The Classic Liberal Blog

Doug Hoffman election results are in ...

I'm rather surprised that Doug Hoffman lost, but a conservative coming out of nowhere, with the RNC against him, and he still gets 45% of the vote ... that's a step in the right direction, my friends.

The race for New York’s 23rd District is not over, just postponed until 2010. The issues
of this election have always centered on the economy – on the need for fiscal restraint, smaller government, and policies that encourage jobs. In 2010, these issues will
be even more crucial to the electorate. I commend Doug Hoffman and all the other under-dog candidates who have the courage to put themselves out there and
run against the odds.

To the tireless grassroots patriots who worked so hard in that race and to future
citizen-candidates like Doug, please remember Reagan’s words of encouragement
after his defeat in 1976:

“The cause goes on. Don't get cynical because look at yourselves and what you were willing to do, and recognize that there are millions and millions of Americans out there that want what you want, that want it to be that way, that want it to be a shining city on a hill.”

The cause goes on.

- Sarah Palin

Prediction: Hoffmania will continue

OK, so Doug Hoffman fell 4,000 votes short of a House seat. But ask yourself this: What will Regnery pay him as a book advance?

The basic idea of the Hoffman campaign -- an ordinary citizen taking a wild gamble on a political campaign, waging an against-all-odds underdog battle against the Establishment -- is nothing less than the epitome of the American Dream.

Hell's bells, it's a Disney movie starring Rick Moranis!

The peculiar circumstances of the NY23 special election put Hoffman in the glare of the national spotlight and, given his admitted lack of political "rock star" credentials, he did a lot better than any of the experts might have expected. As he said in his concession speech:

"This one was worth the fight. And it’s only one fight in the battle, and we have to keep fighting."

In NY-23, Conservatives Win

The race has now been called for Democrat Bill Owens.

This is a huge win for conservatives.

“Whaaaa. . . ?” you say.

There are two big victories at work in New York’s 23rd Congressional District.

First, the GOP now must recognize it will either lose without conservatives or will win with conservatives. In 2008, many conservatives sat home instead of voting for John McCain. Now, in NY-23, conservatives rallied and destroyed the Republican candidate the establishment chose.

I have said all along that the goal of activists must be to defeat Scozzafava. Doug Hoffman winning would just be gravy. A Hoffman win is not in the cards, but we did exactly what we set out to do — crush the establishment backed GOP candidate.

And make no mistake, despite the Beltway spin, we know for certain based on statements from the local Republican parties, that they chose Scozzafava based on advice from the Washington crowd.

So we have demonstrated to the GOP that it must not take conservatives for granted. The GOP spent $900,000.00 on a Republican who dropped out and endorsed the Democrat. Were we to combine Scozzafava and Hoffman’s votes, Hoffman would have won.

What Does it All Mean?

I will say that I'm thrilled with the Christie win, not shocked by the McDonnell win, and encouraged by the NY-23 race. I really thought Hoffman could pull that one out, but so it goes. As Britt Hume said last night, "That's why you have primaries." Part of the issue in that election was a time issue; it was a late-breaking campaign from the very beginning. Hoffman fought a great fight and there's a lot to be encouraged about there.

The GOP elite’s $1 million object lesson — and the message of NY-23

Conservatives owe NY-23 candidate Doug Hoffman immeasurable gratitude. He overcame impossible odds (single digits just a month ago) to come within two points of defeating Democrat Bill Owens. Hoffman had zero name recognition. National Republican Party officials dumped nearly $1 million into the race on behalf of radical leftist GOP candidate Dede Scozzafava, who then turned around, endorsed Owens and siphoned off 5 percent of the vote with her name still on the ballot after she dropped out.

Conservatives’ money went to pay for specious attack ads against Hoffman run by the NRCC like this ...

Staking Out the Meme Beforehand

This was a race in which the establishment wing of the GOP chose to do battle with its insurgent conservative wing to the bitter end. So: Meaning Two - the conservatives take a big win, and further demonstrate how to “reconcile” the Tea Partiers with the GOP establishment - the establishment needs to move sharply conservative in order to get their votes.

This was a race in which the anointed GOP candidate stood revealed as a hollow, treacherous shell, a Democrat In All But Label Only (DIABLO), yet of a type sadly familiar to conservatives disappointed and betrayed yet again. Meaning Three: The strategy of supporting such candidates has taken a major blow.

Nothing has energized the conservative base like this race.

Renewed Hope for Gridlock?

Thus, I am not pleased because I want Republicans rather than Democrats to run the country; I am pleased because I want gridlock: a Congress with sufficient Republicans and Blue Dog Democrats to defeat most of the initiatives proposed by liberal Democrats.

Gridlock is not the ultimate goal, of course; I would like to see the U.S. eliminate huge amounts of existing government. But for starters, not enacting any new government would be an improvement over the path Democrats will adopt unconstrained.