes to legislation and votes.  Can we, without even asking, know how a Champion will vote without asking?  Can this be a person that will not violate that Trust that we would imbue to them?  And in this Federal position, work hard to reverse the Progressive march that demands that Government be our master?

The Groksters, writers / activists, have decided that Bob Smith is that person and who represents our values most closely and someone that we can lend one of our most valuable assets that we have as Citizens – our votes.  In a representative democracy, our Constitutional Republic, there can be no higher accolade than to say “we believe you can do the job” and do so within the constraints of what the Constitution allows you to do as one that will be directing that level of Government.  We believe that he is best suited to not only carry those values forward but also resist those that are infected with “Potomac Flu” – the philosophy that “Government knows best and should legislate our behavior”, and that special interest groups that “rent seek” from the Feds in “benefit for the few at the expense of the many”.

As with all of our endorsements, however, comes that “double edged sword”;

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Yeah, this is a “bite the hand that fed ya” type of post – I was named AFP’s National Activist of the Year back in 2011 and Steve was named AFP’s National Blogger of the month in December 2012.  I would like to point out that this post also shows that while we have friends, we must also point out “wrong doing” by them just as if they were not – else we would be hypocritical.  Above all, we value the reputation we have built by being equal opportunity Flashlighters when anyone crosses a line that they should not.  And yes, we hold our friends to a higher standard.

Thus, I got a bit peeved when I saw this in my email that came in from a ‘Grok Friend while I was out doing errands this afternoon (up North a bit of gunsmithing for me & leaving some bucks with BJs – given that Obama has declared September to be “PrepareAThon”, he should be proud of me!).  What the heck is the Honorary Chair of Americans for Prosperity / NH Tom Thomson getting involved in the NH Republican Primary for Governor??   Reformatted and emphasis mine:

Today, Sept. 2, 2014, it was announced by Tommy Thompson (Honorary Chair of NH AFP), that he was endorsing Walt Haverstein, in the race for NH Governor. NH AFP will tell you they do not “endorse” candidates, but those in the know, understand how the game is played.  The truth is Tommy will carry the “message” of Havenstein’s endorsement for AFP while looking as though NH AFP was not actually involved.  NH Americans for Prosperity has sold out the grassroots here in NH! They have been coopted by the NH GOP!

See below why I give this last sentence credence; more of that email and my response:

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This came in on Thursday and missed it first go around – apologies:

Speaker Candidate Rep. William O’Brien’s Statement on the New Hampshire Supreme Court’s Decision in Duncan v. State of New Hampshire

Contact:               Rep. William O’Brien
Tel. (603) 620-8710
Email: WilliamLOBrien@gmail.com

In 2012 the New Hampshire legislature overrode Democrat Gov. Lynch’s veto and passed the Opportunity Scholarship Act, a law intended to give the children from poor and medium income families the opportunity to get the same educational opportunities that the children of Gov. Lynch and so many of his well-heeled political and union boss friends enjoy.  This pro-educational choice law allows businesses to give a very limited amount of their pretax dollars to private charities set up to give all but a small percentage of the funds they receive to educate children from families earning no more than 300% of the federal poverty line.

Ever since this law came into effect, vested educational industry interests, led by those who do not have to send their children to failing schools, have tried to reverse Gov. Lynch’s failed gubernatorial veto with a judicial veto.  They forum-shopped for a favorable judge.  They had that judge issue a decision limiting the law based on premise that would make any liberal smile: he said, in effect, that all your money first belongs to the government, so if government leaves some to you after taxes with the knowledge that you might spend it on a religious-based education, then government is supporting religion.

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Sent in by a ‘Grok friend:

August 29, 2014
Speaking at Point Mugu Naval Base, near the Reagan Ranch where he is vacationing, President Ronald Reagan addressed the nation on the beheading of James Foley and the threats from the Islamic State (also known as ISIS).

My fellow Americans:

We have all been saddened and outraged by the vicious videotape of Islamic State terrorists beheading an American journalist. Our hearts go out to James Foley’s family.  However, anger and sympathy are not solutions.  We, the American people, must come together in a righteous determination to defend freedom and civilization from barbarism, savagery, and terrorism.

We must calmly, methodically, and with the same grim determination we brought to winning World War II, implement strategies that eliminate the growing worldwide threat of radical Islamists prepared to kill us as individuals and our values as a civilization.

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From the President through all his Progressive surrogates (Maggie Hassan, Jeanne Shaheen, Carol Shea-Porter, and Annie Kuster included) you hear that America has all these issues that make America bad, bad, and badder. They say we have these inequalities (of pretty much the kind that appear out of nothingness and into the nothingness that is permanently between their ears when it comes to Individual control (but as dense as lead when it comes to Collective control)); we have social inequalities they say – some real but mostly perceived, – but to solve them these Progressive politicians divide us by gender, they divide us by race, divide us by socioeconomic status and demographics (sure, toss in whatever the heck sex / gender means anymore).  And they say the way to solve all our problems and make everybody happy is to mandate equality of outcome.  If we just make you all the same, you’ll all be happy.

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UPDATE: I forgot this from Instapundit as the setup:

WHAT’S THE MATTER WITH KANSAS? The thing is, the NRSC went all-in to deep-six Milt Wolf in favor of doddering nonresident Pat Roberts. Now Roberts faces a “tough re-election fight,” with this observation: “It’s difficult to see how Milton Wolf would have done appreciably worse in this case, and he might have held the Republican base together better.” Especially as the NRSC pissed off — and pissed on — the base in backing Roberts.

When you’ve crapped on the base, don’t expect them, any more, to be good little soldiers and meekly vote for their least worst.  Not happening anymore.

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Republican Wave?  Wave?  Wave it good bye? 

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We here at GraniteGrok have blogged about the NH Senate Majority PAC – pretty much run by NH State Senate President Chuck Morse and NH State Senate Majority Leader Jeb Bradley – here, here, here, here, here and here for starters.  I do wonder, given those posts and the others, if it really is (as it name connotes) trying to actually have a Republican majority in the Senate of good Republicans that stand for Party Principles – or is it just another group of self-righteous crony politicans that have been backslapping themselves over what they’ve accomplished contra the base (e.g., what Hugh Hewitt describes for DC transplanted here and writ a bit smaller for Concord):  “but the elected GOP does not actually listen to what those grassroots are saying“, “The electeds are attempting to dictate“, and “downright indifferent via silence or openly hostile to much of what the grassroots holds dear“.  Simple evidence to that hostility was their votes to establish Obamacare’s Expanded Medicare, the broad base Gas Tax, and the silencing of political dissenting speech (SB120).

They like their cronies – thus all of the expenditures on propping up with lies of omission on the most vulnerable of their clique during the Primary season (e.g, drunk Dave Boutin and Nancy “I don’t care what the US Supreme Court said – Medicaid Expansion HAS to be passed because it is the Law” Stiles.  And this dismissal of anyone wanting to crash their little Senate Rogue Republican Party.  It seems, from what I’ve been told, that the NH GOP invited all of the NH Senate Republican candidates in for a meeting…

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This from Erik Erikson at RedState – more indication that the Republican Wave may turn out to be a drip (reformatting (some) and emphasis mine):

Throughout primary season, the National Republican Senatorial Committee in alliance with groups like the Chamber of Commerce and Main Street Partnership have treated the Republican base as their enemy.

Running scorched earth campaigns, they have attacked conservative groups, they have attacked conservative activists, and they have funded third party campaigns to paint the tea party and its candidates as racists. They have been able to win a number of primaries doing this. In conservative events around the country, conservative activists still use Mississippi as a rallying cry against the establishment.

So let us not be surprised by this news…

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Why is it so secretive for Republican office holder Kelly Ayotte to openly publish her “public meetings”?  I got this yesterday from a disgruntled Republican who is tired of Republicans acting just like the Democrats in this matter (emphasis mine):

From: a ‘Grok Friend that wishes to remain anonymous
To: “skip@granitegrok.com” <skip@granitegrok.com>
Sent: 8/26/2014 10:19:47 AM
Subject: Ayotte Town Hall Scheduled for 8/28 @ 4P in Littleton

I know that its shocking that this isn’t posted on Ayotte’s website……..but

Was on phone with NHGOP this badgering them over the hypocrisy of berating Shaheen over lack of town halls while not calling out Shea Porter, Kuster or our own Ayotte

Indeed.  Why is it that the NH GOP Leadership – that would be NH GOP Chair Jennifer Horn, NH Senate Republicans Morse and Bradley, and US Senator Kelly Ayotte

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And now for the Closing Remarks by Brendan Kelly, Dan Innus, & Frank Guinta in concluding their part of the Seacoast GOP (Exeter Town GOP, Rockingham County GOP, and the Seacoast Republican Women) NH GOP Candidate Debates for those running in NH’s First Congressional District for US Congress:

 Next to go up will be the Senatorial Debate series later on today (I hope – life has been a bit topsy-turvy at Chez Skip’s the last couple of weeks) between Bob Smith, Jim Rubens, and Scott Brown.

Previous Videos: 

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Yeah, that pretty much sums it up.  Mostly.  Oh sure – the elected GOP officials, especially in DC, are listening, but as Hugh points out (a noted West Coast talk show host, lawer, syndicated columnist and author), they are listening to the wrong people and proving to the base that there is such a thing as Potomac Flu, the DC Bubble, the Beltway Worldview. Like Hotel California, you can check in but never seem to want to check out.  They are ignoring their base – and in doing so, can’t seem to grasp why the base is angry with them and like Eric Cantor (and Frank Guinta here in NH last cycle), lose.  They have lost sight that the Principles in DC ought to reflect the Principles from home – those that brung ya to the dance as it were.  Except after the elections, “were” becomes the operative phrase.

I’d suggest you read Hugh Hewitt ‘s whole piece, but here are a few bon mots that the base (er, that would be us) is upset about while the Party officials merely party on (and failing to watch what happens to a Party that strays at the top from the bottom below – e.g., UKIP) – some reformatting and emphasis mine.  The list of “influencers” is rather impressive as well.

• The “electeds” who make up the Beltway GOP Elite barely consult with many of its own “public intellectuals” within the nation’s capital, and apparently not at all with those who live outside of the Oz that D.C. has become.
• The elected GOP, to put it bluntly, hears the noise from the grassroots and it concerns them –even scares them– but the elected GOP does not actually listen to what those grassroots are saying. The policy proposals put forward and the strategy developed on the Hill do not reflect what the grassroots want and thus the friction between the Beltway GOP and its voters is large and growing larger.

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