Disgraceful Attempts Revealed For Chuck Smith Coup in VA-03
By D.J. Spiker | Friday, April 9th, 2010 | Politics[Update] Received a phone call from Coby Dillard; he wants to make clear in no way was his approach of Hurd his idea nor the original idea of running Chuck and forcing Tignor/Hutchens out.
I wrote previously about the woefully bad idea of Chuck Smith, former 2nd District candidate, being courted or courting himself to run as the 3rd District candidate. Last night, Karen Hurd, leader of the Hampton Roads Tea Party, received a call from Coby Dillard, former candidate with an even worse idea.
Hurd wrote on Meetup:
Mike-
Coby Dillard called me tonight and asked me to sign on to a program whereby Chuck Smith is the anointed 3rd District nominee. The other two candidates will be asked to withdraw. The convention will now be only a “coronation” not a true convention to select a nominee.
This is a disgrace. The GOP already writes off the 3rd district as an automatic loss. People there already feel horribly unrepresented. To choose Chuck Smith, who doesn’t even live in the district, is adding insult to injury. It shows a complete disregard for our Republic, and the election process.
It’s difficult to imagine that in today’s political climate, you would even think that the 3rd District would find this acceptable. And you wanted me, and the Hampton Roads Tea Party, to approve this?
In the strongest possible terms – NO. If you choose to pursue this course we will work against the GOP in the 3rd. We will work to support any candidate but Chuck Smith. The 5th District GOP tried this and the tea party took them on. We will do the same in the third.
I have alerted the Hampton Roads Tea Party members about the potential course of action. You will be hearing from them shortly.
This course of action on the part of the 3rd District GOP is unethical, unwise, and shows a complete disregard for those in the 3rd District seeking to unseat Bobby Scott.
Sincerely,
Karen Miner Hurd
Founder and Chair
Hampton Roads Tea Party
Karen is exactly right. I’ve already stated the very idea of running Chuck Smith in the district was a bad one, but to demand the other candidates drop out and anoint a 2nd District also-ran who has shown a proven inability to raise awareness, votes, support and money is contemptible.
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Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right...entrenched on the right as a member of the Establishment, proudly tattooed member of the Republican Party, bartender by trade serving both sides the libations needed to continue the debate and discourse. College student, ten years late, majoring in Public Policy and Administration with an eye to serving the conservative and Republican movement in the public or private sector. ducit amor patriae You can find D.J.on facebook, Twitter, or contact via email at gosport.conservative@gmail.com. You can find D.J.on facebook, Twitter, or contact via email at gosport.conservative@gmail.com.
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21 Responses to "Disgraceful Attempts Revealed For Chuck Smith Coup in VA-03"
DJ for this to be “discraceful” as you said why would every district chairman and the candidates sign off on the idea. Sounds like consensus to me. I’m sorry the “Tea Party” folks are upset but if they were involved in the Republican party they could have more say. Funny thing about taking your ball and playing somewhere else, you don’t get to tell the kids that are left how to play their games.
Heck in the 9th Morgan Griffith is running for that seat and he doesnt live in the district.
Morgan Griffin didn’t run for the 8th District nod and get his butt handed to him. Chuck Smith is a proven also-ran
Go look how many races Abraham Lincoln lost before he won. Quite a few. If Chuck is the guy he’s the guy. Lets rally arround Chuck and give this a good fight!
I don’t agree with Chuck’s views enough that I would have voted for him in the 2nd. I would also be highly unlikely to vote for a carpetbagger (I hope that is the appropriate use of the word and that it is not offensive, I don’t know of another name for it). However, I believe that he is a solid Republican and Conservative, so if the people of the 3rd want him, so be it. If not, put up someone better!
Reliable conservative voters have a voice.. Sounds like someone grew a pair and polled them. Good luck Chuck.
Lee Talley, shill for the party establishment, that once again tries to force a candidate down our throats in Virginia. Hey, here’s a novel idea, why don’t you let the grassroots make the decision who should be our nominee? Or is that just too scary for you party elites.
Red Blanket… brave name…
Why don’t you use your real name and lets debate the issue or perhaps you are afraid my shill powers will bring you on board the Chuck Smith Express.
As a service to the GOP, I recommend Tea Partiers, Patriots and any conservative actually interested in a candidate that believes in the US Constitution consider James Quigley as the one to take on Bobby Scott. Yes he is a Libertarian and I did say this to benefit the GOP. Well it’s time we show the GOP that loyalty to the Constitution and liberty is what we need not just loyalty to the Republican Party. James Quigley has been a Tea Party activist as long as any of us. It’s time the GOP considers that we need more than a “solid republican.” We need a solid constitutionalist. We are not talking about taking our ball and going home, we are talking about showing you how the game is played. If the GOP can’t hang, they can stay on the bench.
The worst thing for the GOP (and for the country) would be for the same old party ride the pendulum swing back into power and then reside over the slow death of liberty in America.
I believe this is a good opportunity to mention that I am running against Bobby Scott in Virginia’s 3rd Congressional District, have a website at jamesquigley4congress.com and have a PayPal account set-up and taking campaign donations at this time.
Quigley,
Cease with your spamming.
DJ – this is starting to seem personal betweet you and Chuck. What gives?
Carl,
In no way. I’ve maintained and will maintain that Chuck is a good, honorable guy. However, he is a failed candidate. The 3rd district is so bad that we have to get a failed candidate from the 2nd, one who didn’t even make it until 2010, to be our nominee? Then on top of that we have to strong-arm the other two candidates out of the race to make it easier for him, just in case he can’t win in the 3rd, much like he did in the 2nd.
Not sure where you get something is personal as I’ve never attacked Chuck personally. However as a 3rd district leader, we have to have higher standards if we’ve ever going to make a difference and not be treated like a laughingstock or be outright ignored. There is no good rationale for this ploy. It’s a bad idea.
As the Leader of the Third District, I appointed a candidate committee that met with all candidates. As time moved on and Coby dropped out, Chucks name got thrown in. He was met with and then he met with others and then they and others said lets get behind Chuck. Naysayers will be just that and I have already talked to many folks and received many emails of support for Chuck to run. Hmm, lets see, naysayers political involvement total 5 years tops, the folks involved in decision plus 200 years easy. I am Sick of the Republicans making trouble for their own and Richmond Tea Party Patriots have called to support Chuck. Radke and Hurd have been named by their own folks to be GOP haters not interested in getting the job of removing Scott done. See you on 4/17 at next third district meeting DJ and we can debate your points, bring a flak jacket though, you have made some friends from your post.
@ Mike Wade – GOP haters?? Thanks for slamming Jamie Radtke and myself.
BTW- The Hampton Roads Tea Party has been planning a 3rd district candidate’s forum (for 4/23)since early March. It has been next to impossible to get the candidate’s contact info, and our organizer couldn’t find the Norfolk GOP info. Then it took the candidate’s weeks to get back to our organizer. The 3rd district could have been much more accessible. It was relatively easy to organize a candidate’s forum the VA-2, which has a much larger candidate field.
What we don’t like, and I told you, Mike, was – “annoint and appoint” instead of allowing the nomination process to play out. The 3rd district is a mere 6 weeks away from a convention. Scott Brown (R- MA) went from nobody to household name in just 3 weeks, in a special election of all things. A lot can happen in 6 weeks. If Chuck Smith who doesn’t live in VA-3 or even have an office there, can get folks behind him before the convention, without a preliminary endorsement, and he wins it, b/c the 3rd district delegates chose him in a fair competition. Then that is another matter.
The HRTP has been active within the 2nd District GOP, and their meetings are clearly posted. We knew when they were taking place. We’ve been asking about Norfolk GOP for months. Several of our board members live in VA-3 and had been working to field a 3rd district candidate (but didn’t pursue further when Coby was in the race).
If you want to know the facts, ask the Hampton Roads Tea Party itself. – email: info@hrteaparty.com
See you at the Tax Day Tea Party – 4/15 -4-7PM Town Point Park – Norfolk.
Delegate Bob Marshall (R) is the keynote speaker. We also have Bill Desteph (R) Virginia Beach City Council.
Funny how the local GOP machine always wants the Libertarians to support their candidates, but when James Quigley, a Libertarians runs, instead of backing HIM, they go out of their way to compete against the Libertarians. The Republican Party and the Libertarian Party share many principles. If the GOP were to get behind helping Mr. Quigley in the 3rd, they could have had a 2 way race instead of creating a 3 way race that will split the conservative vote due to the GOP’s failure to support the Libertarian Party/TEA Party candidate.
I ended my campaign before having any knowledge of Chuck’s name being thrown around to run in the 3rd (Chuck will recall that I told him around December, during his campaign in the 2nd, that if he really wanted to go to Congress, he might have a better chance in the 3rd). It was after that that I was approached about his candidacy and whether or not I’d be willing to join his team. After agreeing, I was asked to lay the groundwork for Chuck’s campaign with both the Hampton Roads (which I am a co-founder of) and Richmond Tea Parties. He is a friend of mine, and I would not offer my assistance, such as it is, if I didn’t think his campaign was viable.
Karen and Jamie are friends of mine as well, and I have the utmost respect for both of their organizations. From what I know of them, neither is a “GOP hater.” Karen’s email suggests that Hutchens and Tignor were both to be forced out. Having spoken to both of them since that email was sent, I feel their decisions were theirs and theirs alone. If they feel it’s appropriate to speak out about the decisions regarding their campaigns, I’m sure they will.
Aside from the issues of the day, my campaign hoped to prove the point that, with a positive message and adequate resources, the GOP could compete in an urban environment that-being candid-has been neglected by them politically. In addition to my work with veterans on McDonnell’s campaign, I was also responsible for African American outreach; a lot of my work to that end was in the 3rd District, with some successes. I can count on both hands the number of people who stepped forward to help with that effort and still have fingers left over. The message of conservatism can be just as viable in the 3rd as in any other district; the onus is on us to make it so. To do that, we must go to those areas that we have not gone to traditionally and deliver our message, regardless of how it is received. Some will view that as a waste of resources; my experiences have shown me that it’s the only way to win over the hearts and minds-and yes, votes-of those we seek to represent.
This year, conservatives have a chance to make inroads in the 3rd like never before, and I hope this is the beginning of an effort for us to take a serious, honest look at our historical efforts in the district and recommit ourselves to strong showings in the future. As I said at Blogs United in December, “we don’t surround them; they surround us.” As we all know, numbers are not on our side here. And if our initial efforts are to be marred by the words of the past few days and reflected in the actions of the future, we will lose. That’s not being negative, that’s being realistic. It will take all of us-the GOP and the Tea Party, in whatever roles we hold in either group (or in my case, both, as I will not renounce one for the other)-working together to be successful here.
This tearing down of people and organizations needs to end, and sooner rather than later.
Coby,
Thanks for both summing up my perspective, and lending valuable insight into what occurred from your perspective. I’ve tried in several ways to contact you, Mr. Wade, and Ms. Miner (once), in myself finding out who was running in the 3rd, how they arrived at their decision to run, and how they can be supported if at all possible.
But what I appreciate most is the way you summed it up, that is, that we have to push together rather than pull apart. If you are serious about working for Chuck, can you let me know via one of the emails I sent you previously to your company contact?
Also as a general note, if Chuck is serious about running he HAS TO GET A POSITIVE WEB PRESENCE NOW!!!! Google his name, and the democratic chortling about this show up on the first page at the top of the hit list
Chuck Smith’s Website is up and running. It even does a great job of taking contributions.
I made one last night and it feels so good to be contributing to Bobby Scott’s retirement in 2010. Chuck’s website is:chucksmith2010.com. Check it out. Putting your money to work will really benefit all 650,000 citizens in the 3rd end Bobby Scott’s 18 year Rein of Neglect.
What do you folks think about changing this string’s headline to: “Chuck Smith’s Campaign Gathers Steam”. I think the proposed Headline better defines this string. What do you think DJ. My email is mbuxton@chucksmith2010.com.
I look forward to seeing you next Tues. at the P-Town Mass Meeting.
Hey Guys, I came across this site because I had inquired of who may be running against Bobby Scott in November. I am out here and want to work to put the “best” person in that seat. After reading the comments here I am truly a concerned citizen. There seems to be some personal issues that could damage any attempts to de-throne Bobby Scott. As an outsider, we want real change, the Dems have read this site and are calling for a happy hour in your honor… Whatever it takes… PLEASE…get your heads together decide who the right “one” person is to run so we can increase the opportunity to win in November instead of splitting the vote and handing Bobby Scott another opportunity to whittle away at our liberties.
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