Senator Byrd is on Al Franken right now!

[Lasher]

Talking about King George II reaching for power, etc.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. On wiretaps right now

Byrd says the reasoning behind it is stretched. Bush is the most arroant WH he's seen. Path of Bush runs counter to intentions of the Founders.

[Lasher]

2. What, that was all the time Franken gave him?

I was surprised to hear Byrd on the show. He doesn't do things like that much.

[ET Awful]

3. Hey Byrd, your vote for Alito didn't help matters any.

That was like handing the chimperor even more power IMO.

[iconoclastNYC]

4. He's a sell out. Didn't support Kerry-Kennedy Alito filibuster.

We need to replace him with someone who stands up for America.

[Lasher]

5. Would you prefer a puke in his place?

That's the way politics works. You pick which candidate and party you prefer. I guarantee there will never be a candidate or party with which you will always agree.

Byrd has always preferred conservative US Supreme Court justices, and has never made a secret of it. Did you know that Richard Nixon offered to nominate him to the Supreme Court? That's a fact. Byrd refused, saying he could best serve the people of West Virginia and the nation by continuing in his capacity as a Senator.

Byrd didn't sell out, as you claim. His position in this has always been clear. If you have supported him in the past, and were surprised with his vote on the Alito nomination, then blame yourself.

The effort to prevent confirmation of Alito, or some other subsequent conservative nominee, was failed from the start. We need to do a better job of picking our battles. It is not helpful helps when you and others vent your frustration concerning this unsuccessful effort by defaming Senator Byrd - who has done more in one day to support the Democratic party than you will ever contribute in your whole lifetime.

[iconoclastNYC]

7. I prefer to replace him with a better Democrat

That's how primaries work.

[Lasher]

12. Thank you for the enlightenment about how primaries work.

I don't know of a better Democrat than Byrd. Billy Hendricks Jr. is running against him in the primary. Do you think Hendricks is a better Democrat? If so, why? Do you know of any other Democrat who is willing to run against Byrd in the primary?

Do you know how likely it is that Byrd will be re-elected of he wins in the primary? If we elect someone other than Byrd in the primary, what would be that Democratic candidate's chances of winning against the Republican opponent? Do you know who that Republican opponent would likely be?

With eager anticipation, I shall await further enlightenment from you.

[iconoclastNYC]

13. You DINO defenders use to say the same thing about Liberman

And lookie lookie....we have a challenger.

I'd say you were defeatist but I know that you are just a shill.

[Lasher]

21. Now I am depressed

I thought you had it all figured out, how you were going to pick a better Democrat than Byrd in the primary, and still ensure a puke would not win in the general election. I thought you were going to bless me with more enlightenment about how primary elections work. You didn't answer a single one of my questions, and I was counting on you.

I see you don't like Lieberman. You spelled his name wrong, but I know who you meant. I don't know if you have checked his voting record, but I have. It's actually pretty good, with one notable exception: He supports Dubya's war in Iraq.

That makes me think about the New York Senate race. Who are you voting for in the primary, Jonathan Tasini? :rofl:

[Frances]

6. Byrd is from West Virginia

If Byrd is replaced, it will be by a Republican.

[iconoclastNYC]

8. That's ignorant speculation.

On what do you base that?

[WI_DEM]

9. and probably one who is even more conservative than Byrd

WVA is a culturally very conservative state. We're lucky to have Byrd who has been such a strong opponent of the war representing the state in the Senate.

[iconoclastNYC]

10. Right.

Because Democrats never get elected in conservative states.

[Frances]

11. Here's my thinking

West Virginia voted Republican in the last two presidential elections. I think most people would agree that it will be very hard for a Dem to replace Byrd once Byrd retires.

[bleedingheart]

14. The Dems should have been cultivating a Democrat to run in his place

and I think they should start very soon to do this....

[Frances]

16. Sometimes I wonder about the people who think that it's easy

to elect Dems in red states. I think people who usually vote Dem are more easily persuaded to vote for Repubs than vice versa.

Maryland elected Bush clone Erhlich in 2002 in spite of my best efforts (I lived in MD then) and California elected Arnold in spite of my voting against the recall. It just isn't that easy to get the politicians you want into office.

[bleedingheart]

17. It isn't easy

and I know this from experience.

Murtha's seat here in PA is one that could easily be taken by a republican when he retires...it isn't an easy area to play too...the people are no nonsense and they really vote on gut instinct and as a result a lot of Democrats will vote for Republicans because it "feels good".....but if you piss them off...boy oh boy is it hard to make amends...

The problem is that the Democrats aren't cultivating a replacement for Byrd or even Murtha and they are going to have a very hard time replacing him plus the GOP is really targeting both our states.

[Frances]

19. When you say "the Democrats"

who do you mean? After I began volunteering in campaigns, I found out that "the Democrats" are you and me.

[bleedingheart]

20. the democratic leadership are "the Democrats"

I am refering to..

At least in our area they don't do enough to cultivate people who are really talented and would be sure winners in election. To run in state wide or congressional/senate races you have to start looking for a candidate years in advance in order to have them run the "schmooze circuit" so that they become a familiar face/name...and for us local dems you need to find the people who will back you in fundraising..etc Typically the ones who are in the position to cultivate are the elected officials and leaders within the party either at the grassroots or state level.

[bleedingheart]

15. The GOP has been spending a great deal of money in W VA

and the God, Guns and Abortion rhetoric plays really well in some areas of that state.

[Lasher]

22. Karl Rove arrived just yesterday to stink up our state

Of course, this is a big fundraising trip.

Here is the welcome more than 100 of us Democrats had ready for him:



Pukes have spent lots of money in WV, quite a bit on propping up Smelly Snore Crappytoe. There is one reason she is not running for US Senate this year: She knows she can't beat Senator Byrd. Pukes had hoped she would challenge him, and some are upset at her because she would not, so this has taken some of the wind out of the GOP sails in the state.

As it is, Smelly is running for re-election to US House seat WV-02. But this year she will face a serious contender, something to which she is not accustomed. That Democratic candidate will be either Mike Callaghan or Ritchie Robb. It is my fond hope that we Mountaineers can deliver a pickup of Smelly's House seat this year, and thereby help with the overall effort to regain control of Congress.

Democrats control our other 2 House seats, and they will easily win re-election.

It is also certain that Senator Byrd will be re-elected to his seat in the Senate, regardless of silly assertions that we should select a different Democratic candidate in the primary.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_oet&address=358x1737

[bleedingheart]

24. Byrd will win...that is a given

but I think we need to think about the future...he will retire or pass on eventually and it would be great to have another great Democrat ready to move into his seat.

[Lasher]

25. I have noted this legitimate concern elsewhere in this string

I should have said there's only two things that can prevent his re-election: If the grim reaper calls, or if his wife Irma asks him to drop out.

I have thought we would look to one of our two Democratic US House representatives, Alan Mollohan or Nick Rayhall, as a possible successor to Byrd. I believe if Senator Byrd were to unexpectedly expire or retire, our Democratic Governor Joe Manchin would probably appoint either Mollohan or Rayhall to serve out the rest of his term in office. I don't think he will ever retire unless his health strongly dictates it.

I am not at all sure that one of these gentlemen would be chosen - this is pure speculation on my part. But whoever it would be, this scenario is quite possible, and would give us the advantage of having a quasi-incumbent when Byrd's seat would again come up for election.

I have put your good question, however, to the WV Democratic party to see who, if anyone, they have in mind as a replacement. If they do, they might not want to say so, for strategy's sake.

[LittleClarkie]

18. Not a sellout. He is who he is and has always been

Sometimes he's a hero (like when he stood up against the war) and sometimes he's the villain (as with Alito) but I don't think it was a matter of "selling out".

People just ride the vote rollercoaster with the guy "He's GOOD!... He's BAD!... He's GOOD again"

People have called for Feingold's replacement for the same reason, when he's voted for nominees because he thinks a president should have on his staff the people he wants.

[Ishoutandscream2]

23. Good post. Took the words right out of my mouth

It is next to impossible to agree on everything. While the Alito situation was terrible, Byrd's stand against the war and his general dislike of the present administration has been great.