Red State Repub Running W/Obama!

thatguyoverthere · 10-12-2008, 10:24 AM

My eyebrows went up so fast they nearly jumped off my head when I read this casual mention in the New York Times this morning.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/us...ll&oref=slogin

...
The difficulties of the McCain campaign have led some Republican leaders to express concern that he could end up dragging other Republican candidates down to defeat. “If Obama is able to run up big numbers around the country,” said Mr. Anuzis, the Michigan party chairman, “the potential for hurting down-ballot Republicans is very big.”

One sign of that has emerged in Nebraska, where Representative Lee Terry, a Republican, ran a newspaper advertisement featuring words of support for him from a woman identified as an “Obama-Terry voter.”
...

I honestly didn't believe it, so I hunted down a picture of the ad Mr. Terry is running.

Apparently, Terry has been referring to "Obama-Terry" voters since at least the end of May!

Action 3 News - Omaha, Nebraska News, Weather, and Sports | Obama Targeting Omaha

Swing State Project:: NE-02: Did Lee Terry Just Endorse Barack Obama?

Esch is hoping an Obama surge here will help him but Terry's ready to fight, with help from an all new team, what Terry calls "The Obama-Terry voter." Terry says they are, "people who want the right kind of change."

I knew the Republicans were in trouble, but in my opinion this is a pretty big sign of more problems that might lie ahead for them on election day. Local candidates distancing themselves from the national ticket is nothing new, but latching on to the national ticket of the opposing party so publicly, and now in the print advertisements? I'd say it has to be rare at best. Short of switching parties, it's about the biggest vote of no confidence I could imagine a local candidate giving a national candidate.

And the topper to this story is that McCain is up in Nebraska by nearly 20 points!

From the ad, it practically looks like Terry is Obama's running mate! And, using an older white female in the picture pretty much indicates the type of voter this ad is targeting. Hmm...very telling.

I'm glad Mr. Terry is on record stating that he shares Obama's propensity for working hard, being honest, having strong ethics, and being accessible!

Seriously, WTF is going on here? Even if Terry's district is superblue, it's still such a dis on McCain and tacit endorsement of Obama from a member of McCain's own party that I still have trouble believing it.

Scrum · 10-12-2008, 11:07 AM

The Republicans here (in Illinois) do everything they can to avoid having that (R) next to their names in ads. They act like they don't have a party.

IminWonderland · 10-12-2008, 01:41 PM

Is this the definition of bi-partinsinship?

HughRuss · 10-12-2008, 01:47 PM

Originally Posted by Scrum

The Republicans here (in Illinois) do everything they can to avoid having that (R) next to their names in ads. They act like they don't have a party.

There's a Republican in Oregon running for representative of a district, and instead of (R) he is putting (GOP) or just (G). Most people, apparently, don't know that r=gop.

Originally Posted by IminWonderland

Is this the definition of bi-partinsinship?

Prolly.

Photon1001 · 10-12-2008, 01:59 PM

I wish my Republican representative was hard working, honest, accessible, had strong ethics and gave straight answers. Maybe I'd vote for him then.

Photon1001 · 10-12-2008, 02:02 PM

There's a Republican in Oregon running for representative of a district, and instead of (R) he is putting (GOP) or just (G). Most people, apparently, don't know that r=gop.

Good thing ppl don't don't know that there's already a (G) Green party, they might get confused.

DosEquis · 10-12-2008, 02:07 PM

Lee Terry is just trying anything to save his own ass. He almost lost 2 years ago to a democrat named Jim Esch. This year, with the new voter turn out and those new voters leaning democrat he is trying some form of damage control.

HughRuss · 10-12-2008, 02:11 PM

Originally Posted by DosEquis

Lee Terry is just trying anything to save his own ass. He almost lost 2 years ago to a democrat named Jim Esch. This year, with the new voter turn out and those new voters leaning democrat he is trying some form of damage control.

Does damage control = creating damage?

thatguyoverthere · 10-12-2008, 02:13 PM

Originally Posted by DosEquis

Lee Terry is just trying anything to save his own ass. He almost lost 2 years ago to a democrat named Jim Esch. This year, with the new voter turn out and those new voters leaning democrat he is trying some form of damage control.

From the last polls I was able to find, Terry is comfortably ahead right now anyway. Is that correct? I think it's really weird for him to be evoking Obama in his ads since he doesn't seem to be in any real danger of losing his seat. Am I missing something here?

DosEquis · 10-12-2008, 02:18 PM

Originally Posted by thatguyoverthere

From the last polls I was able to find, Terry is comfortably ahead right now anyway. Is that correct? I think it's really weird for him to be evoking Obama in his ads since he doesn't seem to be in any real danger of losing his seat. Am I missing something here?

The polls, from what I have seen in the past here...the margin of error tends to go toward the democrat. He only won with 54% last time...so we'll see.