Chafee votes for Bush's father

[mountainvue]

No link yet, just heard on Air America Radio News.
Searching for link.
UPDATED:http://www.projo.com/extra/election/content/projo_20041103_chafee3.2e90d.html

PROVIDENCE -- Sen. Lincoln Chafee made good on his pledge yesterday: As a form of "symbolic protest," he cast a write-in ballot for former President George H.W. Bush instead of voting for his son, President George W. Bush. He also did not rule out the prospect of changing parties if the incumbent president is reelected.

In an afternoon interview in his Providence office, the maverick Republican senator said that his views were more in line with those of his colleague in the Senate, Democrat John F. Kerry, with whom he sits on the Foreign Relations Committee. But he said he couldn't bring himself to vote for a Democratic candidate as an elected Republican senator.

"I think it would have been important to get out of the party if I'm going to vote for Kerry," said Chafee.

Asked if he planned to change parties and become a Democrat if Mr. Bush were reelected, Chafee said, "No, I don't at this minute," but then added, "I'm not ruling it out."

[freetobegay]

1. I read a CNN article about it earlier today.

[mountainvue]

5. Can you post a link?

We need some good news right now and I don't want this to get locked.

[freetobegay]

10. I have sured so much today

Don't know where it is at right now.

[berner59]

2. That would be nice...

Why not add Luger & Hagel...that would be the best!!

[stepnw1f]

3. I'm Not Sure This Is Good

What do others think or know about this guy?

[salinen]

6. He's a democrat

in republican clothes. Good guy.

[mountainvue]

8. He's a moderate who opposed

Bush's tax cut, for one thing.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

9. Quite moderate...

From a moderate state and an "Old Republican" provenance. He cannot be getting along with the Souther Bloc in his party. Just too many disimmilarities at the philosophical level. Besides, ALL of the NE is getting screwed, blued and tattooed on federal tax dollars that make their way back to the states.

This will come as no real surprise to me.

[stepnw1f]

13. Hmmmmm.... Welcome Aboard

but you get funny and SHITS GETTING SILLY around here. Ok... I'm done.

[Rockholm]

39. He is a very good senator.

[calico1]

40. He is a very good guy. I live next

door in CT and wish I had him instead of Lieberman even though he is from the GOP. When Bush was first "elected" I remember Chafee in an interview saying that the GOP better be careful of becoming too extreme far right because that did not represent most Americans and that it could cause them to lose Moderates.

[Carolab]

4. What? You mean

he isn't afraid of being iced?

[JI7]

7. NOOOOOO,not yet

he needs to switch only if there is a one seat difference and his seat could switch the outcome like happened with jeffords. in the meantime he can vote with democrats and help with filibusters and other things.

[54anickel]

11. Why? You can't tell me someone is disenfrachised with the repukes!

[msanthrope]

12. Come over to this side of the caucus, Senator, the water's fine...n/t

[lanparty]

14. He already is!!!

Well, the problem is that he already is getting iced. He's getting drug around by the wacko right wing leadership in the Senate. Going Democrat would likely get him a committee chairmanship in return.

It is feasible that the Senate bi-partisan (including Lugar, Bayh) group could put together a bi-partisan leadership group that the Democrats would GLADLY vote for!!!!

Deep down these guys are probably freaked about the judicial nominees that Bush might come up with. The Bush administration is NOT conservative, it's facist. And the moderate Republicans KNOW IT!!!

[bemildred]

15. Interesting.

Considered with Specter's comments on USSC justices even more interesting.
A prediction: The Democrats will prove unexpectedly effective in
stalling parts of George's agenda, and will prove not to be dead at
all. The two parties need each other, and the Dems will be
revived.

[Imalittleteapot]

16. Come on Lincoln! And bring some of the few decent

Republicans with you! At least, become an independant.

[Pirate Smile]

21. I think there is a thread of secular Republicans, fiscal conservatives

and social moderates who no longer fit with the current Republican party. We need to get these people on our side.

I think they are very uncomfortable with the religious and social intolerance aspects of the Repubs, along with their fiscal irresponsibility.

We need to break the libertarian style Republicans away from the current Repub party. They don't fit there anymore.

[fishwax]

17. I don't think he'll be the last

despite still generally being depressed about this election, I still think there are opportunities for the democrats. The only reason the two factions of the party (the religio-fascists and the old-school conservatives) were able to keep things together was because they had gw to get behind and JK to stand against. I think there is a good chance that the next four years will, in fact, see this schism in the party break the thing apart. Good Lord, I've got to have something to hope for, anyway.

[GOPNotForMe]

26. I read somewhere a while ago that if...

GWB won in 2004, it would basically set off a civil war amongst the old school moderate Republicans and the psychotic, fundie, neocon fascists. I can't provide a link because it was so long ago, but it's a very interesting thought. Maybe this election was necessary to destroy the Republican party and relegate the psycho fundies to a minor third-party status.

Maybe.

[fishwax]

27. I remember reading/hearing that too

here's hoping that was right. The thing is, I think that will require effort on behalf of the left to make that happen. I'm not a moderate, by any stretch of the imagination (in the primaries, my heart was with Dennis K, but my head was with Dean), but I do think that, perhaps, we need to help some disaffected republicans realize that they really belong on the other side of the aisle, so to speak. The GOP is traditionally the big tent party, but I think that tent might be showing signs of wear, and I'd love to see it ripped wide open.

[found object]

18. Whats funny is he said this about a week ago

He was on Tavis Smiley's late-night show.

[Pirate Smile]

19. So he said all this yesterday afternoon when everyone thought

JK was going to win?

He many have changed his mind now, although I'm sure he is a pariah within his own party anyway.

[leesa]

20. Well, that's just real effin' helpful.

[bluestateguy]

22. He'll join up early next year

Just watch. Be nice to him.

[PROGRESSIVE1]

23. You think he will?

[mountainvue]

31. I do.

The party doesn't fit him anymore.

[fearnobush]

24. Come on over, the grass is greener on our side.

Chafee, your reward awaits you. Bring over the Mods!!! This is no longer a GOP, its a freaking Fundy show theocratic American Taliban Society.

[RinaJ]

25. There are more out there like Chafee

We have to reach out to them, and show them how they'll benefit in the long run by putting up some resistance to Bush along with the Democrats. WE need all the help we can get, even if they don't outright switch parties.

[MagickMuffin]

28. Come on Over Lincoln

be a part of the honest Abe tradition!

I've always thought you were to good for the Repubs. We sure could use more people on our side with integrity. You belong on the side of descency...

After all of the character assassinations on Kerry / Edwards you should feel more at home on this side of the playing field!

[The_Casual_Observer]

29. Up your ass chaffee, get on over to baghdad where you belong

[Zhade]

37. Why does he belong there? He voted against the war.

Unlike Kerry and Edwards, I might add.

[Milo_Bloom]

30. GO IND!!!

I would much rather see him go Independent the way Jeffords did than "switch sides".

If he switches completely, he would be seen as a traitor even by those who aren't fundies. BUT, if he just goes independent, he is seen as a maverick, who thinks for himself!

It would make him much more attractive as a future VP choice, someone who would be seen as revolutionary in bridging the party gap. A REAL independent who left the radical party, but didn't take the easy road by joining the other side.

[mountainvue]

32. He will never lose his seat in

Rhode Island by switching his party affiliation to Dem.

[Milo_Bloom]

33. No, you miss my point.

No his seat in RI. I am thinking about him as a possible VP candidate for the dems in 2008.

Without talking about a Dem candidate at this point, how nice would it be for them to "reach across political lines" and get an "Independent" onto the ticket.

If I had my dream, Chaffe and Jeffords would form a third party and give everyone a run for their money, but the next best thing would be for the Dems to be able to make use of their "independent" status as best possible.

[mountainvue]

34. Ah, I see

now.

[Dehumanizer]

35. Only Republican to vote against the war..

Lincoln Chafee is the man. He is the only Republican in the Senate I have any respect for.

[flordehinojos]

36. what a stupid thing to do... that vote counted as a vote for bush since it

just like the Nader votes did not count as a vote for kerry.

[MADem]

38. He is better off staying GOP

He'd lose his committee assignments as a Dem, with the GOP in control of the Senate. As long as he stays GOP, he can vote his conscience when he needs to...and make no mistake, he will. He was initially regarded as a bit of a lightweight when he assumed his daddy's seat, but he has come along as a reliable New England moderate, and a decent guy. The only time I could see it worth his while to switch would be if a BUNCH of Republicans went with him, so the balance of the senate was upset, or his switching would change control.

Otherwise, he is cutting off his nose to spite his face. Everything being as it is now, he is better off helping us from the other team's locker room.