Political pundits will say that the Republican candidate for Congress in NY-26 lost because of Medicare. They’re wrong. This election was more of a referendum on a candidate’s ability to defend freedom than anything else.
In NY-26, the Republican party nominated a fairly conservative establishment Republican in Jane Corwin, but an ex-Democrat named Jack Davis, running as a “Tea-Party” candidate, siphoned votes from the Republican. The reason was not that Davis is obviously more conservative or because Corwin is not sufficiently conservative: It’s because Corwin did a terrible job articulating the free-market message, and Davis consistently demagogued the important issue of trade.
A simple cursory view of the Davis campaign’s paid media revealed a common theme: that free trade is bad. “Both parties in Washington support trade agreements that ship our jobs overseas,” intoned the narrator of one. He’s critical of “trade deals like NAFTA” and he’s dedicated to making sure Washington “puts American jobs first.”
At the Club for Growth, we believe that people who are free to buy from, sell to, and invest with one another as they choose can achieve far more than when governments attempt to control economic decisions. Consumers reap the benefits of free trade: They receive lower prices, greater variety, and better quality. It’s an undeniable fact recognized by economists everywhere that global markets benefit companies large and small across America and have created millions of jobs.
One of Jane Corwin’s many problems was that she did not articulate a strong free-market message to voters that might have blunted the false scare tactics of Jack Davis. Corwin failed to convey a clear response to Davis’s position that protectionism and tariffs on China would protect American jobs. In fact, tariffs on Chinese goods are nothing more than a sales tax for upstate New York. Tariffs of any kind kill American jobs, and hurt our economy. Support for free trade is the principled position that’s supported by the facts, and yet the Corwin campaign didn’t seem to be in any hurry to stand on principle. In fact, in a TV ad released by the Corwin campaign at the end of March, Corwin said she would “oppose trade agreements that just aren’t fair.”
Maybe Jane Corwin really did believe in protectionism, and that’s her right. Either way, when Republicans nominate candidates who can’t articulate and won’t stand on free-market principles, they will continue to end up with the problems they are faced with in NY-26. Corwin was probably the best choice of the three candidates running — but her failure to stand on principle is what caused a safe Republican seat to fall into the hands of a liberal Democrat tonight.
— Chris Chocola, a former Indiana congressman, is the President of the Club for Growth.
Jack Davis courted the Ron and Rand Paul fans, told them he would endorse Paul for President.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYou are in denial congressman. The republican lost because Ryan's plan to kill Medicare is incredibly unpopular. Look at the polls.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYou can deny it all you want, but Jack Davis was an "ex-Republican" as well. Trying to pin his Democratic past on the Tea Party is kind of hilarious and probably insults the Tea Party (assuming they can actually be insulted).
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe reason free-trade agreements go nowhere in Washington is because Obama's union backers tell him they won't.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseJack Davis is a moron who just helped elect a Democrat to a former Republican seat. He also helped undermine Medicare reform. Anyone who voted for him is also a moron. Anyone who claims to support the Tea Party and voted for this miserable excuse for a human being has wasted their vote and helped elect a big-spending liberal Democrat to congress. Way to go, idiots. I am specifically talking to you, hughman.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYeah, right. Folks in a formerly industrial area are just dying to be told how that cheap schlock available at WalMart makes up for the loss of their jobs and the destruction of their communities.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseEverything I've read says that the election was primarily about Ryan's budget reforms (eg: the vast majority of Dem adds were about Ryan's reforms).
Was Davis a bona fide Tea Party candidate? It looks like he got about 8% of the votes. The Republican candidate would have won had that 8% voted for her instead of the Tea Party candidate.
Republicans need to look at this election and learn from it. It is quite possible that Ryan's reform in its current form is not going to be an electoral success. If so, we need to massage the message so it is not political poison
Also, the Tea Party needs to get some control over its brand. Right now it looks like anybody can claim to be a Tea Party candidate and siphon votes away from the conservative candidate.
If Davis was an actual bona fide Tea Party candidate, that is just insane.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe other problem is that Corwin, for the last few weeks, ran nothing but ads telling people why they shouldn't like her opponents. I kinda missed hearing anything about why people should vote for her.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI always find it amusing that someone like Mr. Chocola announces what an election was really about without post-polling data to support it. This post is just an advertisement for Club for Growth dressed up as a thoughtful analysis of the election results.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse1) This is the second time we have seen the democrats use a straw to win an election. Obama's mini-me, Duval Patrick won reelection because they got a third party guy to siphon votes away from the challenger. Look for this to be repeated elsewhere.
2) Count Chocula is running the Club for Growth?
3) There's a solid majority against cutting entitlements. The GOP has to accept that fact. The time between now and the collapse can be used to win office and steal some money for yourself. Forget about reforming anything. That's a sucker's play.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseKyle-mi
"Jack Davis is a moron who just helped elect a Democrat to a former Republican seat."
Whats worrying is that those who voted for davis were almost equally split between democrats and republican as their second choice candidate. Which indicates that the dems would have won even without the spoiler tea party candidate in this deep red district.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbusePretty clear to me that the new Democratic strategy for 2012 will be to place operatives into "strategic" 3rd party campaigns to drain votes away from the GOP. NY State is particularly vulnerable because it is WAAAY to easy to get any "party" affiliation next to your name. Other states have similar lax party labeling systems.
The TEA party needs to come up with a strategy for defending its party ID through whatever means necessary (yes, even going to the courts to challenge it). It's time for the TEA party to grow up and take responsibility for itself and its "brand", otherwise you will see more of this strategic candidate placement in 2012. It may not have a big effect on the national level, but 8% is a huge number in local races...
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe powerpickle
Are you aware that Davis was a local democrat for several years before becoming 'tea party'? - many of those who voted for him were democrats who actually liked him and voted for him on a non partisan basis. If you believe that all of davis' votes would have gone to the republican, you are in denial.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI would caution Republicans from ASSUMING the spoiler effect. That's an easy way to dismiss the outcome and not examine the facts. EVEN IF Corwin would have won, the fact that it was this kind of FIGHT in that district deserves examination. I'm a liberal. But the chaos of internal Republican politics right now is worrisome for the ability of our Democracy to function well, and I think this might be an interesting insight into some conservative self critique.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse"Where ignorance is bliss, tis folly to be wise" there is certainly a lot of blissful ignorance here
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe basic, bottom line is Republicans have not yet convinced a majority that entitlements in their present form are unsustainable, that the real choice is between "reduce entitlements to make them sustainable" and "train-wreck."
If Republicans want to be responsible leaders, "leave entitlements alone" is not an option, no matter how well it polls.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbusePower Pickle is right....don't trust ANYBODY who says they are a "Tea Party candidate"!!! They're likely Democratic operatives.
There's one out there I know of, she says goofy stuff like "Lexington & Concord happened in New Hampshire" and "Jimmy Carter caused Swine Flu"....obviously a Dem plant trying to make Republicans look bad or crazy.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseCorwin never responded to the "Ryan wants granny dead" screed, which she could have easily have done by saying the plan works for the sustanability and felxibility of medicare, while providing more choice for consumers... but she never really did even that little.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI currently live in this area and can tell you MANY Republicans stayed home because of the elitist Repub establishment (yet again) "annointed" a RINO to represent us. This is the 3rd time in as many years, with the same result - turning over formerly Republican seats to liberal Dems. Apparently they are slow learners.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe article- "this didn't turn out the way i wanted it to because the obviously superior message wasn't articulated well enough for those rubes to grasp it"
The reality- the rubes didn't like/agree with your message OR something else happened to affect the outcome.
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