Party Switchers - I actually Don't Mind Them

[liberalpragmatist]

Now, I think this guy Rodney Alexander is scum, but not because he's a party-switcher.

Frankly, I think that if a party doesn't represent your views, it's entirely one's right to switch. In fact, they should. If they don't then it's their duty to keep quiet and stay loyal.

So basically I think Chafee should switch to us definitely. Quite probably Snowe and Collins of Maine as well. And, although some on this board may vigorously disagree, McCain as well - he's a classical Conservative, but he's increasingly moved towards Democratic positions on things like corporate regulation and taxation, the environment (which he had a horrible record on before), and even to some extent abortion - he said in 2000 that he didn't favor overturning Roe v. Wade and that if his teenage daughter got pregnant, he'd let her choose an abortion.

AT THE SAME TIME, I do find the following things to be extremely dishonorable:

1. Abruptly switching all your positions on the issue in an obviously politically-timed switch. Examples: Ben Campbell of Colorado (R - former D), and Norm Coleman, also a former D.

2. NOT switching parties but instead, actually UNDERMINING your party and doing anything but acting like a member of your party.

Zell Miller is dispicable because he did exactly BOTH - over the last four years, he's radically changed his own positions and on top of that refuses to switch.

As for this Rodney Alexander fellow, it's his right to switch, esp. given his views on the issues. BUT the way he did it is also dishonorable. He denied he was switching, then within minutes of filing deadline, he switched, keeping the Democrats from fielding an opponent.

Asshole.

[childslibrarian]

1. Mind them? I welcome them!

If someone can think through the bull they've been fed from birth and actually come to a different conclusion..well they have my welcome...
It's way more than most people do...

[physioex]

2. Ok...

Miller is there to get a piece of the limelight and sell a few books. If he simply switched sides the lime light would go away. This is a great way to finance his retirement.

Another person that totally pisses me off is LIEberman. He isn't a liberal or a Democrat in my opinion. I wish he would leave our party and call himself an Independent or a Republican. I don't know why he was let in through the convention door. I think he hangs around to get a share of the lime light also.....

[liberalpragmatist]

4. Ah, Lieberman

Well if you look at Lieberman's ratings on various issues and by liberal groups, he does have positions and an overall record that puts him within the Dem mainstream. He's not a progressive, but he's slightly left-of-center.

Even so, he's not been a helpful Democrat. He's enamored of centrism and consensus. That's fine during a normal legislative season, but he has to understand we're in the middle of a campaign. The purpose of a campaign is to lay out clear and different choices for the voters, not muddy them by constantly touting "bipartisanship". He has no sense of political reality or campaigning. He's unable to campaign vigorously, and during the primary season he was dispicable. He railed against Dean and the left-wing. He shouldn't switch - his record clearly shows he's ideologically a Dem. But he should just be ignored and some party leaders are going to have to give him a good talk.

[K-W]

3. Yah, the Alexander situation isnt about party switching at all.

Its about subverting the process to steal elections.

[CrispyQ]

5. Oh yeah! I remember Ben Nighthorse Campbell's switch.

Pissed me off!

[cmkramer]

6. And Richard Shelby

I remember that he was being interviewed on television and he adamantly denied that he was switching to the GOP. He said that he thought it was important that there also be a conservative wing of the Democratic party -- I'm paraphrasing here but that was the gist of what he said.

Not an hour later, he was back on television announcing that he was joining the Republican party.

Incidentally, I think there's a tendency for many to think that if a legislator is either more conservative or liberal than his/her party that (s)he should switch and that it would make no difference because obviously they'd be with the party they agreed with. However, what many people fail to realize is that committee assignments and chairs are decided by which party is in power. So it does make a difference in that respect.

[Poiuyt]

7. I don't like it

Except when Republicans switch to Democrats, of course.

The agendas and committee makeups for both the House and the Senate are made up based on the numbers of each party. If we have a Democrat who doesn't represent our views, at least he is counting as a Democrat and would help us achieve majority.

[PDX Bara]

8. Despicable!

How much money convinced him to switch? And that despicable whining woman of "My party left me" fame! The switchers I've known personally were all of the "I got mine. Shut the door behind me!" persuasion.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

9. I don't mind either...

...as long as there's an immediate plebiscite.

[question everything]

10. It is not the switching that I mind, it is the cowardly timing

to do this in the last minute, so the Democrat could not find someone else to run.

How typical of the RWers. They wave their hands and stand on their tippy toes so that they look menacing, but are small and coward who do not have the guts to face a real rival.

[Deja Q]

11. Randy Kelley needs to change as well.

He's the mayor of Saint Paul, a 'Democrat', who is pushing for Bushit*.

Why?

He said he saw a bumper sticker on it that said "I hate George Bush".

I've seen many anti-* ads, but not one so un-creative as that one.

Randy Randy's excuse is highly feeble.

He claims to want to remain a Dem as well. Why? If I were in St Paul, I sure as hell wouldn't re-elect him as mayor. Nor would any republican, DUH.