. . .when it looked as if Turner would win - he was leading in the polls coming into the final stretch - the hogs came to the trough. And the lead hog was the National Organization for Marriage.
Last night, Republicans won a special election in New York to replace former Congressman Anthony Weiner. Weiner had to resign after a ugly scandal regarding him allegedly sending lewd pictures over twitter.
This victory is considered an upset because it was supposed to be an easy victory for Democrats. Of course this is a ridiculous notion. There is no such thing as an easy victory in politics.
But still, folks didn't count on the Republican, Bob Turner, capturing the seat over David Weprin. And when it looked as if Turner would win - he was leading in the polls coming into the final stretch - the hogs came to the trough.
And the lead hog was the National Organization for Marriage. Weprin had voted for marriage equality earlier this year when the state passed the law allowing it. And now NOM wanted payback for that vote to the tune of $75,000 it spent on Turner's campaign. The organization also utilized a series of mailing and robocalls attacking Weprin.
But more than payback, NOM was trying to foster a claim that a vote for marriage equality in New York will get come back to haunt politicians. Brian Brown, NOM's president, had this to say after Turner's victory:
Very few people are buying NOM's statement, seeing the organization as trying to salvage the embarrassment of losing the fight to stop marriage equality in New York, as well as trying sow seeds in its campaign to repeal the law.
Brown's statement omits several things. One was the fact that Turner was clearly leading before NOM interjected itself into the race. Secondly, the prevailing feeling is that the New York vote was decided not about marriage equality but sending a message to President Obama.
The Advocate had this to say:
Of course the retort would be that "The Advocate is a pro gay publication. Of course it will play down the marriage equality issue." But that opinion about this race was also expressed by the right-wing One News Now via an Associated Press piece:
NOM is simply trying to take credit for a victory that was already in the bag before it dropped its much-moneyed tentacles into the mix.
We will probably hear about it for a while. But like so much of its other claims, NOM taking credit for Turner's victory is a false narrative.
Marriage equality is a reality in New York and that's the bottom line.
Last night, Republicans won a special election in New York to replace former Congressman Anthony Weiner. Weiner had to resign after a ugly scandal regarding him allegedly sending lewd pictures over twitter.
This victory is considered an upset because it was supposed to be an easy victory for Democrats. Of course this is a ridiculous notion. There is no such thing as an easy victory in politics.
But still, folks didn't count on the Republican, Bob Turner, capturing the seat over David Weprin. And when it looked as if Turner would win - he was leading in the polls coming into the final stretch - the hogs came to the trough.
And the lead hog was the National Organization for Marriage. Weprin had voted for marriage equality earlier this year when the state passed the law allowing it. And now NOM wanted payback for that vote to the tune of $75,000 it spent on Turner's campaign. The organization also utilized a series of mailing and robocalls attacking Weprin.
But more than payback, NOM was trying to foster a claim that a vote for marriage equality in New York will get come back to haunt politicians. Brian Brown, NOM's president, had this to say after Turner's victory:
"NOM played a major role in this election, helping to organize the Jewish and Hispanic communities to coalesce with Republicans, conservative and other pro-family voters. We mounted the first and largest independent expenditure campaign in the race to make marriage a key issue, and we succeeded. David Weprin is not going to Congress for one reason: he listened to Andrew Cuomo, Michael Bloomberg, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) and a few billionaires on Wall Street and went along with them to redefine marriage.
. . .Our message to the rest of the politicians in Albany who voted to redefine marriage is this: 'You’re next.' Once again voters have said: 'Don’t Mess With Marriage!"
Very few people are buying NOM's statement, seeing the organization as trying to salvage the embarrassment of losing the fight to stop marriage equality in New York, as well as trying sow seeds in its campaign to repeal the law.
Brown's statement omits several things. One was the fact that Turner was clearly leading before NOM interjected itself into the race. Secondly, the prevailing feeling is that the New York vote was decided not about marriage equality but sending a message to President Obama.
The Advocate had this to say:
Ask any analyst, and they will say the special election turned on the economy, opinions about President Obama, and to a lesser extent, U.S. policy toward Israel (a theme stirred when former New York City mayor Ed Koch, a Democrat for marriage equality, endorsed Turner in July to warn Obama to be a better friend to America’s closest ally in the Middle East). One week before the election, a Siena Research Institute poll showed Turner in the lead by six points, where 30% of voters listed the economy as their primary concern, followed by federal entitlements such as Social Security and Medicare at 28%, with Israel at a distant 7%.
Of course the retort would be that "The Advocate is a pro gay publication. Of course it will play down the marriage equality issue." But that opinion about this race was also expressed by the right-wing One News Now via an Associated Press piece:
Voter frustration over the sour economy and President Barack Obama's policies made the improbable a reality, as a Republican political novice, Bob Turner, scored an upset victory in a special election Tuesday over David Weprin, a Democratic assemblyman from a prominent local political family. The surprising results in the Brooklyn and Queens-area district portend a perilous national environment for Obama as he prepares to seek re-election next year.
NOM is simply trying to take credit for a victory that was already in the bag before it dropped its much-moneyed tentacles into the mix.
We will probably hear about it for a while. But like so much of its other claims, NOM taking credit for Turner's victory is a false narrative.
Marriage equality is a reality in New York and that's the bottom line.
No comments:
Post a Comment