You already hear a lot of excuses out of the state GOP about why this happened. Gosh, a wave overwhelmed us nationally, it’s not our fault. It was all about Iraq. Yeah, that’s it, Iraq. The Maryland experience had nothing to do with Iraq, and everything to do with Ehrlich failing to lead the way voters asked four years ago.
Ehrlich’s team was perfectly matched – for defeat – by state GOP head John Kane, who militantly fought against issue groups. “An elected Republican is a good Republican.” Some candidates who might have fared better with the help of issue groups were defeated because they heeded the advice of Kane not to answer questionnaires, go on record with policy positions or work with conservative groups. His record? Kane led GOP forces to a net loss of one senate seat and (as of this writing) 20 percent of his House caucus. [The GOP can’t declare indifference about its candidates’ positions on conservative issues, then expect issue groups to swear allegiance to the GOP.]
When we complained that Ehrlich’s cherry-picking of seasoned (pro-gun) Delegates for administration positions was leaving the House open to anti-gunner gains, the party brainiacs assured us they knew better and that they had a plan for success. They told candidates not to work with us and told us to get lost. Well, what is their record? The House seat once held by our very good friend Jim Rzepkowski in D32 is in a district swept by Democrats. Other flipped seats were those once held by Tim Hutchins, Chuck Boutin and Al Redmer, all pro-gunners we once helped elect. Ehrlich-Kane really did take out more pro-gunners than Sarah Brady. In contrast, MPFO actively supported the re-election efforts of other appointees who ignored Kane and worked with us anyway. These candidates all won.
Hey John Kane … can you hear us now? Issues count!