Party Pooper
Kudos to the MT GOP for sticking to their rules and not allowing Lt. Gov. John Bohlinger, an elected Democrat, to vote in their Caucus on Feb. 5. Bohlinger's latest stunt is just another example of politics at its worst from the Schweitzer campaign. The Caucus hasn't been any secret - Bohlinger's known about it for months and the MT GOP has widely publicized that there were hundreds of vacant precinct positions to be filled. Bohlinger had every opportunity to qualify for one of these positions - is it any coincidence that he waited until after the Jan. 26 deadline to raise his little stink about not being allowed to participate?
As the MT GOP pointed out, to allow Bohlinger a vote would have broken several party rules - including the rule that requires Caucus voters to vote in the county in which they are registered (Bohlinger is registered in Yellowstone County but made it clear he intended to vote in Helena) plus that nagging little rule that says only Republican elected officials are eligible (Bohlinger was elected in 2004 as the Democrat Lt. Gov.). Bohlinger's contention that he still considers himself to be a Republican is moot - Supreme Court Justice Jim Rice ran as a Republican in 2004 (and probably would still say he's a Republican) but since he's a non-partisan elected official, he is not eligible for the Caucus.
The Feb. 5 Caucus is a historic event for our state, and we can't help but imagine the Democrats are a little bit jealous over the grassroots surge that the GOP has seen in recent months, having swelled the ranks of precinct captains by a reported 750. That's should give the GOP a marked advantage in the upcoming election. It's pretty transparent that Bohlinger's latest stunt was calculated solely to deflate all the positives that the GOP has experienced with the Caucus.
Jon, that's not how Republicans behave - just more proof of your deepening Democrat credentials.
Carter
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Well said. Bohlinger doesn't care about voting in the caucus. He cares about getting his name in the paper in a way that will hurt a party that doesn't want him.
This latest media stunt has been orchestrated out of the Governor's Office. You know, let's make poor little John look like the 'victim' here, being picked on by the nasty kids at the state GOP. The sad part is, it's working! I wonder when John Bohlinger is going to wake up and realize that he's being 'used'. But wait, maybe there's hope for John, under the direction of our Secretary of State Brad Johnson who's stellar political leadership skills helped put Same Day Voter Registration on the books in Montana, John can hurry up and re-register and get to vote anyway. Thanks Brad!
Kudos to Eric and the party headquarters for sticking to their guns on this one. Bollinger and his handler have gotten a lot of attention out of their cutesy, disingenuous little game. The best way to put a stop to it...is to not play along. Bollinger was elected as a democrat. Ergo, he is a democrat. He should gather up his building blocks and go play with those guys.
I'm not a party member, much less a party insider, and here's something I've wondered about that the press has never answered: How did Bohlinger get to be McCain's committee chairman in the first place? Did he contact them and offer to do the job? Or was it the other way around? Obviously, the McCain people didn't know what they were getting themselves in for. Bohlinger is about the worst "Republican" they could have gotten for the job. You'd think that if they'd contacted him and he'd really supported McCain, he would have told them that he was going to be gone from the state and that all the party regulars were unhappy with him so he'd be hurting McCain. On the other hand, if he somehow got in touch with the McCain folks to offer to "help," that would have been a pretty underhanded thing on his part.
The Missoulian weighed in on this issue Tuesday morning. They asked the question, "What does it take to be a 'true' Republican?" Along with being pretty frugal, it is relatively easy. But one thing only makes sense, if you file for an elective office you should file as a Republican. Regarding Bollinger, if Schweitzer were to resign and go away, and Bollinger were to become the governor, and he decided to run for re-election...would he file as a Republican or a Democrat? Chances are pretty good that he would have a 'D' behind his name.
John's claim about being a long time Republican rings more hollow every time he's shoved out of the governor's office to whine about his treatment by the mean ol' GOP to the media lapdogs.
The comments above about his many and frequent opportunities to have become a credentialed voter in the caucus are all true and appropriate.
I would simply add that had he been able to point to one Republican bill he supported in opposition to the Gov in either the 2005 or 2007 session, or a couple of Republican candidates he publicly and financially supported in the past few elections, we in the party might well be more sympathetic to his case. Or perhaps he could produce proof of financial contributions to the state party or local central committee - of whatever county he thinks he belongs in.
BTW - to the best of my knowledge, he doesn't live in Helena, so had he tried to vote in that caucus they would have had to decline his same day registration even - he would have had to be credentialed in Jefferson County!
Well, all I know is that John McCain decision to dump John sure showed some principle. John has always been one to stand to corruption. Remember when he brought all Jack Ambromoff's cronies before US Senate and gave 'em hell.
Iverson you sold the old man down the river...Maybe he should call Gage.
The new McCain has been one to stand up to corruption. However, the old S&L McCain was complicit in the biggest taxpayer bailout in US history. So much for the frugality Sawdust touts.