« BACK  |  PRINT

RS

FRONT PAGE CONTRIBUTOR

Tom Campbell lobbied for earmarks [not. Updated]

By: Neil Stevens (Diary)  |  April 1st, 2010 at 04:30 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

Updated: I’ve been sent a passage from the Congressional record illustrating that the specific spending Tom Campbell defended was not an earmark, but rather an NSF grant. So, while it makes sense that John Campbell’s amendment would target such a thing as wasteful spending, this specific amendment that Tom Campbell opposed addressed “peer reviewed” grants, not requests by members of Congress. Different process. John Campbell must have mis-remembered, which is of course understandable, but the record must be corrected for my part in repeating it.

Tom Campbell has now pledged to oppose earmarks. That’s a good position to take, and I agree with it. Earmarks are a tiny part of the spending problem, but they’re a gateway drug to outright corruption. There is too little oversight and too much abuse of that system, and it should be abolished.

However this is a recent change for him. Via Flash Report, John Campbell tells us how Tom Campbell once lobbied him in favor of earmarks:

Are campaign-year conversions a useful indicator? That’s for the primary voters to decide.

Tags: , , , , , ,

COMMENTS

POSTING RULES  |  LOGIN TO COMMENT  |  REGISTER TODAY
  • CSUFBomb

    …but John Campbell rocks. Tom Campbell is Barbara Boxer without the frosted tips.

  • drfredc

    I was recently at a small meeting with a conservative candidate for Congress. Amongst his findings in talking to Reps in Congress, is earmarks tend to be the way that less than mainstream ‘weapons’ systems and enhancements get funding in this nation…

    Eliminating earmarks a laudable goal, but at the same time one needs to eliminate lots of the distortions that this process has created so the important stuff can once again be dealt with appropriately and fairly.

    You know — stuff like eliminating the ‘entertainer tax break’, revist full union dues deductions (since a lot of that goes to distorted left wing pols), cornahol subsidies, etc, etc…

  • usedtobelib

    I thought I was firmly in the camp of Chuck DeVore until I caught him and Carly Fiorina on Sean Hannity’s show from the Reagan Library a few days ago. (Hannity said Campbell had refused his invitation.)

    If you didn’t see the show, basically the conversation among the three of them centered on why Barbara Boxer has been bad for Californians and the country and why a GOP candidate should replace her. It was clear that neither the audience nor Sean expected either of the two candidates to attack the other in this particular venue since its purpose was to celebrate the principles of Reaganism. Hannity made no attempt in his questions to steer them to debate.

    Thus, it was totally unexpected when DeVore, in an out-of-the-blue, clumsy and ungracious manner, turned the conversation into an attack on his primary opponent. Sean was stunned and so was Fiorina.

    I was hoping that I would like DeVore primarily because I know people who worked for HP when Fiorina was at the helm and because Campbell is suspect, but I have to say DeVore lost me with that show of unsportmanlike conduct. I must not have been the only one because you could hear Hannity’s audience gasp at his lack of manners.

    I realize he is behind in the polls and must have seen this as one of his few shots at gaining some ground, but people skills do matter and it struck me that it was very ironic that he showed his bad manners in a place honoring Reagan, a man who knew there was a time and a place for everything.

  • Aaron Gardner

    I would rather have an honest person who may lack manners than the most civil of liars.

    YMMV.

  • philbo

    does not trump the indisputable fact that Fiorina is a liberal who feels entitled to that Senate seat because she is a woman while DeVore is a true conservative. We’ve had enough comity from the RINOs. To quote:

    “Manners are the hypocrisy of a nation”.

    Honore de Balzac (1799-1850) French novelist.

    “To the real artist in humanity, what are called bad manners are often the most picturesque and significant of all.”

    Walt Whitman (1819-1892) American poet.

    In a one-party democracy where a radical minority controls both sides of the arguments as well as who is allowed to speak, being impolite might save us from having to slide further down the scale of disagreeableness.

  • http://www.hakubi.us/ Neil Stevens

    We need a guerilla fighter.

    We need more fighters in Washington, period, not more go along-get along squishy wimps.

    That he FIGHTS is the biggest reason I back Chuck.

  • SteveLA

    I did some reading on the stimulus point DeVore made about Carlie, and he was correct. Carlie’s been all over the map on the topic and mostly in favor of the bale out back when it was being debated and as a McCain stand-in during the campaign.

    On point, DeVore was correct, on style, maybe his attack plays in some places, but probably in a state like CA where voters think that California did not get much of the pork aka stimulus money, not so much come the general election. With the Democratic party made budget mess starting to bite education, health care, support to the elderly and the poor, people out here are looking for handouts to bale out the state and you can bet that one of the issues of the general will be who can deliver that bacon. That’s the wrong answer by the way, but R’s in the state assembly don’t have much of a record of doing much to offer solutions, mostly just a rump speed bump to slow the Donks down a bit.

  • philbo

    Carlie was on his very short list of VP choices, far ahead of Palin and just behind Joe Lieberman. Her first line attack against Campbell was that electing him would surrender a woman’s Senate seat to a man. She played the gender card as brazenly like a veteran progressive. There is only one quality conservative running in this election, Chuck DeVore.

  • SteveLA

    Phil

    I believe she also played the same card when HP blew up in her face. The evil boys club of Silicon Valley v the Damsel in CEO’s office.

    Campbell really is terrible on spending, but I do tend to think the primary is going to come down to him and Carlie, and I have no clue who will win. DeVore is not catching on according to the last poll I looked at, Field poll, March 18th, shows DeVore down at 9 percent, but a large 41 percent still undecided.

  • renny

    we should consider that we do not want too many inexperienced, ill prepared, unseasoned, bad tv personality, attack dogs wandering around in DC because the old-line bulls like Waxman and Waters and Frank, yadda, will still be around, even if Reps. take both Houses, and they can still create havoc with parliamentary procedures and parochial rules of the chambers that the newbys know nothing of and have little chance to learn.

    Even when the Reps. had the majority, Daschle used to announce something was “DOA”, and it was usually DOA.

    So, I know nothing of the DeVore-Carly whatever, but someone who appears unattractive and is forcefully inconsiderate bold facedly and blatantly on national tv may harbor traits you do not want in a SENATOR.

  • usedtobelib

    I want someone who is electable, and doubt about his skill and judgement were what I took from his appearance on Hannity. What she said and did is irrelevant to my point about him.

    DeVore’s a guy whom most Californians, including GOPers, don’t know. He gets his chance to be seen and heard by most for the very first time, and he comes off as boorishly as Al Gore did in the town hall “debate” with Bush (a performance which I believe cost Gore the election.)

    It was as if he hadn’t a clue about what was and what was not appropriate in that setting and context. If you don’t know that, you know nothing about winning votes.

    BTW, unless you customarily refer to women as “bud,” I am no bud.

  • izoneguy

    The way he handled himself on Hannity at the Reagan library was fantastic….
    He was able to transition into jabs at Carly before she knew what hit her. Hannity let him go until Carly figured out what was going on….
    Priceless…..we need attack dogs – not lap dogs…..

  • SteveLA

    ustetobelib

    I think DeVore is actually very well know, but mostly on in the base of the Republican party. Outside of the base, he’s got pretty low name recognition and only guessing here, he was probably using Hannity and the Reagan Library appearance to do some thumping on Carlie as a way to raise the general awareness of his candidacy. Carlie is not all that a beloved figure in Silicon Valley or the Tech industry from what I’ve read, but her name is better know for sure.

    Good or bad thing, who knows, check the next Field poll to see if DeVore gets a bump.

  • izoneguy

    You are full of crap and trying to distract on the issue here.

    I saw that segment and Chuck kicked her arse…

    And very well he should. Carly would be a RINO of the 3rd order.
    She was a horrible business person and needs to drop out of the race. Let’s she if she lives up to her promise to support Chuck if he wins the primary.

  • Aaron Gardner
  • Scope

    no one here is pushing you, or cajoling you into supporting any Republican in the race. Hey, I don’t have a horse in the race for the soon coming Kentucky Derby race yet either. God forbid the favored horse in the race has not had any experience, is ill prepared, unseasoned, and has a bad record with TC appearances. I’m sure that is exactly how Marco Rubio felt a year ago.

  • joayn

    My sister and I watched the show knowing they both were going to be on and right from the get-go Fiorina monopolized the conversation. Very kumba-yahish she was. She does come across as extremely charming, and my sister said that she could see people being seduced by that.

    Chuck’s “attack” was probably a reaction to that, and it was a bit of a jolt compared to Carly’s smooth talking, but I sure didn’t miss her taking shots at Tom Campbell every chance she could. Chuck’s the guy for me. Yeah, so he doesn’t look like a movie star and isn’t Rico Suavae, but I’ll take substance and grit over superficial b.s. any day.

  • usedtobelib

    —-A guerilla fighter–yeah, against Boxer in the general and a smart, effective fighter against Campbell and Fiorina in a debate where the candidates and the viewers know the rules and expect a fight.

    See, that was the problem with his performance on Hannity. The rules were unspoken, I am sure, but the audience and the host himself obviously felt there were “rules” and that DeVore broke them. (Go back and look/listen to the audiience’s and Sean’s reactions if you doubt my assessment of the context of his behavior.) He reminded me of someone who had been invited to a wedding and who was charming and engaginguntil it was almost time to go when, in a panic that he might lose his chance, he launched into a tirade against the bride/ groom. IOW, he came off as a guy who could smile in your face one second, then stab you the next.

    Illustrative anecdote: my sister, who lives near Fresno and who, like me, changed her registration, called me later that evening and said, “I thought you said DeVore was good.” I replied that I had, and her caustic retort was, “I thought he acted like a jacka__.”

    Not a way to introduce yourself to people. Not all GOP voters in the primary are as politically involved as those of you on this blog.

    Izoneguy—I’ve no reason to try to distract. I just think the guy demonstrated poor political judgement. Period.

  • joayn

    I live in California and he has been INVISIBLE. A total zero as far as appearing on radio, TV, etc. No commercials anywhere. Wierd.

    Anybody know his whereabouts? Or does he expect to ride to victory based on his name recog alone?

  • gekster

    you’ve done it before.

  • http://www.libertytreehugger.com reverelth

    he was asking for primary grade poo flinging. Mercifully, there were not three candidates doing it. There is an “ick” factor for both Fiorina and Whitman I can’t get over, which is that they are using their personal resources to con different groups into thinking they are different people, a la Schwarzenegger or Michael Bloomberg. Reagan was no pauper, but he was not cut out of the same bolt of cloth of the uber self-made. He was no country club Republican.

  • aesthete

    IMO, it also was a bad use of the political forum he was given, and came off as tactless and cold. That said, his performance in no way changes his record, which is very conservative, nor does it change Carly’s mixed record. It should also be noticed that DeVore was correct. Dock Chuck points on style, but you should seriously consider reneging your support of the qualitatively more conservative candidate in the race simply on account of a badly-handled appearance on Hannity.

  • izoneguy

    It was brilliant…..
    And this is what more conservatives need to do.
    Take off the gloves and kick them down the stairs.

    We need to gun for all the RINOS – McCain, Graham, Corker….
    Don’t try to fix something that cannot be fixed….
    Throw it in the trash….

  • izoneguy

    n/t

  • usedtobelib

    No, actually she didn’t. I don’t like her, never have. She’s a toady, a schmoozer. Plus, I think beating Carly would be pretty easy for Boxer–with all that DNC money, I can already envision the ads about the state of Hewlett-Packard while Carly was there.
    A comment above states that CF “monopolized” the conversation. I’d use a different word: “controlled”. It’s what a successful candidate does. It’s a communications’ strategy among others, that Obama rode to the Presidency, and it makes me wonder why Chuck was so ill-prepared for its use. It’s so common a tactic any bright kid who’s had a high school debate or speech class is ready to defend against it.
    The easy way to have interjected himself into the conversation was to have enthusiastically jumped in with agreement to some point she made about Boxer or the Dems. Such an interruption would not have been viewed as negative since he would have been supporting her point of view. That achieved, he could have proceeded to occupy the stage. Instead, he seemed slow to recognize that she wasn’t about to hand over the stage to him.
    Why? I’m just asking? From what I witnessed, he seems to frustrate easily.
    In a debate among the three of them, Campbell would be the victor. In a debate with Boxer, Campbell would leave Babs bloodied on the mat. However, I too have noticed TC’s absence and I live in Northern CA. I think I have seen one ad, but I wouldn’t swear to it.
    Now I am going to press the “post comment” box for the third time as I have lost two of these previously. If this doesn’t go through, I give.

  • hickorystick

    It’s Reply To This button. Two choices; Post Comment and Reply To This. Anyways, Carly sucks.

  • aesthete

    just the venue and the topics being discussed made it a bad political move, IMO. I can’t see anyone not already in Chuck’s camp watching that display and saying, “that’s the guy I want to vote for”. But considering that he’s still in third place, maybe any recognition at this point is good recognition. It’s not like Fiorina’s been Miss Manners (behold the awesomeness of DemonSheep).

  • Aaron Gardner

    See, that was the problem with his performance on Hannity. The rules were unspoken, I am sure, but the audience and the host himself obviously felt there were ?rules? and that DeVore broke them. (Go back and look/listen to the audiience?s and Sean?s reactions if you doubt my assessment of the context of his behavior.)

    As the video below shows, Hannity asked the candidates to expound upon their differences. As Chuck began doing this Carly rudely interrupted, and lied.

  • fpete13527

    Well said. We must elect fighters.

  • http://www.theprecinctproject.wordpress.com ColdWarrior

    Fiorina does not support our Platform.

    DeVore does.

    We need more DeVores and fewer Fiorinas winning the primaries. BEST way, individually, to make that happen is by becoming a Republican party precinct committeeman.

    End of story.

    Thank you,
    ColdWarrior
    No More Scozzafavas!
    Act! Become a Republican precinct committeeman. NOW!

  • usedtobelib

    My gawd, what is this? A primary school playground, Aaron? Sheez.

    For anyone who didn’t see the DeVore/Fiorina appearance on Hannity and is interested, here’s the link to Hannity’s site with the ENTIRE clip. Judge for yourself. If you’re interested in how others perceived the performances, you can google around other sites for comments. That was my point–perception counts.
    http://video.foxnews.com/v/4130681/california-gop-hopefuls-on-hannity

    A voter who doesn’t know if Fiorina did or did not voice support for Sotomayor’s appointment or who doesn’t know what her position on the bailout and stimulus were wouldn’t know from this Hannity appearance who was truthful, who wasn’t. So, the visual, the style mean a great deal.

  • Aaron Gardner

    Look, you said that Chuck DeVore broke the unspoken rules. This is clearly not true as Hannity himself asked them this which is found in your linked video at 4:30

    Where do you see some differences. Between the two of you?

    At that point Carly was given the opportunity to go first, and she did fine.

    Then Chuck was allowed to go and Carly interrupted him in the middle causing him to have less time.

    If you deny these facts you are indeed a liar.

  • SteveLA

    I guess it’s really up to people in CA to actually decide if they think DeVore was out of line or not, and the next poll will show if DeVore gets a bump out of his appearance on Hannity which will be a pretty good indicator of how his thumping on Carlie was received by voters in the state.

    Below is the full video from the Fox site which has not been edited to just feature what DeVore has to say, so it’s probably a better representation on what actually was said and how both came off.

    Watch the latest news video at video.foxnews.com

  • SteveLA

    I goofed that up some how….Oh to have a preview button…The link is actually http://video.foxnews.com/v/4130681/california-gop-hopefuls-on-hannity.

    Sorry for the goof.

  • SteveLA

    DeVore in his Hannity appearance also raised an issue about Fiorina’s “support” of nomination of Sotomayer to the supreme court. DeVore is again correct on point and is throwing out Red Meat for the primary but probably has forgotten that CA has a large Hispanic population that votes in the general election.

    The Wall Street Journal in an interview with Fiorina gets down to the real story.

    “An issue that will give Mr. DeVore some traction in a primary is that Ms. Fiorina says she “probably” would have voted to confirm Sonia Sotomayor, because most presidential Supreme Court nominees who are qualified deserve a presumption of support. One can argue with that position on substantive grounds, but it’s probably smart politics in a general election given that California is 37% Hispanic.”

    If beating Babs Boxer is important, then DeVore needs to figure out that attacking his opponent for supporting a Hispanic woman maybe plays well as Red Meat served up to the base, but not so much for the general election voter when the Donks out here will fight to preserve Babs seat using every statement
    DeVore has ever made.

  • usedtobelib

    communicate nor to persuade, especially with one of your own; however, it does give me insight into why you are having a difficult time fathoming how some people watching that segment, people who know neither candidate well or at all would not have favored DeVore after having seen that. You are able to see things from only one perspective. That’s very limiting, in politics and in life. I

    Sean says at about 2:03, “Look, I’m not going to get involved in your primary race here, and you guys really aren’t here to debate tonight, but either one of you will be the Republican candidate running against Barbara Boxer. Just real quick, where do you see some differences?”

    So, the audience, already comfortable with the two candidates going after their Dem opponent, hear Sean say this is not a debate. Yes, Sean asks for some differences. I don’t think most people in that live audience looked favorably upon Chuck’s style of pointing out differences judging from their reaction. There was a kind of a “Whoa, where did that come from?” stirring that swept the room, illustrating that it was unexpected.

    And that was my point. He misread the setting and the tone the audience and Sean were expecting. As a Chuck partisan, you were enjoying his punches, but he doesn’t need your vote; he already has it. I am pointing out what the undecided, less informed voter is likely to have concluded from what they saw and heard.

    His drawing of distinctions between CF and himself could have been more felicitously worded and the tone less bullish.

    Did she “interrupt” him? She did indeed say, “You know that’s not true,” and she shook her head and said, “No,” but I seriously doubt that the viewing audience saw those as interruptions. It’s likely they saw her as someone who was not expecting him to bash her so her “interruptions” were, to them, spontaneous defenses.

    Their perception is that he went on the attack and when you want votes from people who don’t know you, don’t know even if your attacks are accurate, you are unlikely to get them that way.

    And that exhausts what I have to say on the subject, Aaron. I hope in the future should we communicate with one another, we can concentrate on substance and you can avoid juvenile name-calling. I thought this was a serious blog with people who wish to exchange ideas in a civil manner.

  • Aaron Gardner

    It wasn’t an attack, it was exactly what Hannity asked them to do.

    Spin away all you want, you are still not telling the truth.

  • Aaron Gardner

    I haven’t called you any names.

    Put your victim card back in your pocket.