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Roy Blunt Wins: Senate GOP Shuns Tea Party, Embraces K Street

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  December 13th, 2011 at 01:53 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

Today, Senate Republicans held an internal election to choose a Vice Chairman for the Senate Republican Conference. Conservative organizations and tea party groups rallied to Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI). Senator Roy Blunt (MO) won the leadership contest 25 votes to 22 votes. It is worth noting the number of Senators who came out publicly for Senator Ron Johnson and the number who refused to publicly support Senator Blunt.

Senator Blunt is a fine guy, but he is decidedly on the side of the old guard that has shown a lack of initiative and ideas.

The election is a trust testament to the need to support Senator Jim DeMint’s Senate Conservatives Fund and I hope is a strong signal to Senator DeMint and each of you that our work is not done and we must continue challenging incumbent Republican Senators in primaries.

The downside to this election is the GOP’s refusal to move past the narrative about party greed and corruption from K Street, which is as relevant now as it was in the Bridge to Nowhere controversy.

One former Blunt aide said: “While both are freshman senators, Sen. Blunt’s experience in these types of races gives him an edge.” If he’s successful this afternoon it is expected to be a strong sign of the Missouri Republican moving upward in GOP leadership as soon as next year. If he wins, “it gets him in the queue to be considered for other posts,” another former Blunt aide told PI.

K Street certainly has big ties to Blunt, the former House majority whip. Former aides include: Gregg Hartley of Cassidy & Associates; Joe Wall of Goldman Sachs; Sam Geduldig of Clark, Lytle Geduldig & Cranston; Brian Gaston of Glover Park Group; Amos Snead of Story Partners; Jay Perron of IFA; and Samantha Cook of SMC Consulting.

On the bright side, I suspect Mitch McConnell and the old guard just created a new super hero conservative in Senator Ron Johnson who will be a thorn in their side.

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COMMENTS

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  • christopherestep

    I have no idea what Blunt won and Johnson lost since you didn’t mention it and I’m not a rabid newsjunkie. I assume he won some leadership or campaign committee post?

  • buddha1556

    I have zero faith that my senators, Lugar and Coats, supported Johnson. I’m sorry to say that it’s getting harder and hards to even consider supporting him in a primary.

  • joecollins

    The one I want to see in a primary is Mitch McConnell in the 2014 elections. Here’s hoping Kentucky is warming up a good Tea Party candidate.

    But first we must attend to the 2012 elections . . .

  • buddha1556

    Him = Lugar

  • seanl

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dMcjJEXt9To

  • http://908StraightSt.wordpress.com/ mbecker908

    Especially since he’s got real credible competition this year.

  • http://wadingacross.wordpress.com logus

    In 2010, the year of the Tea Party, Missouri’s conservative pundits and voices as well as I believe the St. Louis Tea Party – or at least some connected to it – tthrew their support behind Mr. Blunt. Nationally, the GOP went all in for Mr. Blunt too, even Mrs. Bachmann getting into the picture supporting him in evident hopeful backscratching.

    All the while, a state legislator also running for the same seat got nary a look from any of the so-called strong conservative voices, movers and shakers because even though he had a much stronger conservative resume and credentials, he had no name and no money… therefore he was seen as unelectable.

    Hmmm… Mr. Gingrich could well win the nomination and everyone thought that surely his campaign was toast on entry…

    I do not believe we should be voting for someone because we feel that they look electable, have the best chance of being elected, are a “winner”, etc. You pick a candidate who best fits what you want in a candidate and then you MAKE them electable.

    National and Missouri Republicans felt that they had to make sure that Robin Carnahan lost, so they hitched their wagon to another establishment politician on the other side of the aisle with not as strong of conservative credentials.

    That Mr. Blunt won this intra-party vote says mountains, not only about national and state conservatives and Republicans, but also about the real and perceived principles and actions of the Tea Party, its movement and those who claim to be a part of it.

  • earlgrey

    Winning!! Not.

  • red_oakster

    Beat Corker in 2012
    Beat Snowe in 2012
    Beat Lugar in 2012

    Elect Hasner in Florida
    Elect Akin in Missouri

    Elect Allen in Virginia
    Elect Mandel in Ohio

    Etc.

    Target, target, target.

  • http://www.unifiedpatriots.com/ pilgrim

    The 14 who definitely voted for Ron Johnson
    Sen. Jim DeMint
    Sen. Lindsey Graham
    Sen. Tom Coburn
    Sen. Bob Corker
    Sen. Saxby Chambliss
    Sen. Mike Enzi
    Sen. David Vitter
    Sen. Jeff Session
    Sen. Richard Shelby.
    Sen. Marco Rubio
    Sen. Kelly Ayotte
    Sen. Mike Lee
    Sen. Rand Paul
    Sen. Dan Coats

    I don’t know where Erick got the 25-22 vote number, and I don’t know the 8 extra votes for Johnson.

  • Massachusetts_Transplant

    can’t really complain about “K Street” support for Roy Blunt, if we are going to support Newt for President.

    1.6 million to provide strategic advice to Freddie Mac? It doesn’t get anymore K Street than that. Remember Tom Daschle didn’t make it as Obama’s HHS Secretary and technically he didn’t “lobby” anyone either, he was just dispensing “strategic advice” as well.

    Thanks for reminding us there are two standards here – one for Mitt Romney and one for the anti-Mitt Romney’s.

  • zollistar

    n/t

  • Lucas Black

    Coats was one of two Senators who made nominating speeches for Johnson, so I can’t imagine he didn’t vote for him. What would the point?

  • acat

    The Senate is the key this year, we can flip it, or we can *really* flip it!

    We can put the GOP in charge, or .. with a little work, we can put *conservatives* in charge, and with enough of a safety margin that the Maine Twins can’t stop ‘em.

    We can also generate some reverse-coattails in the event we have a lousy candidate at the top of the ticket… but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

    Mew

  • zollistar

    I got a call yesterday from the Republican Party looking for money. I made it clear that I will no longer send the organization a dime: it doesn’t support solid conservatives.

    The caller, who was very good, btw, tried to give me some good reasons for sending at least a little to the Republicans, but soon enough realized that the effort merely wasted her breath.

    I suggest that more of us send DeMint’s organization money. At the same time, when the appeals come (especially if they come by mail), let the Establishment know just which kind of organization you’re supporting.

    I also send money to selected candidates around the country. Thanks to technology, I can also make calls for my candidates half a country away.

    I’m a tea party activist. Some of us worked hard on Democrat Weiner’s old seat and — whew! — helped to vote in the Republican who says (we’ll check out the forthcoming voting record, of course…) he’s conservative.

    I owe this activism to my exposure to RedState.com and a conversation with UnionLaborReport at the Austin Red State gathering.

    Thanks, guys!

  • mikeevergreen

    Lobbyists won’t invest in these people as much if they’re only there for a short time.

  • acat

    into the bureaucracy of D.C. itself. Instead of lobbyists buying and selling congresscritters,they’ll start buying and selling the inevitable permanent political class.

    Hint – if you look at the British system, you can see evidence of this. The ministers may change, but the staff – the bureaucracy – is forever.

    This way, at least we can vote the politicians out when they’re past their sell-by date…

    Mew

  • earlgrey

    that Corker supported Johnson. I know most of the conservatives I speak to in TN don’t like Corker either, but on this one, I hope he stood by what he said. One of the staffers at his office indicated that Corker was one of the first to come out to support Johnson.

    I don’t think Corker has a long history of being in government so it may be that he felt some desire to get Johnson (also a political newbie) into a leadership role to their more similar background versus Blunt.

    I don’t think Corker has a primary opponent that is very strong.

    I’d like to get Alexander out fo the Senate. He is much worse IMO than Corker. He is an enemy of the tea party.

  • earlgrey

    they are the only ones I give to multiple times a quarter.

    Next time the RNC calls you may want to tell them how much you give to SCF. I do give the RNC a small amount as I recall one of the moderaters here saying it was important to give to them as they can put money in small races that may not reach our radar. Future Senators have to start somewhere.

    The only ones I never give to is the NRSC, as I see them as opposed to SCF.

  • earlgrey

    Senate Conservatives Fund won’t help him because DeMint promisded not to go after Republicans in this next cycle.

    Club for Growth won’t support him unless he can get some traction (mostly money) on his own in IN.

    I haven’t heard for a while how they are doing, but I am reading very little about Mourdock, which I don’t see as a good sign.

  • mikeevergreen

    Abolishing agencies would help. As Ron Paul has repeatedly stated, the less government does, the fewer opportunities there are for corruption.

  • http://908StraightSt.wordpress.com/ mbecker908

    Lugar needs to go. I hope DeMint has a “Road to Damascus” moment. We finally get a very well qualified, well known challenger to a major pain the a$$ who’s been in the Senate about 50 years too long and it sounds like he’s hitting a wall.

  • acat

    Don’t make me use this:

    Mew

  • heraklios

    Which appears increasingly possible.

  • avagreen

    Some try to BS me, but I just tell them I’ll go to the website of the candidate of my choice and give. They’ve quit calling these last few months.

  • acat

    Next issue.

    Mew

  • After Seven

    I am becoming increasingly annoyed at Tea Party Senators giving out Tea Party Creds to Rino’s in battles that can only be described as losing causes. There is no upside there.

    In Fact just the other day one of them co-sponsored a bill with Air Claire of all people. What the heck are they thinking?

  • Scope

    money bagging position with the Republican party. They are heading that way anyway with Fla’s move to be more competitive with them. Paul wins Iowa, the Iowa fair and straw poll become a parody in future elections, if they aren’t already there.

  • acat

    has been a joke for years now… as far as predicting anything.

    That said, Neil has raised some quite important points about the actual polling data, as opposed to what the Paulistines are spewing.

    Mew

  • earlgrey

    I just gave him some $$, but the last giving on the Piryx giving stream gave like 2 weeks ago. I hope he is finding money from other sources.

  • lineholder

    Could be just election year stuff.

    Then again, I used to live in that area of SC. Very Conservative for the most part. Laid back, until they get their “ire” up. Sounds like that may be the case.

    And Graham’s been on something of a rampage since he found about the Medicaid deal….expanding the upper limit on Medicaid eligibility to shift that group of people out of the Public Health Insurance Exchange. It shifts the burden of costs to the states rather than the federal level. So, maybe he’s getting some of his priorities reoriented for him.

  • buddyp

    I was thinking the same thing.

    Some info on the Gingrich-Fannie/Freddie record:

    http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-11-29/gingrich-said-to-be-paid-by-freddie-mac-to-court-republicans.html

    http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204012004577072502921422584.html

    http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1111/68637.html

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/newt-gingrich-and-freddie-mac-is-he-being-misleading/2011/11/16/gIQAiAvNSN_blog.html

    And of course he may have done more than is publicly known at this point, including more direct, personal influence (also known as lobbying).

  • carolina

    A friend of mine was at that meeting. They did not mince words……

  • lineholder

    It doesn’t surprise me one bit. I did grow up in the Greenville area, and the people for the most part are your pure “salt of the earth” kind of people. They are laid back, but when they get riled up…oh, yeah, you’d best hope you’re not on the brunt of it, because they don’t mince words. At all.

    Interesting. Thanks again.

  • lastgopinillinois

    pushed their Senators to support Ron Johnson. OR, maybe a lot of people did, and their senators disregarded them in favor of their own interests. Who knows?
    Having attended a few local GOP meetings myself, I thought it would be a great idea to send a e-mail to my Senator urging him to support Johnson for Vice chairman rather than Blunt. I copied the letter to local political operatives around here asking them to also contact our Senator. I was informed via reply e-mail that they did agree and did try to influence our senator.
    I dont know how many people were ultimately contacted and took action on the issue, but I am hoping that my one lettwer had a carpet-bomb effect.

    We do have some amazing conservative hopefuls down here, but things will never change until we can get to the point of infiltrating our way up the food chain. Needless to say, the establishment GOP isnt going to go down without a fight.

    All you can do is try.

  • acat

    as one grandmother used to put it …
    a knot jerked in his tail!

    He’s past his sell-by, but .. maybe they can persuade him that it’ll be no fun to stay and that he should just retire.

    Mew

  • cwilson

    Primaries. Primaries. Primaries.