New Poll Shows Mike Protack is Republican Favorite for County Council President

Founders Values is a well known Delaware educational group that focuses on the founding principles of our nation. They strive to educate the electorate and children on those founding principles and on the Constitution and related documents. They have been active for about 18 months and they have organized many events including a number of TEA Parties across the state. Their members have been an active force in the recent political landscape in Delaware and have even impacted legislation in the state and nationally.

In June of 2010, Founders Values administered a survey of likely Republican voters in the U.S. Senate primary between longtime Congressman Mike Castle and Conservative activist Christine O'Donnell. The poll found O'Donnell leading Castle by nearly a 3-1 margin. It was the first (and almost only) poll that found O'Donnell in the lead among likely voters until her upset victory on Sept. 14th. While laughed at initially by local media personalities, the poll proved to foreshadow the results of the Republican Primary.

The group obtained the names of the two front runners for the Republican nomination in the Special Election for New Castle County President. Delta airlines pilot Mike Protack, who ran for Governor in 2008 and former State Representative Tom Kovach are the names who have been mentioned as the leaders for the spot. Protack ran unsuccessfully in a Republican Primary in 2006 against eventual nominee Jan Ting who faced Tom Carper(Christine O'Donnell was also a write in candidate in that Primary Election). He then ran in the GOP Primary for Gov. in 2008 but left the race to run as the Independent candidate. Protack ran in 2010 for the 3rd County Council seat but faced a primary opponent in Janet Kilpatrick who was seen as Mike Castle's personal nominee to oppose Protack who was backed by the TEA Parties. Kovach ran in the 2008 special for the 6th district Representative seat in Brandywine Hundred. He narrowly defeated the Democrat (by just over 100 votes) in the race but lost this year to Debra Heffernan.

The telephone poll conducted on 11/12 & 11/13 and was a survey of more than 300 likely Republican voters in the New Castle County Council President special election. 60% of the respondents chose Protack where just 40% chose Kovach as their desired nominee. See the Founders Values Press Release for more information.

Founders Values Executive Director Jon Sherman said "We believe that these poll numbers represent the mood of the Republican electorate and we hope that the leaders of both parties will understand that this is an important process that should be left to the people to decide."

Mike Protack has been tied to the Patriot movement in recent years. He was an early supporter and helped to organize the Wilmington TEA Party events in 2009 and 2010 and earned the endorsement of the conservative group Common Sense Communities Society in the Republican Primary. He has a very good name recognition and being a card carrying union member helps him with with a voting bloc that does not often fair well for Republicans. He has been plagued by the notion that he is a perennial candidate for one office or another but even that stigma appears not to hurt him among members of his party when compared to Mr. Kovach.

Tom Kovach is a contrast to Protack as he is the hand picked candidate by Mike Castle. Castle is the long term Congressman who was ousted by Christine O'Donnell and the TEA Party groups in Delaware. Castle and Kovach all but endorsed Chris Coons and publicly were quite critical of O'Donnell and her "TEA Party supporters" despite the fact that those supporters contained a majority of the Republican Party voters. Kovach is rumored to be a supporter of the policies of Chris Coons including the Stoltz development of the Barley Mill Plaza location that citizens group CRG has been a staunch opponent to. This could pose problems for Kovach when it comes to raising money and garnering votes from the Greenville and Elsemere areas affected by the development. Many Republicans believe that Congressman Castle has waged his own personal war against the majority of party voters who ousted him in September and considers those who supported O'Donnell his enemies. He has built a coalition of current and former legislators and party officials and some see Mr. Kovach, a staunch supporter of Castle, as yet another example of Castle's personal war with the electorate.

Only time will tell who the Republicans support. What's a near certainty is that the Democrats will choose AFL-CIO Vice President Tim Sheldon. He will be backed by Paul Clark and Clark's wife Pam Scott who is an attorney with Stoltz in the Barley Mill case. Though Sheldon, the Democrat would be the party's first choice, it's not inconceivable that they could work out a deal with Castle to bring in the more moderate Kovach as Council President. If Protack or a more conservative candidate were to get the nod, it's likely that they would face off in a heated blitz with Sheldon. The date of the election has not yet been set but the Democrats are due to announce their choice this coming Friday.

O'Donnell - Witches, Sex and Silliness

I've seen the Mainstream Media sources, from FoxNews to CNN and MSNBC spending an exorbitant amount of time covering some clips from late night nobody Bill Mahr's former show "Politically Incorrect with Bill Mahr" and from MTV (what news sources! *please note the sarcasm*). Most of these clips come from the mid - late 90's when O'Donnell was in her 20's. O'Donnell has said, when asked at a debate at a Jewish Community Center in Delaware, that the statements on sex and masturbation were made when she was in her early 20's and perhaps overly excited in her youth about her new faith. She has said that her faith has matured now and that she sees sex as a personal matter.

Her statements about witchcraft made to Bill Mahr on his show in the late 90's have recently become news after Mahr began a public blackmail campaign against O'Donnell. Mahr has said that he would release 1 tape per week until O'Donnell agrees to come on his show. Interestingly enough, Mahr and his friends John Stewart and Steven Colbert who are all good for a laugh but who can't be considered "serious" commentators are rumored to be involved in a "Million Moderate March" this October right before the November elections. Ok, I have to pause for a second to make this point, it's biased so I may lose you here but... I doubt I'll be proven wrong about this but, I can't see how Mahr, Colbert and Stewart could get 15 people in a coffee shop to all buy a cup of coffee, much less rally a million people on the mall. In fact, I predict that all three hosts are likely to draw less than 1 10th of the number of Americans who showed up at the Glenn Beck "Restoring Honor Rally" on Aug. 28th in D.C. That event drew between 500,000 and 750,000 Americans from all over the country. I challenge these Three Musketeers to get even 50,000 people to slither over to their debacle on the mall.

So what does all this mean? Well, it means that the MSM and the Delaware Democrat Party either didn't get the memo or just don't get it period. My guess is that it's a little bit of both. The News Journal, specifically liberal hit piece writer Ginger Gibson, spent the majority of the campaign peddling petty garbage stories to attempt to eat away at O'Donnell's credibility. They have paid a dear price for their disgusting display of hit journalism and yet the mainstream media is all too happy to walk in the same footsteps. Perhaps MSNBC and CNN have simply lost so many viewers that the don't care any longer how many more they lose. The mainstream media often beats it's head against the wall so that is less surprising than the maneuvers that the Delaware liberal/progressive crowd have taken. Consistently peddling the narrative that Christine is flawed because she believes in God, has had the same financial problems as the majority of it's own party members and has "acted stupidly" in the past. Specifically it is interesting that the focus of late has been on her mid 90's "dabbling in witchcraft".

Let's first point out the TV series' "Charmed" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". There is also the movie "The Craft". These TV shows and movies came out in the 90's because at that time there was a LARGE sect of young people who became fascinated by these subcultures. Many of us, especially liberals, became enamoured with the characters and the romantic natures of them. So she dated a witch...well guess what folks, I played a Vampire role playing game called "Vampire: The Masquerade" for over a year. I suspect there are many others who did as well. So she experimented with other ideas. Clinton smoked pot...despite his claims the man likely STILL inhales and is suspected of womanizing with countless women and yet the left loves him. So why the hate for O'Donnell? Because, like Palin, Bachman and Haley...she's a conservative woman which means she MUST be a radical fringe right winger.

The bottom line is that just like when Mike Castle went negative on O'Donnell, the attacks from the left only draw voters to O'Donnell. The assaults are part of an old brand of politics where the idea was to see who could destroy who faster. The American people have woken up and they're looking for more than the attack politics of the past. They are looking for who has a record of supporting policies that they agree with and who has the best ideas going forward. So to Bill Mahr and his Comedy Central goons I say, have at it. Attack away. Sticks and Stones may break her bones, but words will never hurt her. And to Chris Coons and his Progressive friends, be careful when casting stones. Your homes are made of glass made in Marxist communes.

In the end I guess the election will come down to an ex-Witch vs. a Marxist.

Governor Christie...Seriously?

So you said in your Weekly Standard video endorsement of Mike Castle (RINO-DE) that

"Mike understands that our nation's most urgent priority is the economy and that
the path to restoring America's prosperity requires making tough, responsible
decisions," said Governor Christie. "He is the strong voice that the people of
Delaware need in the Senate to get our fiscal house back in order and get
Americans back to work."

Really? I mean, have you even had a staffer SNIFF Congressman Castle's record or are you already willing to sell out those conservative values that got you elected? Here's why I ask that question.

I thought, maybe I'm WRONG about Congressman Castle. Maybe he IS a budget hawk. This is what I found:

FACT - Castle voted for TARP (the $700 Billion bailout of the financial industry in 2008

FACT - In 2008 the American Conservative Union and Club for Growth (Fiscal conservatism) rated Mike Castle at 28% and 26% respectively.

FACT - Castle voted FOR the Auto-bailout that resulted in GM being owned by the unions and taxpayers

FACT - American for Fair Taxation rated Mike Castle as a -1 against the FairTax measure

FACT - Castle Voted FOR permanently raising taxes on businesses

FACT - In 2008 the National Tax Payers Union gave Congressman Castle a D rating

FACT - Voted AGAINST making the Bush tax cuts permanent, capping discretionary spending at $973 billion and imposing a moratorium on earmarks

FACT - Congressman Castle supported the interests of the National Small Business Association 60 percent of the time from 2007-2008

FACT - Castle voted FOR the Obama Omnibus spending bill that increased spending 8% on TOP of the Stimulus packages

So again Gov. Christie, where is your consistency? Where is your intellectual HONESTY? Then again, I did find this interesting tidbit. Governor Christie plans to use Cap and Trade funds to pay down the New Jersey debt. This story cites his plan to do it using the state money. Why not also work to pass national cap and trade legislation so he can pump even MORE money into his scheme? Who better to support for U.S. Senate and to ensure Cap and Trade passage than the man who already voted for it in the U.S. House, Congressman Mike Castle? I guess the Constitution, limited government and lower taxes only matter to Gov. Christie when he needs votes.

O'Donnell picks up two more endorsements

First, here is a press release from the O'Donnell campaign that proclaims the endorsement of the Family Research Council PAC (FRC) which endorses conservative candidates across the country and who generally save their endorsements for those candidates who they feel stand an excellent chance of winning.

FRC Action PAC Endorses Christine O'Donnell for Senate
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Family Research Council Action PAC is endorsing Christine O'Donnell from the state of Delaware for the Senate seat vacated by Vice President Joe Biden.
Also running in the primary to be held on September 14 is one of the most pro-abortion members of Congress ever to serve, Mike Castle, the key sponsor of a destructive embryonic stem cell research bill favoring the use of human embryos for experimentation. Congressman Castle has a 75 percent positive rating from the largest pro-abortion organization in the world, Planned Parenthood. He has a zero percent rating in FRC Action's annual scorecard.

"The Republican establishment might think they are backing a winner in Mike Castle, but they are only backing another Arlen Specter or Charlie Crist," said Tony Perkins, Chairman of the Family Research Council Action PAC. "We are proud of Christine O'Donnell for stepping into the race and challenging the candidate who has stood against life and the family consistently in his career on Capitol Hill. We will support her courageous effort every step of the way," concluded Perkins.
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FRC Action PAC is the political action committee connected to FRC Action, a 501(c)(4) membership organization. FRC Action is the legislative advocacy arm of the Family Research Council, a 501(c)(3) organization.

Paid for by Family Research Council Action PAC (www.frcactionpac.org) and not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.

But the news doesn't stop there for Christine. Later in the day the Independence Hall T.E.A. Party Association released the following press release.

August 11, 2010


Dear Friends,

On Sunday (August 8), the Independence Hall Tea Party PAC Board of Directors unanimously voted to endorse Christine O'Donnell (R-DE) for the US Senate Seat left vacant by Vice President Joe Biden.

Like PAC endorsed candidate Anna Little (R-NJ), Christine O'Donnell clearly articulates the values of our organization--limited government, lower taxes, and free enterprise--in a way that makes us proud.

Like Anna Little, Christine O'Donnell is very capable of pulling off an upset primary win. O'Donnell will face Congressman Mike Castle (R-DE) in Delaware's September 14 Republican primary. O'Donnell is already polling ahead of her likely Democratic opponent in the general election.

If O'Donnell wins the general election, she'll be sworn in November 3rd and will take part in the lame duck session of the 111th Congress. Needless to say,
O'Donnell's votes, unlike that of her primary opponent, Mike Castle, will be reliable in stoppping the Obama agenda.

Independence Hall Tea Party PAC Executive Board

I'd like to as Miss Stephanie Hansen if she feels that the IHTPA or FRC endorsements are "like an endorsement from the Madhatter" as she said about the endorsement from the T.E.A. Party Express on WHYY. If you haven't checked out O'Donnell's campaign website I suggest you do so. It's not too late to through a few bucks her way, volunteer with her campaign or to tell your friends why she is the best candidate to help save America.

*UPDATE*
Christine O'Donnell has just recieved the endorsement from the Gun Owners of America association. Here is their press release:

August 2010

Gun Owners of America Political Victory Fund is pleased to endorse Christine O’Donnell for U.S. Senate in the September 14 Republican primary.

Christine’s commitment to the right to keep and bear arms is unwavering. She understands that gun prohibitions turn law-abiding citizens into easier targets for violent criminals.

Christine O’Donnell respects the Constitution and will not support any laws that will disarm law-abiding American citizens.

The contrast between Christine and her opponent could not be clearer, as she is running against the most anti-gun Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Mike Castle has been in the U.S. House since 1993, and the record he has complied voting against your gun rights could fill volumes. In his time in the House, Castle has voted:

* To allow the FBI to keep the names of lawful gun purchasers for months, effectively creating a registration list of gun owners;

* Against arming commercial airline pilots in defense of terrorism;

* For so-called campaign finance reform, which limits the ability of groups like GOA to communicate with the voting public about congressional legislation;

* Against repealing the gun ban in Washington, D.C.; and,

* Against repealing the gun ban on National Park Service land.

Mike Castle has not only voted consistently against your Second Amendment rights—he is an anti-gun leader as well. In 2004, Castle urged then-Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert to extend the Clinton ban on semi-automatic firearms. Castle even introduced his own legislation to extend the gun ban for an additional ten years.

In the current session of Congress, Castle has authored a bill that will regulate gun shows out of existence. His legislation is cosponsored by over one hundred Democrats who are F-rated on gun issues.

This is a bill that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi would love to pass. And if he were elected to the U.S. Senate, you can be sure that Mike Castle would team up with his old buddy from New York—Sen. Chuck Schumer—to push even more gun control.

Simply put, were it left up to Mike Castle the Second Amendment would be completely abolished.

Gun Owners of America Political Victory Fund is working to keep this gun banner out of the U.S. Senate, and we hope you will join us.

Christine O’Donnell will stand up to the anti-gun leadership in the Senate. She will oppose any new anti-gun legislation, and work to repeal unconstitutional gun laws already in place.

On behalf of Gun Owners of America Political Victory Fund, I urge you stand with Christine O’Donnell for Senate.

You can visit Christine on the web at http://www.christineodonnell.com to make a contribution to her campaign.

And please, make sure all your contacts know about the importance of this race and remember to vote.

It is time for a new way of thinking in Washington. We need legislators who respect our Constitutional liberties and who will stand up to anti-gun Senators like Schumer, Lautenberg and Feinstein.

Gun Owners of America Political Victory Fund urges all voters who support the right to keep and bear arms to vote for Christine O’Donnell for U.S. Senate in the September 14 Republican primary.

Thank you for your support if Gun Owners of America

Sincerely,

Tim Macy
Vice Chairman

P.S.—Unfortunately, the Republican establishment in Washington is supporting anti-gunner Mike Castle. This makes it all the more important for gun owners to stand with Christine O’Donnell for Senate.

Free Speech Now Under Attack by Congressman Castle

H.R. 5175 is now being pushed through the house. This is the bill co-written by Delaware's own Mike Castle which is intended to reverse the Supreme Court decision from earlier this year that upheld that per the First Amendment's Freedom of Speech clause, government has no business regulating political speech. Those opposed to the ruling said it would flood politics with corporate dollars which would of course dilute the all powerful Union money and of course even out the system and allow EVERYONE a voice. Progressives and their union friends can't have that now can they?

Once again Congressman Castle has his heart in the right place with this bill but he overreaches again with his Progressive friends in Congress. The bill seeks to prohibit government contractors and those negotiating for government contracts from participating in electioneering on behalf of candidates and/or parties. The question is, would this include the unions like SEIU, AFSCME and the AFL-CIO? Would the unions who currently hold government contracts be excluded from the bill? According to the Campaign for Liberty, thanks to the NRA's sweetheart deal that provides "parity" across ideological lines, the answer is yes. Organizations with more than 1 million members across all 50 states and who have been around for more than 10 years would be exempt from this provision. Why not just say no to everyone regardless of size if they have a government contract? Also, why does the bill limit the size of the contract to to above $7,000,000 taxpayer dollars in order to qualify for these rules? If you really want to stop these expenditures by government contractors why don't we stop them all regardless of the size of the contract?

The bill also stops foreign business owners from influencing elections. I haven't read anything in the bill relating to this condition that I do not think is fair. There's no reason foreign nationals should be influencing American elections.

The next section details coordinated campaign communications. This portion of the bill explains that American groups/corporations/unions cannot coordinate their messages with the political campaigns. The bill states that it stops donors from evading “contribution limits by making campaign expenditures which, while technically qualifying as independent expenditures under law, are for all relevant purposes coordinated with candidates and political parties and thus raise the potential for corruption or the appearance of corruption". Someone should talk to SEIU and Barack Obama about that. I guess that means no more block walking with their union shirts on?

The next section mandates that all persons/corporations who make independent expenditures exceeding $10,000 must file an electronic report which will be made public. Corporations must also release the individual names of their employees who contribute to 3rd party funds that are used to make independent political expenditures. The bill further goes on to mandate that companies use specific types of their own funds for candidate assistance and even suggests that they should use a separate bank account.

Disclosure must include the name of the organization, the top funder (if an individual) or the top 5 funders if a group. Each must make a statement authorizing the message.

As usual, government's solution to the problem is to stand on liberty's throat. What we need in the bill is the following AND ONLY THE FOLLOWING:
1.) It must prohibit active government contractors and those negotiating for contracts(including labor unions) from engaging in electioneering.
2.) It must stop majority owned foreign corporations and foreign nationals from engaging in electioneering or contributing to political segregated funds.
3.) It must mandate full disclosure of each organizations total expenditures per candidate and mandate that ever political advertisement contain a full disclosure of the core group that funds it. (this means if the ad is placed by "Working Families for Skunks and Possums" which is funded by ACORN...ACORN must be identified as the funding group)

Delaware Minor Parties Score Major Victory Over the Machine

The minor parties in the State of Delaware deserve a huge pat on the back for working together against an oppressive squeeze tactic. Back in 2009 Delaware certified and ballot qualified all major and minor parties in accordance with the agreed upon guidelines at that time. Minor parties then were required to have no less than ~350 registrants to be considered "ballot qualified" provided they could come up with the required fees, etc.

In 2010, the Delaware Department of Elections (specifically Director Elaine Manlove) asked the Delaware legislature to draft a bill that would double the size and scope of minor party membership for ballot qualification to more than 700 members. That meant that parties like the Constitution Party, Working Families Party and even Delaware's own "Blue Enigma" Party were in jeopardy of losing their ballot qualifications and by extension and exclusively third party candidates would lose the opportunity to run for office, despite any money raised/spent since 2009. The bill (HB245) was rushed through the General Assembly and signed by Markell. There was one little problem.

The Constitution Party wasn't going to back down from the machine. They worked with other minor parties in Delaware to come up with a coalition across party lines to fight back against the law that by all designs appeared to be changing the rules in the middle of the game. Earl Lofland and Pell Sherman led the fight against Dover's attacks and mounted a legal challenge. The State of Delaware Attorney General's office investigated the law and it's implications. Deputy AG Ann Wolfolk returned a suggestion last week that the Delaware Department of Elections contact the state legislature and ask them to delay the portion of HB245 pertaining to minor parties ballot qualifications until AFTER the 2010 general election in November. The AG's office understood that both morally and legally, changing the rules in the middle of the game is wrong. Legally the state (therefore the Department of Elections) would likely lose a court challenge by the Constitution Party and be forced to pay costs, damages and more to the minor parties. Manlove has since asked the legislature to write and quickly pass said bill to ensure that it is protected against legal action.

Thank you Earl Lofland and Pell Sherman (as well as others from many other minor parties who stood with Earl and Pell) for your hard work and dedication to fighting for what is right and just.

Mike Castle - Fiscal Responsibility Fact Check

On his website Mike Castle claims to be Fiscally Responsible. I decided to do some Fact checking. I thought, maybe I'm WRONG about Congressman Castle. Maybe he IS a budget hawk. This is what I found:
FACT - Castle voted for TARP (the $700 Billion bailout of the financial industry in 2008
FACT - In 2008 the American Conservative Union and Club for Growth (Fiscal conservatism) rated Mike Castle at 28% and 26% respectively.
FACT - Castle voted FOR the Auto-bailout that resulted in GM being owned by the unions and taxpayers
FACT - American for Fair Taxation rated Mike Castle as a -1 against the FairTax measure
FACT - Castle Voted FOR permanently raising taxes on businesses
FACT - In 2008 the National Tax Payers Union gave Congressman Castle a D rating
FACT - AGAINST making the Bush tax cuts permanent, capping discretionary spending at $973 billion and imposing a moratorium on earmarks
FACT - Congressman Castle supported the interests of the National Small Business Association 60 percent of the time from 2007-2008
FACT - Castle voted FOR the Obama Omnibus spending bill that increased spending 8% on TOP of the Stimulus packages

Castle's website states:

Economic Stimulus - Mike Castle has supported the federal initiative to return millions of taxpayer dollars back to individuals and families, spur business investment, and expand refinance options for homeowners.

The $787 Billion stimulus package (which is projected to cost $3.27 Trillion) has resulted in $514, 012, 482.38 in Delaware dollars or put another way 6 one hundredths of one percent of the total stimulus package (assuming $787 Billion is correct). The Stimulus package has resulted in 1,174 jobs gained however, by December of 2009 Delaware had lost 11,400 jobs which resulted in a net loss of 10,226 jobs. Home foreclosure filings are still averaging 13 per day.

The website also states:

Financial Services Committee: Mike Castle serves on the House Committee on
Financial Services, which has jurisdiction over banking and the securities and
insurance industries. In this capacity, he has worked to ensure the viability of
low income housing programs and has introduced legislation to shield consumers
from identity theft.

This committee failed to stop Fannie and Freddie from bringing down the entire national housing system, failed to properly regulate and evaluate the banking industry and is largely responsible for the financial services bailouts (which Castle voted for).

Finally, Castle's website states:

Budget Reform: One of the reasons Mike Castle first ran for the United States
Congress was to bring to the federal government the same principles of fiscal
responsibility that he practiced as Governor of Delaware. Castle has fought for
solid budget reforms in Washington, including a presidential line item veto,
rainy day accounts, pay as you go for both tax cuts and spending, and a
no-excuses balanced budget process.

Despite this statement Mike Castle has voted against PAYGO (pay-as-you-go) amendments. The most recent of which was on February 14th 2010. He has a 2008 rating of 26% from the Club for Growth and has voted AGAINST making the Bush tax cuts permanent, capping discretionary spending and imposing a moratorium on earmarks 3 times since 2005. He's also voted FOR Cap and Trade, the auto bailouts, cash for clunkers, the 2008 stimulus package, the Omnibus spending bill (increased federal spending 8% ABOVE stimulus package) and believes that Social Security works relatively well despite the fact that it owes more than $14 TRILLION in unfunded liabilities and is the second largest budget item in federal spending (2nd only to Medicare/Medicaid which he has also praised).

Congressman Castle is CLEARLY not fiscally responsible with the people's money. He has time and again voted in ways that go against what is "fiscally responsible". His votes tend to contradict his campaign promises in the area of fiscal responsibility.

2010 GOP State Convention Review

This years convention (I am told) was the largest turn out in many years and it showed. Caucuses were squeezed into hallways and small conference rooms that bulged with the weight of establishment Republicans and a few T.E.A. party members. Of course the stalwarts were there but interestingly enough some of the MAJOR players in the GOP remained "sticker neutral" (meaning they backed none of the candidates who were competing for office). THAT above any other fact shows that beneath the GOP leadership's cries for unity is a deep division amongst the brightest budding stars and the dimming party elites. A new era is about to begin within the GOP and this year's primary election could be the catalyst for it.

There were two contended nominations at this years convention

The first was for the people's United States Senate seat formerly held by Joe Biden. The Delaware GOP had decided that Mike Castle would be the establishment candidate and Christine O'Donnell had sought T.E.A. Party support. I was honored, as a T.E.A. Party leader to be asked to nominate Christine. I began by speaking about why we have debates in politics and why it is healthy. I also talked about James Madison who is not only the "Father of the Constitution" and our 4th President but also the "Father of Partisanship". Having served his constituents as both a Federalist (when he wrote the Constitution) and later as an Anti-Federalist (fighting against Hamilton's banking system), Madison understood the need for the parties (or factions as he called them) to present clear differences to the voters and to force them to pick a side. I argued that Congressman Mike Castle and challenger Christine O'Donnell couldn't be more different and I pointed to many of Castle's liberal votes as proof. During my nominating speech Castle's supporters (who weren't even delegates) got up and began handing out campaign materials. Following my speech, Diane Hernandez from Smart Girl Politics took to the stage and seconded my nomination of Christine. During her speech the National Committee Woman Priscilla Rakestraw made it a point to heckle her from the floor. The big boo's came when Jon Sherman took the stage and pronounced Mike Castle "the Arlen Specter of Delaware".

In fact, we T.E.A. baggin rednecks elicited such fear from Castle and his staff that they brought in the big guns. Castle's nominating speech was given by former Governor and Delaware GOP idol Pete DuPont (who incidentally spoke at the Wilmington T.E.A. Party rally exactly 1 month prior). There were two other speakers that seconded his nomination. One was a woman whose name I can't remember and the other is Sussex County Senator Joe Booth (who it is said will face Eric Bodenwieser (T.E.A. Party activist) in a primary and whose primary win was erroneously attributed to Castle's support when in reality it belongs to the hundreds of T.E.A. Party goers who made the rounds on Joe's behalf...thanks Joe). The woman whose name I cannot remember is only memorable for her unremarkable quotation of a founding father. Her quote came from Henry Clay and was obviously a Castle team members answer to my Madison laced speech. The problem with this is that Madison is both the "Father of the Constitution" and our 4th President whereas Henry Clay is known as "The Great Compromiser" who authored the Missouri Compromise in 1820 which allowed the sinful excersise of slavery to continue in Missouri and other states south of the 36th parallel. When Clay was appointed Secretary of State, his maneuver which had won John Quincy Adams the election, was called a "corrupt bargain" by many of Jackson's supporters and tarnished Clay's reputation. Finally, it was also mentioned that Mike Castle is the 5th Great Grandson of Benjamin Franklin who referred to himself as "an extreme moderate" (just watch "John Adams") and who was a great political mind if not the most honest of all the founding fathers.

In the end Castle also broke out the entire Dover High School Marching Band complete with school owned (and taxpayer funded) instruments, Mike Castle 2010 T-Shirts and "Dover High School Marching Band" tuba covers. Now, I'm not a lawyer but I'm pretty sure there is an issue with that.

So here are your Dover High tax dollars at work.

Are they allowed to wear those shirts?

But I digress, it took a band, a theme song, a sitting State Senator and the most beloved former Republican governor in state history to combat Chistine O'Donnell and her band of merry T.E.A. Party leaders. The final outcome? Despite the complete chaos that erupted with Mike Castle being NOMINATED, Christine O'Donnell still carried 30% of the room. 30% of the GOP establishment (that's who generally attends these conventions)jumped behind Christine. Couple that with the fact that key players (not the tools who do as they are told) but real leaders showed the party their true feelings by not falling in line and refused to show allegiance to the two "party nominees" and you have a convention that was all BUT full of "unity".

In the other contested race (for U.S. Congressman) Michele Rollins took 70% of the GOP establishment vote in a second ballot after Kevin Wade was removed from consideration. So Glen Urquhart and Christine O'Donnell each carried 30% of the GOP establishment Republicans. Interesting considering that these two candidates also stand for the "T.E.A. Party" values that 70% of regular Americans (primary and general election voters) support. Can Glen and Christine carry that message to the regular folks and win the day in September? Absolutely and with the O'Donnell campaign receiving attention from Senator Jim DeMint, Tony Perkins from the Family Research Council and Sarah and Todd Palin as well as Doug Hoffman (the man who discovered Doug is now the man behind the O'Donnell campaign) she is poised to begin her fight from 30% (as opposed to 0% where most candidates start). Glen certainly has the money and message but has thus far lacked the ability to reach out to local grassroots groups and to align with other T.E.A. Party candidates to present a more united front in the upcoming elections. He would do well to make such an effort.

In closing, the convention out come was a surprise to most of us realistic attendees. Castle and Rollins beat the drums and dumped their warchests and stomped the competition. With that said, both Urquhart and O'Donnell took home 30% of the vote from the GOP establishment and THAT is a major accomplishment that bodes well for them in September.

So here's the thing...

I'm all for offshore drilling, on shore drilling, ANWR drilling and clean coal manufacturing. I'm for natural gas, propane gas, oil, solar, wind, nuclear, geothermal, etc. Heck, I heard an interesting proposal for capturing the methane animals and humans release into the atmosphere via flatulence and turning THAT into energy. I'm also a conservationist, I want to see the earth repaired where we scar it and I want to ensure that we have places all over the globe where people can commune and live amongst nature. I'm NOT an Earth killer as the looney left generally labels us "Conservative TEA Baggers".

I felt the need to state the above because I do have a problem with the gulf oil spill and the subsequent "clean up attempts". The problem is this, if you're going to try something new, I understand accidents happen but shouldn't you have worked out the kinks? Shouldn't you be prepared for...I don't know a MASSIVE oil leak that spews thousands of barrels of oil a day into the waters? I mean it seems to me like these oil companies (I'm going to pick on BP through the rest of this) should have worked witht he Federal Government to develop a plan in the event that could stop this kind of thing. For instance, let's say a terrorist decided to puncture that tube and thereby cause a disaster, it's the Federal Government's responsibility to be prepared for that (Common Defense of the nation). It's also BP's responsibility to ensure the safety and security of the rig. So, folks can we stop pointing fingers now and get this damn thing cleaned up before it destroys us?

In the future, these plans need to be worked out BEFORE you sink a hole in the ground. I KNOW we need the oil but I can deal with not having it while you make sure it's safe to do it and make sure that the delivery system is secured. Hey, we could put many, many Americans back to work by employing them in the service of securing and monitoring these pipes. Here is a link to the full story from FOX News.