As a lifelong conservative, I won elections three times to the Mississippi Supreme Court, and I was honored to be endorsed by the Mississippi Republican Party because of my record, values and principles. Given the undeniable landscape of this year's election, I am the conservative Republican with the best chance to win in November.
The Waller campaign says voting Democrat in primaries was not an indicator of party leanings or even a faux pas. Waller's vote in statewide Democrat primaries was done so he could vote in local elections he cared about that featured Democratic candidates he valued over Republican candidates. "Bill Waller is a conservative Republican who was endorsed by the Mississippi Republican Party when he was elected to the Supreme Court," said a statement issued by the campaign. "He's voted in Republican presidential primaries to support John McCain, Mitt Romney and Donald Trump.
The endorsing groups stressed that McDaniel has proven his right-wing bona fides. "Chris McDaniel is not part of the Washington establishment and he has the courage to stand up to the big spenders in both parties," the Senate Conservatives Fund executive director said.
Cochran , mingled with about 70 donors at a reception this week at the National Republican Senatorial Committee headquarters. He suggested this summer that it might take months before he shares his plans. Asked about the attacks, Cochran's spokesman emailed: "Senator Cochran has indicated that he will determine his plans regarding the 2014 election cycle later this year."
The Tea Party-backed candidate made no mention of his own challenge to Sen. Thad Cochran. Instead, McDaniel delivered a political sermon of sorts, drawing from the scripture of the Founding Fathers to make a case for Christians to stand up and fight to reclaim America's culture and reestablish the nation's Christian foundation. He quoted an array of American figures endorsing America's Christian values and encouraging a God-fearing nation, including John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry and others.
In a media call on Wednesday with Cochran aides, an anonymous caller repeatedly asked questions about the senator's interaction with African-American voters. "If black people were harvesting cotton, why is it OK to harvest their votes?" the caller asked. Some McDaniel supporters have accused the Cochran campaign of paying African-Americans to vote for the senator in the runoff.
McDaniel: Strongly Disagree
Question topic: Judeo-Christian values established a framework of morality which permitted our system of limited government.
McDaniel: Strongly Agree.
Question topic: Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
McDaniel: I'm a Southern Baptist, saved by God's grace at the age of 13.
McDaniel has yet to concede in his primary fight with Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), despite Cochran's 7,667-vote lead in the runoff, now over a month ago.
The challenger has spent the past month poring over poll books looking for illegitimate votes and went to the state Supreme Court in pursuit of poll books without personal information removed, but was denied once before. That information, which includes birthdates, would help him evaluate whether any residents who voted in the Democratic primary came out to vote again in the Republican runoff, an action barred by Mississippi elections law.
Cochran made an aggressive play for African American Democrats in the runoff, and McDaniel's supporters believe much of Cochran's win margin is comprised of "illegitimate crossover votes."
"I'm tired of self-dealing in Jackson," Hood said. "People are more worried about paving private driveways than they are about anything else."
It is generally conceded the language was added to the 1890s Constitution by the white ruling class as a safeguard to ensure that African Americans, who were still a majority in Mississippi, would not win election to statewide office. By that time, laws also were being put in place to disenfranchise black voters and legislative districts were not based on population.
Legislation to change the Constitution so that the top vote-getter would win statewide posts is likely to die this session as it has in other sessions.
The thinking about runoffs goes like this: A black candidate in the South could easily win a multi-candidate primary, as long as they get most of the black vote, which could be as high as the mid-to-low 30s. But in a one-on-one contest, the potential to add to that total is diminished.
The Rev. Jesse Jackson, who made the abolishing runoffs a cornerstone of his unsuccessful 1984 Democratic presidential campaign, said "Historically, and in many instances today, whites support white candidate regardless of how qualified an African-American candidate is.
"Even if Mike Espy does make it to the runoff in Mississippi it is unlikely that he will win the runoff--whatever runoff system is used in Mississippi" despite having the highest percentage of African-American residents in the country at 37 percent, Jackson said.
Waller, meanwhile, has long avoided partisan politics because of his time on the Mississippi Supreme Court. He left the court in January. After announcing his candidacy last month, he's sought to portray himself as a steady, more traditional Republican candidate. He's said he's not interested in courting Trump and has a better chance of beating Democrat Jim Hood, the current attorney general, in the November election. Waller's late father served as governor from 1972 to 1976.
After the 1999 election, one of the most memorable votes in the history of the House occurred when Republican Mike Parker--who lost the popular vote--refused to concede to Musgrove in the race for governor. Musgrove won a plurality of the votes and amazingly both candidates won 61 of the state's 122 House districts. By a vote of 86 to 36 the Democratic-controlled House elected fellow Democrat Musgrove. Most argued that it only made sense that the person who won the most votes should win the Governor's Mansion.
His strategy [is] to avoid talking about serious problems that still exist in the state as doing so could jeopardize his "good body of work" argument. When he does talk policy on the trail, he touts gains made during his eight years in office such as increasing test scores and employment rates rather than forward-looking solutions.
"I think it's a pretty difficult argument to make that Mississippi isn't in far better shape today than we were eight years ago, and I think that's why you're seeing people in places like these rally behind our campaign," Reeves said. "The voters know things are better off, and they know we're headed in the right direction."
He has since continued beating that drum, invoking the names of top Washington Democrats and "out of state liberals," Antifa, Nike and Colin Kaepernick, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Bernie Sanders, former President Barack Obama and Eric Holder while boasting of his endorsement from the NRA and vowing to defend the state's new license tag.
Cochran, 75, has not said whether he will run for a seventh term next year. He has picked up his fundraising some. Cochran, who won his seat in 1978, mingled with about 70 donors at a reception this week at the National Republican Senatorial Committee headquarters, and a source in the room said he "seemed like he was running." He suggested this summer that it might take months before he shares his plans. Asked about the attacks, Cochran's spokesman emailed: "Senator Cochran has indicated that he will determine his plans regarding the 2014 election cycle later this year."
Cochran is considered the most vulnerable Republican senator in a primary this cycle; he has faced heavy attacks from national conservative groups, which point to Cochran's votes to raise the debt limit, among others, as evidence he's not conservative enough.
He received the third- lowest score on the Club for Growth's annual scorecard, released last week, and the Club has been hitting him with ads on TV and radio. His challenger, state Sen. Chris McDaniel, has the backing of most of the prominent national conservative groups.
"We had 9-11, the anthrax attack, impeachment of Clinton," Lott said. "But we managed to cut taxes, balance the budget, raise military pay."
Lott said Congress has become a mean and "dour" place, and it's affecting policy. "They don't have any fun," Lott said. "During my time in leadership I actually enjoyed it and had fun. They don't even smile any more. I had the Singing Senators quartet, and we started 'Seersucker Thursdays' so everyone would for one day look like a Southern politician," Lott said. "That's why I wore a kilt in the Senate one time--I had the worst looking legs in the Senate."
The woke, socialist, gender confused agenda that has swept through our government, its institutions, and our educational institutions must be addressed. Objective truth is not relative and the Constitution does not allow for the stripping of one individuals rights to further an agenda of another's.
All over this nation, we are bearing witness to a deluge of Gestapo like tactics being used on people who exercise their religious freedoms to speak their convictions or choose whom they do business with. It's time for those of Faith to dig in their heels and fight. If we do not, there is fast approaching a time when it will be too late. Dan Eubanks will tirelessly strive to do everything within his power to help make Mississippi a Sanctuary State for every person of Faith.
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| 2024 Presidential contenders on Principles & Values: | |||
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Candidates for President & Vice-President:
V.P.Kamala Harris (D-CA) Robert F. Kennedy Jr.(I-CA) Chase Oliver(L-GA) Dr.Jill Stein(D-MA) Former Pres.Donald Trump(R-FL) Sen.J.D.Vance(R-OH) Gov.Tim Walz(D-MN) Dr.Cornel West(I-NJ) |
2024 presidential primary contenders:
Pres.Joe_Biden(D-DE) N.D.Gov.Doug Burgum(R) N.J.Gov.Chris_Christie(R) Fla.Gov.Ron_DeSantis(R) S.C.Gov.Nikki_Haley(R) Ark.Gov.Asa_Hutchinson(R) Former V.P.Mike Pence(R-IN) U.S.Rep.Dean_Phillips(D-MN) Vivek_Ramaswamy(R-OH) S.C.Sen.Tim_Scott(R) | ||
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