A note to former Murphy supporters

We can watch the train go over the cliff with us still on it, or we can fight to control the locomotive. That’s the difference between Martin O’Malley and Bob Ehrlich. 

Voters’ memories are notoriously short and if you asked them right now whether the name Brian Murphy rings a bell, 95% of them will say no.

I’ll certainly grant Bob Ehrlich isn’t my preferred candidate but I’d rather have someone who at least would have conservatives at the table than one who would shut them out. We need to send the message that our continued support is contingent on following through on issues near and dear to us.

In the meantime, we also have work to do reforming the MDGOP. Taking our ball and going home simply means they can continue business as usual. The more talk about going third party or skipping the election, the more ability the establishment has to marginalize those of us who choose to fight from within.

I left that comment at Ann Corcoran’s Potomac Tea Party Report. Obviously there’s a subset of people who believe that all is lost after Murphy’s defeat (as well as that of Jim Rutledge) and are willing to toss their votes out the window to support a third-party candidate. Once upon a time millions of Americans (including me) did that for Ross Perot and we got Bill Clinton.

There’s no doubt that Brian Murphy was a more conservative candidate, nor do I dispute the claim that the Maryland GOP put its finger on the scale big-time when they waived Rule 11 to back Bob Ehrlich.

But all of these people need to understand that we only lost one battle in a war that’s going to be fought long-term. If we fade back into the woodwork nothing will change. Those of us who are fighting the battle from within would be the ones left high and dry, smacked back into oblivion by the machine that we’re trying to fight this guerrilla struggle against.

If we stay at the table and Ehrlich wins, he’s going to owe us bigtime. I don’t know if Bob can run again if he wins, but conservatives would be in the far better position with a Republican in the governor’s chair and enhanced numbers in the General Assembly than we would with Martin O’Malley back in charge. Remember, Martin O’Malley represents a party whose Senate leadership vowed:

(GOP leaders are) “going to be flying high, but we’re going to get together and we’re going to shoot them down. We’re going to bury them face down in the ground, and it’ll be 10 years before they crawl out again.”

That’s how they operate in this state, my friends. Martin O’Malley would sooner give up his guitar than do something for conservatives. I’ve known this for awhile.

If diehard Murphy supporters leave or vote third party, we are ceding the hard-fought gains we’ve won in this battle and it’s going to be twice as hard to get it back in a war where the enemy holds all of the high ground. I don’t care for compromise, and certainly it would have been great to see success like conservatives saw in Delaware. But we still have a lot worth fighting for, and staving off extinction through redistricting is a serious prize to me. Democrats have plenty of plans to carve Republicans right off the electoral map.

Sure, it would be nice to get the Libertarians and Constitution Party their 1% to stay viable for another term. But let it come out of the other guy’s total.

Author: Michael

It's me from my laptop computer.

5 thoughts on “A note to former Murphy supporters”

  1. “If we stay at the table and Ehrlich wins, he’s going to owe us bigtime.”

    So, what exactly do you think we’ll get? Perhaps another highway in MoCo we’ll never use, paid for with an increase in my vehicle registration fee. Or, a tax on washing my hands after flushing the toilet, for which I now have to pay extra for the privilage of doing.

  2. That’s why we also need good conservative Republicans in the General Assembly to call foul when Ehrlich does stuff like that, and they should have steel in their spine.

    At the moment, we’re promised that Ehrlich will hold the line on taxes and I trust him to keep his word. You’re never going to get that promise out of Martin O’Malley and I predict that we’ll have another Special Session in 2011 to raise taxes (unless he can do it in the regular session.)

    As for party over principle, I had my chance to vote that way in the primary; unfortunately I was defeated. My job is to work to get better, more conservative candidates accepted by both the Republican Party apparatus in Maryland and the voters therein.

  3. In this blue state, there are many factions that have to be appeased. It is difficult for a conservative to govern. In the end, Ehrlich will be the best prospect for all Marylanders.

    Hopefully, he has and will continue to see the mood of Marylanders through the T.E.A. Party participants and Americans For Prospertiy. In fact, these groups could put forth ideas to be considered and supported by Ehrlich if elected. With everyone pulling together, it is still not going to be easy to get this man elected.

  4. P.S. Michael, although difficult to ”swallow”, your remarks are right on. We conservatives must look at what will be our most effective option to flex our political muscle. As you, I am convinced this must be manifested in our support for Ehrlich.

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