But I can’t help noticing parallels between the 2010 and 2012 GOP Senate races. The two things which got eventual 2010 nominee Eric Wargotz through the primary and into a general election shellacking by Barbara Mikulski were the tacit backing of the state party establishment (as opposed to Jim Rutledge, who was perceived as more of a TEA Party candidate) and a lot of the candidate’s money. Fast forward to 2012 and you find that, on the first point, Richard Douglas has retained the services of Lawrence Scott’s political consulting firm. Lawrence Scott is the son of former MDGOP Chair and National Committeewoman candidate Audrey Scott, who has also endorsed Douglas.

I don’t doubt that Scott Strategies has had its share of successes over the years, but FEC records show his firm has received over $27,000 from Douglas. By comparison, the campaign has raised just over $26,000 in individual contributions.

So where is the money for what the Douglas campaign describes as a “six figure advertising buy focused on statewide radio, direct mail and voter turnout phone calls as the April 3 primary nears” coming from? Richard has secured over $100,000 in candidate loans, meaning his campaign is (as of the March 14 filing date) nearly $111,000 in debt with just over $20,000 cash on hand.

This is similar to 2010, where Eric Wargotz had over $500,000 cash on hand before his September primary but was $575,000 in debt based on campaign loans (he ended up raising just over $250,000 from outside contributors for the 2010 campaign but spent $1.24 million overall.)

By comparison, Dan Bongino raised over $187,000 in individual contributions by March 14, and had only loaned $3,000 to his campaign. A significant portion of his expenditures went to several paid members of his campaign rather than to an outside consultant. But maybe he needed a better audio feed for this spot, because it doesn’t compare well with his radio ads.

Of course, financially neither holds a candle to the nearly $1.9 million Ben Cardin had on hand. Ben obviously didn’t sleep through the class on how to shake down unions, PACs, and other special interests for campaign cash.

I also wanted to add a few words about early voting in Maryland. So far, according to the latest figures which now include five days of the six-day process, not even 2% of voters have come out. Even if the final day is as busy as Saturday was, fewer than one out of 40 registered voters will partake in the process. So I must ask: why are we bothering?

The only counties which may have significant early turnout (that being on the order of seven to eight percent) are Talbot and Kent counties; on the other hand some of the largest counties will likely lag under 2%. (Wicomico is at 2.37% with 1,063 voting at the Civic Center so far.)

As far as party affiliation, the GOP is ahead in terms of percentage with 2.17% turnout compared to 1.97% for Democrats. That’s a little ironic given the fact the GOP didn’t care for early voting when it was presented to the General Assembly, but  both parties have encouraged its use since.

As for me, I’m going to the polls Tuesday like we should.

So how about I start with an item involving him?

You probably don’t know the name Mia Love, but perhaps you should. The Utah Congressional candidate endorsed Dan with this statement:

“I first learned about Dan when he was being covered for a segment on Fox News.  I was amazed by his story and the passion he has for the state of Maryland,” said Mia Love.  “If we are going to change the way Washington operates, we need to start by electing folks like Dan Bongino.”

So I’m sure you’re thinking, well, that’s nice. But take a look at her website and read this piece of her life she shares therein:

On the day of Mia’s college orientation, her father said something to her that would become the ethos for her life:

“Mia, your mother and I never took a handout. You will not be a burden to society. You will give back.”

Consider that she’s born of Haitian parents and is a minority conservative Republican with a sound track record in her home state, and the strategy of this endorsement makes much more sense.

But there’s other endorsement news out there as well. This particular one shakes up the Sixth District race a bit, as former Senatorial hopeful Jim Rutledge eschewed endorsing one of the better-known candidates in the race and instead backs the underdog Robert Coblentz, calling him “a concrete conservative who understands the core principles and values that make America great.”

Perhaps that’s not a complete surprise, though, as Coblentz was the coordinator of Jim’s campaign in Washington County in 2010. Still, it gives him a little bit of gravitas in his uphill battle against more well-known candidates, and politicians have to start somewhere.

Returning to the Senate race, candidate Rich Douglas has been scoring media points with a couple appearances over in western Maryland. He called out Ben Cardin for not taking a stance on the gas tax during Alex Mooney’s WFMD-AM radio show Sunday evening, saying “I haven’t heard a peep from Ben Cardin (on the gas tax). There’s one simple way he can make his position known – go to a microphone and say what it is.” It also gave Mooney a free shot at Rob “Gas Tax” Garagiola, who’s changed his stance on the issue since he decided to run for Congress in the Sixth District. “These politicians all look out for each other,” added Douglas.

Rich was also featured in a Cumberland Times-News story by Matthew Bieniek on Friday where he echoed some of his job creation arguments presented Saturday at our Lincoln Day Dinner:

Job growth is Douglas’ priority and he doesn’t think the current administration in Washington, and U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin, are doing enough to bring new jobs to Maryland and the nation.

“The unfavorable business climate is a major factor. … Congress has a duty to remove obstacles to success,” Douglas said. A senator should be out there promoting Maryland as a business destination, he said.

A strategic, comprehensive vision for the nation’s economic future is needed, he said. The current “salami slice approach” isn’t working, Douglas said.

Obviously Douglas is covering the state quite well, and the strategy of using local media may pay off come April.

Nine of the Senate hopefuls are slated to be back in this end of the state for a candidate forum this Friday evening, moderated by former State Senate hopeful Michael James. It will be held in the Assateague Room of the Ocean Pines Community Center at 6:30 p.m. and seating is limited. For more information call Joan Gentile (443) 465-2400 or e-mail to joanierags (at) verizon.net.

With the Maryland General Assembly session continuing to chug along, I have a lot of state-related stuff to get to.

Senator E.J. Pipkin sent along a laundry list of objections to SB237, which is the governor’s latest bid to jump-start the offshore wind industry.  Before I get to his list, it’s worth pointing out that none of the co-sponsors of the bill (or its cross-filed House counterpart) come from the Eastern Shore.

But Pipkin notes:

Governor O’Malley paints wonderful pictures about a Maryland Offshore Wind Farm and the jobs it will create and the economy it will enrich.  However, he never tells you about what has happened with offshore wind in NEW JERSEY, MASSACHUSETTS, VIRGINIA AND DELAWARE.   He never discusses that the cost of wind is nearly double that of today’s electric rates.  And he never talks about the impossibility of offshore wind without federal loan guarantees and tax credits.

In New Jersey’s case, a study found that, “if approved and developed, (offshore wind) could lead to a loss of nearly 30,000 jobs and a loss of $1 billion in negative net economic impacts to the New Jersey economy.” Delaware and Virginia can’t find takers for their offshore wind schemes due to high costs per kilowatt-hour and a lack of guaranteed federal loans and tax credits (read: subsidies) and Cape Wind Associates of Massachusetts has only sold half its output because costs are too high.

In short, offshore wind is a terrible idea, particularly when we have better, cheaper, and more reliable alternatives available.

On a similar Radical Green note, I wrote awhile back about the prospect of a bag tax. Well, they are at it again, wishing to slap a nickel per bag fee on your grocery bill. One bag manufacturer is naturally up in arms too, but while they support an alternative measure I say just leave well enough alone and bag the whole thing. If I happen to think about it, I’ll take a batch of bags to the recycling bin stores already have but I’ve also found the grocery bags work fine as garbage bags in some of my low-usage garbage cans (like in our bedroom or office.) So why muck up the law books and encourage the state to take yet another fee?

I also wanted to make sure I got in another reminder about the upcoming Wicomico County elected school board hearing on Thursday, March 15 at 1 p.m. As one County Council member noted, “last year (the) NAACP had persons present for the hearing, I expect they will have again.” I say make them the minority they are, especially in that hearing room.

On the tax front, the two BRFA (Budget Reconciliation and Financing) bills are being heard Wednesday and Thursday this week. SB152 has tax deduction reductions for working Marylanders, increases in fees for various records, the shift of teachers’ pensions to counties, and the dreaded “app tax” included as parts of this bill. SB249 is also being heard, which makes the “millionaire’s tax” permanent.

If that’s not bad enough, SB523 increases taxes on (almost) EVERYONE. (If you make less than $3,000 in Maryland taxable income you’re spared. Woohoo.)

So let me end with some good news for a change, before I get into my new websites.

While the Good Beer Festival is a close second, I would say my favorite local festival is Pork in the Park. Recently they received some national attention:

The Pork in the Park BBQ Festival, sponsored by Wicomico County Recreation, Parks & Tourism, has been selected by Smithfield Foods to host the Smithfield Rib Shootout. To launch their new barbeque competition, Smithfield approached the Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) and requested the top festivals in their major markets. Pork in the Park was amongst the top three in the nation and the only festival in the state of Maryland selected for this opportunity.

Pork in the Park will be the first barbeque festival to hold this new event. Hosting the Smithfield Rib Shootout will put Pork in the Park in the national spotlight, providing the festival with over 50 million traditional and social media impressions through local and national public relations efforts revolving around the event. Pork in the Park will also receive additional exposure on the barbeque circuit as KCBS competitors across the country will be notified of the event. In addition, Smithfield will provide additional prize money for the Grand Champion, Reserve Grand Champion and third place category winners at Pork in the Park.

It’s simply amazing that our little city hosts the SECOND LARGEST barbeque festival in the country, and it’s not all that expensive to go and enjoy an afternoon there. I’m excited to see what this will do for the event.

New links for you to check out: the “information pollination” of Dr. Melissa Clouthier under my “News and Commentary” section, “A Citizen’s View” from American Thinker contributor Scott Strzelczyk under Maryland sites, and the revamped Maryland Business for Responsive Government website within my Political Links – My Side subheading.

I think that’s plenty of odds and ends for now, don’t you?

Update: Late addition, since I didn’t want to wait until next time: Robert Stacy McCain is trying for echoes of both my Weekend of Local Rock and Friday Night Video series. But he does it from Hell.

On Monday, Bongino struck first by calling the current electoral process “a nest of corruption.”

The current electoral process is a system designed to benefit the political insider interested in a tacit game of tit for tat, enabled by big government’s involvement in the private economy. The fundraising model, which is a necessity to run a modern campaign, is so corrupted by insider dealings that absent tremendous wealth, there are few ways to escape this nest of corruption.

In my 17 years in law enforcement, I have never run across a racket so ruthlessly protected by those in power. I have had numerous potential donors confide in me that they believe in our campaign, but cannot be revealed on public record because they have been targeted in the past by political machines.

Republicans in Maryland (and most other states, for that matter) should know going in that they will likely be financially outgunned by Democrats, and Ben Cardin was sitting on $2.3 million back in September. Fortunately for Republicans, Ben will have to spend some of that to get through his primary but will still have a significant advantage on Dan.

But I’m not going to take the second part of the statement at face value until someone decides to step forward and name some names. I’d actually be more worried about blowback if the gay marriage bill went to referendum based on what happened with donors who favored California’s Proposition 8 a few years ago.

The next day Douglas, who now sports the campaign tagline “New Blood,” hit the incumbent on the PIPA angle, calling Senator Cardin’s flip-flop from co-sponsor to opponent “double-talk…Marylanders have an absolute right to be concerned.”

Douglas continued:

Stopping internet piracy is crucial. But here is what’s really going on with PIPA. Mr. Cardin hastily signed up to co-sponsor a bill which provides sweetheart overseas process service rules for Hollywood, and increases legal burdens on American internet service providers. He was caught flat-footed by alert Maryland constituents. Now he is trying to backpedal.

In the Senate, co-sponsorship of a bill means you own it.  A Senator conscious of his duty would ask hard questions before putting his name on a bill which will force American businesses and citizens to step into the shoes of federal prosecutors to protect Hollywood.

If you read my post on PIPA (and the companion SOPA bill) you would agree that Douglas and the rest of us should be concerned that we haven’t heard the end of this. At several points we thought Obamacare was dead, too, particularly after Scott Brown was elected.

So far, so good. I prefer to see the contenders both piling on to the one who deserves it for poorly representing the people of Maryland.

But Bongino got the drop on the race by snagging two key endorsements; one of them was the candidate I supported in the Senate race two years ago:

Jim Rutledge, former U.S. Senate candidate, has officially endorsed Dan Bongino, candidate for U.S. Senate in Maryland.

“Dan Bongino will bring to the U.S. Senate what has been seriously lacking for some time in Maryland; a person that can truly relate to and speak for the average Maryland family,” said Jim Rutledge.  “Dan has an impressive life story and an accomplished record on the front line of law enforcement rising from the ranks of the NYPD to the Secret Service.  Washington is awash with a culture of corruption.  Dan Bongino is a man of courage and integrity. Dan Bongino knows that jobs, opportunity, and prosperity can only thrive in a free-market economy.  We need a new beginning here in Maryland and that will start when we elect Dan Bongino.”

He also got the endorsement of the Red Maryland website, which favorably compared both Douglas and Bongino but gave the nod to Dan based on “the energy Bongino (has) on the stump.”

These endorsements aren’t completely surprising, though. Bongino has been cultivating the support of the TEA Party audience that Rutledge won over two years ago, and Red Maryland has somewhat of an anti-establishment viewpoint when it comes to Maryland GOP politics. Fairly or not, Rich Douglas is perceived as the choice of the GOP old guard.

And Rich countered with a notice which exhibited his strong points and interests. It wasn’t an endorsement, but it was an interesting story nonetheless.

Today Richard J. Douglas, candidate for the U.S. Senate (R-MD) called on Congress to add Cuba to the text of the Jackson-Vanik law passed in 1974 in response to the Soviet Union’s refusal to permit Jewish emigration.

“Just four hours from Miami, Fidel Castro continues to imprison a Jewish man from Maryland, Mr. Alan Gross, because of Mr. Gross’s faith,” said Douglas. “Ben Cardin, Maryland’s own U.S. Senator on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has done nothing about it.”

I have to say it’s a good human interest story, but there’s only a select audience familiar with the reasons for the amendment in the first place – honestly, I’d never heard of it. The law has made news in recent days, though, because President Obama is considering its repeal. Alan Gross is a USAID contractor who was accused of being an American spy.

And on and on it goes.

I will say, though, that it appears Dan Bongino has the inside track on the nomination at this stage of the game. Remember the poll I had up last week? I can pretty much guarantee you that what I ended up with won’t be reflective of the results, but there is a lesson to be learned. This is how it turned out:

• Dan Bongino, 255 votes (93.75%)
• Robert Broadus, 7 votes (2.57%)
• William Capps, 6 votes (2.21%)
• Rich Douglas, 4 votes (1.47%)
• Rest of field, no votes

Now there’s no way Dan gets over 90% of the real vote – not even Michael Steele, who was a prohibitive favorite in 2006 because he had both name recognition and the Maryland GOP’s fairly blatant backing, got 90 percent in the primary. Of course, there are a number of perennial candidates who always run but rarely do well (as examples, Corrogan Vaughn is in his fourth try for statewide office and John Kimble has run for either Congress or the Senate in 9 consecutive cycles dating back to 1996) so there are really only a few who have a shot. Of those in the race, Joseph Alexander has actually performed the best since he received 6% of the vote two years ago and finished third.

But this poll proves a point that Bongino’s backers have their ear to the ground (or at least read this website) and the support base to see this opportunity to make a little bit of news. This time I changed the rules so there couldn’t be endless repeat voting, so it was more work to rack up vote totals.

In many ways this race is like the 2010 nominating contest, with Bongino filling the role of Jim Rutledge (naturally, because he was endorsed by Jim) and Douglas showing some similarities to Eric Wargotz, who had more of the perception of being the “establishment” candidate. Whether there will be a seven-point split statewide remains to be seen, although if this scenario held true Bongino would waltz to victory on the Lower Shore (in 2010 Rutledge won the four-county area by 1300 votes, or by 9 percentage points.) In fact, this area is probably one of Dan’s strongholds.

But winning the Lower Shore is a tiny fraction of the statewide vote, and many factors will go into who wins the overall battle. I’m encouraged, though, that all the candidates seem to be hammering away at the incumbent rather than each other – too bad our Presidential hopefuls won’t do the same.

At this time last year Jim Rutledge was a barely known contender for a U.S. Senate seat with little money, at least compared to eventual nominee Eric Wargotz. But he drew crowds wherever he spoke because he articulated a conservative message with the zeal and passion of a Pentecostal preacher. Instantly he became a TEA Party favorite, and it was a testament to their support that he drew 30 percent of the vote in a crowded field.

The other day he wrote a short treatise, which I’m reprinting here.

“Nail the Colors to the Mast!”

That is an old naval battle cry when the Captain determined that the ship will never surrender. In contrast, “To strike the colors” means to lower the flag in a clear sign of surrender. “Striking the colors” was an option that was usually kept open to salvage the lives of the men and save the ship from a watery grave. So nailing your colors to the mast meant that surrender was not an option. Colors that have been nailed to the ship’s main mast could not and would not be lowered in the heat of battle when all seemed lost. By giving the terse order “Nail the colors to the mast” the Captain was telling the men, “Today men we fight, and if we must, we die, For God and For Country. Today, by God’s Grace, you will fight like you never have before. Today, you will not be a prisoner of war. Today, you will not be a slave. Today, you are a warrior.”

Is today the day you will give the order, “nail the colors to the mast”?

To nail your flag to the mast, you must know what you believe and know where you stand.

So here is my flag. Here are my colors, bold and clear.

• The Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God give every man and woman the right to live free from rulers who deprive them of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
• The ruling political elites have violated the Laws of Nature and have abandoned their duty to secure our God-given liberties from tyranny, by, among other things, using government power:

1. to steal the fruits of labor,
2. to feed themselves with pensions and fete themselves with lavish parties;
3. to give unfair market advantages to those who keep them in power;
4. to demonize talent and entrepreneurship;
5. to crush the virtues of work, property ownership, and religious charity;
6. to destroy economic freedom and social mobility by nurturing a growing underclass who are consigned to a lifetime of dependence on the government.

• Western civilization moved people toward freedom and away from slavery and serfdom based on the Judeo-Christian ethic.
• Western civilization as informed by a Judeo-Christian ethic is our best hope for a society that can be both virtuous and free, albeit not perfect. Utopia is folly.

I am nailing my colors to the mast. How about you?

If you read through the items they serve as an indictment of the system we have now.

First of all, as a society we have forgotten that we the governed are supposed to give our consent to those who govern us. Sure, we dutifully elect our political leaders every two to four years but that lack of vigilance in the interregnum has led to the state within which we exist. And what of the unelected bureaucrats who pass regulations without so much as a cursory check from our elected leaders – or worse, their assent?

It leads to the six subpoints which make up the second charge of government power leading towards ‘tyranny.’ Just look at what the current administration has done in the 30-plus months they’ve been in charge. The TEA Party was a natural reaction to the very thought we were being led in that direction and as time went on it became more and more obvious we were indeed on a path toward an all-encompassing state.

And then Jim discusses a clash of cultures – the elites who forty years ago were chanting, ” hey hey, ho ho, Western Civ has got to go!” have pretty much succeeded in their task of eliminating the concept. Now we have the political correctness of all cultures being of equal value, even if they are stuck in the seventh century and treat women as little more than property. “If it feels good, do it” seems to be the new national motto, regardless of the eventual outcomes – in truth, any consequences and responsibilities are to be absolved and forgiven by the public at-large as opposed to a higher power.

Yet in his statement Rutledge is only paraphrasing what another great leader once said: “Our people look for a cause to believe in. Is it a third party we need, or is it a new and revitalized second party, raising a banner of no pale pastels, but bold colors which make it unmistakably clear where we stand on all of the issues troubling the people?” Yes, that was Ronald Reagan in 1975, just before he made his first run for President. Sadly, after Reagan left office the Republican Party has too often put up nominees composed of pale pastels rather than bold strokes of conservative governance at all levels of government.

Perhaps Jim has another run for office in him, too – maybe not in 2012, but perhaps 2014. Unlike the cookie-cooker mealy-mouthed politicians who couch their remarks to the lowest common voting denominator, Jim had a refreshing way of clearly stating his message. This is something to be emulated as today’s TEA Party leaders become tomorrow’s political candidates.

Once they win election – and they will – here’s hoping their colors stay nailed to the mast throughout their terms of office. Those on the left don’t have much trouble with adhering to the principle that bigger government is always better and power is all that matters because it’s easy and doesn’t require a whole lot of thought. Conversely, we need to continually convince the public of the benefits of liberty to be a stronger pull in the opposite direction.

Oh, and consider my colors nailed.

But now Wargotz may have his sights set on a (presumably) more vulnerable target in Maryland’s junior Senator, Ben Cardin. (After all, Cardin ‘only’ beat Michael Steele by 10 points in 2006.) Yesterday he debuted a Facebook ‘event’ dubbed “Help Eric Wargotz decide to enter the Maryland US Senate race 2012.” Still, given the fact he’s occasionally updated his election Facebook page since his loss my suspicion was that he was bound to give it another shot regardless.

Moreover, Eric will have a few additional advantages this time around – name recognition with voters, experience gained from a recent statewide run, and (most likely) a fairly shallow primary field. The biggest name considering a 2012 campaign is Delegate Pat McDonough of Baltimore County, who thought about a run for Governor last year but this time may opt to challenge Second District Congressman Dutch Ruppersberger. Last year’s chief Senate contender, Jim Rutledge, is more inclined to wait for 2014 opportunities as rumor has it.

So it looks like Eric will be hitting the campaign trail once again; obviously those who have responded to his Facebook are urging him to go for it. (As if anyone would tell him, nah, skip this race.) Barring any big names out of the Maryland General Assembly jumping into the race, it would appear that Wargotz would be the odds-on favorite for the GOP nod once again.

I’m catching up on some things I meant to respond to, with one being a December 31 post by Richard Cross at Cross Purposes which picked Maryland political winners and losers. I’m not going to quibble with the other seven items, but I don’t think the TEA Party in Maryland was a loser in 2010. After all, Cross also picked “insurgent Republicans” as one of his four winners and the TEA Party was a big part of getting those insurgents elected.

“The makings of a political farm team consisting of young, energetic, upwardly-mobile candidates” has been a GOP goal for many years, but Cross chooses to focus on the electoral losses of TEA Party darlings Jim Rutledge and Brian Murphy. Certainly those two were my personal picks, but the TEA Party was victorious on the local level in getting that GOP bench in place.

It’s also worth mentioning that Rutledge and Murphy have placed themselves in a position to run for future office. I don’t see another Senate run for Jim, but many have postulated that he could run for another statewide office in 2014 – perhaps Attorney General, as he was rumored to do this year. Certainly the GOP could use a candidate there. And with Bob Ehrlich out of the picture, one could use the example of recycling 2008 Presidential hopefuls like Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee on a national scale to presume Murphy as a gubernatorial player in 2014 (along with the possibilities of those who dropped out earlier like Pat McDonough, Larry Hogan, and Charles Lollar.)

Yet it’s Richard’s contention that ”(the TEA Party) never approached the level of relevance and organization evident in other states, and its influence will only wane over time” which I object most to. Perhaps he wasn’t in Annapolis over the weekend to see over 200 conservative activists get together to plan for the next electoral cycles. (If it weren’t for having already picked the day to move, it may have been over 201.)

So you have 200 activists all ready to continue fighting and teaching, as they’ll influence their circle and those influenced will spread the word even farther. I’ll grant the political landscape of Maryland makes the fight an uphill battle, but I don’t believe the TEA Party has breathed their last in the Free State. Cross is wrong in picking this movement as a loser.

In a note to his supporters on his Facebook page, Jim Rutledge laid out some of the reasons he supports Maryland Society of Patriots head Sam Hale:

1. He “is a proven leader at the grassroots, people-to-people level of persuasion.” Jim recounts how Sam founded the Maryland Society of Patriots and that it became a favorite stop for conservative candidates courting votes.
2. He is “honest and transparent” and gives “straight talk from an intelligent mind.”
3. He “has a work ethic second to none…his energy is badly needed to move us forward in Maryland.”
4. He “is an optimist and visionary” who is “not daunted in his passion for turning the tide of freedom” despite living in the liberal enclave of Montgomery County.
5. He “is a Christian who understands the call to civic activism,” and who “puts his faith into action.”
6. He “is young and well-educated…youth and energy attract youth and energy.”
7. Finally, he “is independent from the influences of the Washington, D.C. establishment.”

Truthfully, it’s not surprising Rutledge would place his backing behind a party outsider, as Hale may be the only aspirant to not either have been a 2010 candidate (Amedori, Campbell, Kane, Mooney, Wargotz) or involved with the Maryland GOP in some other fashion (Esteve is head of the Maryland College Republicans and Langer is on the Queen Anne’s County Central Committee.)

I haven’t taken the opportunity to speak to Sam yet, but as I noted yesterday he did an interview for RedState with Matt Newman. Later this week I’m thinking about sending out my own set of questions to see who has the guts to reply – after all, I’m one of the few people who are discussing the issue publicly to actually have some say in the matter.

It’s important to me that I make the best-informed decision I can to advance the conservative principles I believe in. Unlike some party chairmen, I put principle over party as much as I can (granted, it can’t always work that way – I do have some pragmatism.) So, those of you I think are in the running should be on the lookout.

Update: Eric Wargotz is on record in the Washington Post as considering a bid, too.

“We need to change the mindset — the idea that Republicans can’t win here. I’m a physician. I believe there’s a cure and a diagnosis for everything.”

A published report is now saying that Brian Murphy is “hinting” that he wants to be Maryland GOP Chair. Obviously the angle presented by Sun writer Anne Linskey is one of a near-rematch between Brian Murphy and Mary Kane – technically this rematch would be true if Mike Ryman jumped into the race (and for all I know right now observing this race he just might.)

Certainly Murphy would bring a more conservative element to the chairmanship, and those of us who supported him in the gubernatorial election were reminded on November 2nd that those naysayers who said only Bob Ehrlich had a chance against Martin O’Malley were, oh, only about 14 1/2 points shy of being right. Shoot, Brian could have gotten 40 percent of the vote just by being a underfunded placeholder.

The rub for any of these “insurgent” candidates, though, is whether they can keep some of the large donors and rainmakers on board. Of course, business sense does help when it comes to running a party, but there’s no denying that a number of people and entities decided to step up and open their checkbooks the moment Audrey Scott was elected. As I reported at the time:

In the spirit of cooperation, Mike Collins of Anne Arundel County began a parade of people willing to donate to the party. All told, the impromptu effort raised $4,000 for the party coffers, which included donations from two county committees.

In thinking back, though, one could construe that effort as a little bit insulting. The party’s needs didn’t change and hopefully its principles didn’t change either, but suddenly they were worth donating to again. Will Mike Collins and his ilk again snap their wallets shut in a snit if Murphy or another non-establishment candidate (read: anyone besides Mary Kane) wins? That seems like a poor reaction to losing control of a party that, quite frankly, badly underperformed on a state level.

One who will not be running is Jim Rutledge, who announced on his Facebook page he wouldn’t be a candidate. But he had some strong words for those who were:

This is the time for bold leadership, not the time to succumb to the siren’s song of moderation, liberalization, and the club mentality of the Rockefeller republicans who have held sway over too many elements of the party in MD for too long. We in MD are being ruled not represented. Money is king and those that have it threaten to walk if they do not get their way. I say, let them walk, no let them run to their democrat friends. It is time for the ruling class to be deposed. Just look at the MD GOP website today promoting a celebration of Audrey Scott who presided over one of the worst GOP performances in the nation. After losing 2 MD Senate seats, she should have taken the honorable path and resigned immediately.

Time is short, and under pressure, taking the familiar “safe” way will be a great temptation. Take the opportunity now to buck the trends and strike for a new face on the MD GOP. The phone calls and emails having been flying and clamoring for new leadership and a new direction. The enemies of liberty abound, and we are counting on you to strike the ground for freedom now.

I write as a citizen. I am no longer a candidate, and I am not running for the Chair. I have obligations to fulfill that will not permit me to give the job the time it will require.

The “familiar ‘safe’ way” got us drubbed by 14 1/2 points and only netted us 4 seats in the General Assembly. But in areas the state party didn’t touch nearly as much we were much more successful – look at our success here in Wicomico County where we picked up at least one (and possibly two) County Council seats and the State’s Attorney office. (Too bad we couldn’t fill the whole ballot or we may have done even better!) And I’d be willing to wager that those who run as the most conservative alternatives win easily in Salisbury’s upcoming election (which is nonpartisan.)

Maybe it’s time to listen to those who have success?

Blog note: I think I’m going to create a widget for my sidebar on the ins, outs, and maybes. Look for it later today or tomorrow.

Well, I use the term ‘bus’ loosely. This looked more like an extended straight truck.

The person posing with the bus is former Senate candidate Jim Rutledge. In part he was responsible for bringing this crowd, but more on him later.

A total of eight speakers orated at the hour-long event, with AFP Maryland head Dave Schwartz acting as master of ceremonies. In his opening remarks, he reminded us that AFP has 26,000 members in Maryland among 17 chapters and stated his reason for doing this as “I want to protect the American Dream.”

Dave rattled off a laundry list of offenses by government, saying that the federal government overreached on doing the stimulus bill and bailing out Wall Street while the state government enacted the largest tax increase and worst deficits in our state’s history, not to mention creating a poor business climate.

As AFP supporters we needed to get involved – two suggestions Schwartz had were to enlist in the group’s “Freedom Phone” project or to walk your neighborhoods with door hangers (provided by AFP) and engage neighbors in political discussion.

Tim Phillips is the head of the national AFP, and here’s what he had to say.

And you thought I skipped Friday Night Videos? Nope, I just cleverly made them the story!

Local AFP head Joe Collins also said his piece, telling us that as a budding activist “I chose AFP for the voters” and that this election was time to “rebalance the scales.”

I stole Andrew Langer’s joke as he came up since there wasn’t a chicken suit in sight. (Maybe they went to the wrong location – I was a bit confused at first too.) He recalled the town hall meeting where Frank Kratovil gave his reasoning for voting for cap-and-trade as keeping the EPA from regulating it. When it was pointed out that Frank was a Congressman and could pass a law, Langer quoted him as asking, “I can do that?”

The head of the Institute for Liberty warned us to be vigilant of what the executive branch will try to do over the next two years as they face the prospect of an unfriendly Congress.

Also speaking to an AFP rally here for the second time in a month was WGMD-FM host Duke Brooks, who remarked that his liberal callers claimed they didn’t hate this country, but…there was always a “but.” They “think the country is flawed.”

It was only up to the government to provide equality of opportunity, continued Brooks, but not equality of outcome. He quoted Tony Blair’s line that the measure of a nation is how many want to get in vs. how many want to leave, and part of the reason for our success was that we had no elite ruling class.

Of the three candidates for the First District Congressional seat who were invited to speak, it’s not surprising only one showed. This is what Andy Harris had to say.

But the person I wanted to hear from came next. I actually recorded this because his biggest fan (Kim) wasn’t there to enjoy it, but it turned out so good I decided to share. Here’s Jim Rutledge.

And you wonder why there’s a push by some to write him in for the Attorney General slot thoughtlessly left unfilled by the Maryland GOP. He’s got my vote.

One elected official who spoke was Joey Gardner, who was elected earlier this year as one of Princess Anne’s Town Commissioners.

His message was simple – when he saw a need “I got involved.” We shouldn’t put any limitations on our involvement when it comes to helping the community.

While Gardner was the last speaker he wasn’t the only candidate for office people could get face time with. The entire statewide ticket of Maryland’s Constitution Party was there.

Gubernatorial candidate Eric Knowles is in the dark suit, with his running mate Michael Hargadon giving me the thumbs up next to him and U.S. Senate candidate Richard Shawver in the blue coat on the right.

Also looking on was Republican District 38A hopeful Charles Otto.

The Libertarian candidate for District 2 County Council was there as well. If you don’t know who he is, read the sign.

So it was at least a tri-partisan event, with a touch of good old-fashioned capitalism thrown in.

Something tells me this rig was at all the stops, but it didn’t look like he did a lot of business.

Believe it or not, there is yet another bus rally scheduled that I found out about last night. The RNC’s Fire Pelosi Bus Tour will stop at the Salisbury Victory Center (the old Hollywood Video at 1016 South Salisbury Boulevard) at 9:30 a.m. next Friday – featured speaker is some guy who used to be our Lieutenant Governor, Michael Steele. To RSVP, contact Patrick at (443) 736-8042 or via phefflinger (at) mdgop.org.

It looks like I may have made it…just barely, but I may have made it.

With a few hundred absentee ballots out, I’m holding on to ninth place for the Wicomico County Republican Central Committee by a 25 vote margin. It’s a damn good thing my suggestion of a couple years ago (to expand the WCRCC from 7 to 9 members) was finally adopted by the committee or I’d be out in the cold!

Obviously I’m bummed that both of my statewide candidates I supported lost. It’s not a surprise that Brian Murphy lost, but I am heartened that he picked up 29% of the vote here – it means that Bob Ehrlich can’t take us conservatives for granted over the next seven weeks. (Murphy got over 30% of the vote in a handful of counties, peaking so far at 33 percent.)

But I guess Eric Wargotz may have bought himself a nomination, since he doesn’t seem to anywhere near the grassroots support that Jim Rutledge did. My friends who are Rutledge backers should be proud that the top two counties in the state to back Jim were (in order) Wicomico (#1) and Worcester (#2.) Shows we have some common sense, and it wouldn’t surprise me in the least to see Wargotz skedaddle to the center now.

I did better on the homefront – wasn’t sure Marty Pusey would pull it off but she did! Congrats and way to go Marty!

More shocking was the ease in which Charles Otto won his primary. And people will be talking for awhile about the upset of Davis Ruark by Seth Mitchell.

Looks like later today I can condense my righthand column and prepare for November. But again, thanks to the 2,036 people who had faith in me and my efforts on the Wicomico County Republican Central Committee!

Just don’t tell me I’m a shoo-in next time!

First, I love the smell of hypocricy in the evening as much as I do in the morning.

Yep, let’s hire non-union people to protest on behalf of a union. Unless there’s full employment within the union (in which case they shouldn’t need the work anyway) why can’t they use their own members?

In the meantime, the administration they blindly support is killing other union and non-union jobs in the energy industry.

It’s interesting – 5,500 people came of their own accord to speak out on their jobs but providing a handful of jobs to the members of the union who instead paid scab labor to picket was out of the question.

The statewide races for Governor and Senate are quite interesting, with Jim Rutledge and Eric Wargotz fighting out the U.S. Senate nod and Brian Murphy closing the gap on Bob Ehrlich. Here’s a little something from each, beginning with Rutledge. Someone came up with a great video on Jim’s behalf.

I still like the bearded look on Jim. Meanwhile, his opponent Eric Wargotz hit the airwaves with this last week.

It’s a humorous ad, and certainly gets the point across. But is appearing in safari garb Eric’s ‘Dukakis moment’?

A more conventional message comes from Brian Murphy in his TV spot.

It sounds pretty Eastern Shore to me, since that’s where he grew up. Meanwhile, Bob Ehrlich vows to kill the expansion of the sales tax to 43 services.

Oh, I remember the bill – they’ve tried to sneak it through but didn’t have the cajones to do it back then. We fought it tooth and nail and won.

Finally, this week wouldn’t be complete without mentioning something about tomorrow. It’s this week’s Freedom Minute from the Center for Individual Freedom.

I decided to skip the music video this week because I may just have fresh ones next week if I’m able. We’ll have to see on that; otherwise enjoy the rest of your night!

But the commercial is not without its critics, and I have to add my two cents to the discussion.

(continued on my Examiner.com page…)