A certain overweight, perpetually bitter, former musician loves to smear Republicans as bigots. Well let’s see who was elected on Tuesday on the GOP ticket. Someone needs to watch what he says, and let us not forget we had previously elected Bobby Jindal (Governor of Louisiana). With us conservatives, character counts! Let us also not forget Van Tran who came here as a young boy as one of the Vietnamese boat people fleeing repression in 1975, who sadly failed to unseat the bigoted Loretta Sanchez in California.
hat tips – Rodan and “m”
by Guy Benson
After the 2006 midterm elections, many in the chattering class declared the GOP had been reduced to a “regional party” – white, male, and Southern. Since President Obama’s election in 2008, the Leftist mainstream media has worked diligently to paint much of the opposition to his policies as the bigoted and deranged spasms of a marginalized, racist conservative base. The tea party movement represented “racism, straight up” according to political philosopher Janeane Garofalo. Maureen Dowd, Frank Rich, Eugene Robinson, and Bob Herbert practically took turns writing weekly columns slandering conservatives using flagrant race baiting, including an embarrassing election-day screed from Robinson. Chris Matthews complained that the political Right was “monochromatic” for his taste. And the Democrat Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid wondered aloud how anyone of Hispanic descent could possibly be a Republican. Then came the 2010 elections.
The midterm election not only busted the myth that the GOP is a regional party – seeing Republican gains in the Northeast, Midwest and West – it also puts to rest the notion that Republicans are a lily white party whose base won’t embrace a diverse slate of candidates. In eight prominent contests, Republicans nominated and elected excellent candidates and fine conservatives who also happen to be people of color:
Nevada Governor – In a deliciously ironic twist, a Hispanic Republican – Brian Sandoval – defeated Rory Reid, son of the very man who suggested that people like Sandoval don’t, or shouldn’t, exist. It wasn’t close: Sandoval dominated Rory Reid and secured a double-digit victory.
New Mexico Governor – Suzanna Martinez became the first female Hispanic Governor of a US State in history – from either party. She ran a disciplined campaign, torched her opponent with one of the most devastating attack ads of the entire cycle, and won by a substantial 8-point margin.
South Carolina Governor – Overcoming nasty rumors about her religion and alleged marital infidelity, Nikki Haley became America’s second Indian-American Governor. (The other, of course, is Louisiana’s Bobby Jindal, also a Republican).
SC-01 – After JC Watts retired from Congress in 2002, the House Republican caucus lost its lone African-American member. Until last night. Republican Tim Scott, a strong conservative, won the open seat in South Carolina’s first Congressional District. He pulled off this feat in the deep south, and did so in a romp – winning by approximately 35 percentage points.
FL-22 – Another black Republican was elected to the House last night: Conservative superstar Col. Allen West. The Iraq War hero handily unseated Rep. Ron Klein, who threw the kitchen sink at West, but to no avail. When this race was called, supposedly “racist” tea partiers and grassroots conservatives rejoiced across the country.
WA-03 – Jaime Herrera chose not to highlight her Hispanic origins in her battle against Democrat Denny Heck for the open seat in Washington’s third Congressional District. She ran a very strong, issues-based campaign, and won comfortably.
Read the rest here: Racist Tea party? GOP Welcomes Diverse Cast of newcomers
Hey, even the Associated Press has noticed. The reporter correctly points out that the minority candidates who have won for the GOP did so in majority white districts. Tim Scott who won in South Carolina was elected in a district that is 70% white. Again, we conservatives care about issues, not your race, sexuality, or ethnic origin.
The Republican wave produced groundbreaking results for minority candidates, from Latina and Indian-American governors to a pair of black congressmen from the Deep South.
In New Mexico, Susana Martinez was elected as the nation’s first female Hispanic governor. Nikki Haley, whose parents were born in India, will be the first woman governor in South Carolina, and Brian Sandoval became Nevada’s first Hispanic governor.
Insurance company owner Tim Scott will be the first black Republican congressman from South Carolina since Reconstruction, after easily winning in his conservative district. Scott, a 45-year-old state representative, earned a primary victory over the son of the one-time segregationist U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond.
In Florida, veteran Allen West ousted a two-term Democrat to a House seat. He is the first black Republican elected to Congress from Florida since a former slave served two terms in the 1870s.
The last black Republican in Congress was J.C. Watts of Oklahoma. He left office in 2003. There were 42 black Democrats in Congress this term.
Latino Republicans defeated incumbent House Democrats. In Texas, Francisco Canseco beat Rep. Ciro Rodriguez. Jamie Herrera became the first Latino congressman from Washington state.
Opposition to President Barack Obama’s agenda fueled Tuesday’s GOP surge, and many also connected Obama to the rise of minority GOP candidates.
“Color is becoming less of an issue,” said Richard Ivory, a black Republican political consultant and founder of hiphoprepublican.com. “There was a time when the white electorate saw race first and made judgments based on this alone. While black Republicans and Obama disagree ideologically, both are candidates whose message surpassed pigment.”
Mark Sawyer, a UCLA professor and director of the university’s Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity and Politics, said Obama’s election pushed the GOP to adjust to a more diverse electorate by seeking out minority candidates.
But he noted that almost all the victorious GOP minorities were elected in majority-white areas and opposed measures such as comprehensive immigration reform that are favored by many Latinos and blacks.
Read the rest: Minorities Ride GOP Wave To Groundbreaking Wins
Addendum: Jewish Republicans who won election yesterday
Eric Cantor, U.S. House (VA-7) – the highest ranking Jewish member of the U.S. House of Representatives in history
Tom Horne, Arizona State Attorney General
Sam Olens, Georgia State Attorney General
Josh Mandel, Ohio State Treasurer
Ellyn Setnor Bogdanoff, Florida State Senate (District 25)
Dan Lederman, South Dakota State Senate (District 16)
Stan Adelstein, South Dakota State Senate (District 32)
Florence Shapiro, Texas State Senate (District 8)
Linda Halderman, California State Assembly (District 29)
Sid Mathias, Illinois State Assembly (District 53)
Joe Straus, Texas State House (District 121)
Dave Greenspan, Ohio, Cuyahoga County Council (District 1)
Dan Patlak, Illinois, Cook County Tax Appeals Board
Georgia Hiller, Florida, Collier County Commissioner (District 2 )
Rodan Update: 3 Other Hispanics that won on Tuesday. Quico Canseco in TX-23, Bill Flores in TX-17 and Raul Labrador in Idaho-1.
Tags: Guy Benson, NPR
