Parker Griffith: PLEASE do not call me a Democrat! PLEASE!
Parker Griffith: Please don’t call me a Democrat. PLEASE!
In an interview this week, Politico Magazine reported:
“[Parker Griffith] won by a hairbreadth in 2008 — with 51 percent of the vote — and . . . [he] said he wasn’t sure exactly how loud the message from Tuesday’s Democratic losses in the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial races were, but he said the point was clear.
“I should be nervous,” he said.
He said the current Democratic agenda has “the potential to cost some of our frontline members their seats.”
He also asks that he be identified as a conservative, independent Blue Dog — rather than as a Democrat.”
Politico Magazine, By JONATHAN ALLEN & MANU RAJU | 11/5/09 4:43 AM EST.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1109/29170.html
Mo Brooks Comments:
“Mr. Griffith should be nervous. His party’s policies have angered and alarmed his constituents. In the first ten months of his tenure, millions of Americans around the country have become politically active to oppose them. Millions of other Americans have lost their jobs.
“In North Alabama, hundreds of high-tech and defense and NASA support jobs have been lost due to changing Washington priorities. More job losses are expected because Mr. Griffith’s party has NASA and national defense at the bottom of their priority lists..
“If Mr. Griffith does not want to be identified as a Democrat, then why did he run as one, and why is running again as one in 2010?
“It is obvious Mr. Griffith seeks to be all things to all people. That is not leadership America needs, especially in these difficult times.
“America needs leaders with a clear vision of where we have been, where we are, and where we must go. A leader does not have association by convenience, switching his loyalties to whoever provides the most political mileage.
“Being all things to all people is not a new strategy for Mr. Griffith. He voted for the Cap and Trade Tax Increase . . . before he voted against it. *1
“Mr. Griffith claims he voted against the $780 billion stimulus package because it was too big and America could not afford the debt . . . yet he voted against every single amendment to reduce its size. *2
“America needs leadership, not a politician who plays both sides of all issues, and definitely not a politician like Mr. Griffith who tells people in the 5th Congressional District that he’s doing one thing while his voting record proves he’s does something entirely different.
“I am a candidate for Congress because I believe in the foundational principles that, for six decades, have made America the greatest nation in world history. I have defended those principles as a legislator, district attorney and county commissioner. I’ll fight for them as a Congressman.
“If nothing else, I am known as a fighter because I do not yield to pressure to do wrong when I know what is right.
Mo Brooks
*1. On 6/26/09, Griffith voted for the Cap & Trade Tax Increase (House Roll Call vote 476) before he voted against it (Vote 477). Vote 476 was on a substitute bill that was an alternative national energy proposal (no tax increases with an emphasis on more nuclear power and off-shore oil exploration as the means for handling America’s energy needs. Vote 476 gave Griffith a choice: he could vote for the substitute or to protect Cap & Trade from the substitute. Griffith chose to protect the Cap & Trade Tax Increase from all procedural and substantive threats.
*2. On 1/28/09, Griffith claimed he voted against Obama’s Stimulus Bill because it was too large (“maxing out our credit cards”; H. Times, 2/18/09), yet Griffith supported the Stimulus Bill by voting against all amendments to cut its size (House Roll Call votes 42, 43, 44).
Vote 42 was on an amendment to strike $355 billion in discretionary funding from the Stimulus bill.
Vote 43 was an amendment to strike supplemental funding for Amtrak.
Vote 44 was an amendment to strike income tax “refunds” to be paid to people who don’t pay income taxes (i.e. – wealth transfers to people who either do not work or who don’t earn enough money to pay taxes). Absurd, but true.
Mo,
You need to update your website. This post would be a good addition. I can’t wait to vote against Griffith!
Taka a quiz Griffith, go to
http://www.gotoquiz.com/conservative_or_liberal
While I have posted my intended desires for next election, let me say that while I do not hold any real animosity to Parker Griffith I can say his staff/office is a long shot from what bud Cramer ran. I do not expect for the Congressman himself to respond to my emails and letters BUT I do expect the replies to at least resemble the topics I wrote about. several times I wrote about one topic and got a reply responding in generalities on a separate topic. Jeff Sessions and Richard Shelby when they reply of course give me general dribble on the subject at hand but parker Griffith office sometimes gives me dribble on a subject I never asked about and never addressed the one I wrote about. I guess my point of all this is that no matter what he calls himself, I expect better or maybe Bud was just really good at his job and we may yet wish we had him back (no that is NOT a swipe at Mo Brooks). I had to get Bud Cramer’s office to help me get VA benefits for my widowed mother and after it became quite evident that their solution was to delay me until she died, so I have a pretty high opinion of them. They made things happen and remembered my name and kept the VA on its toes.
Douglas C. Meeks
Douglas — Pet peeve here, but it’s “drivel,” not “dribble.” If Shelby and Sessions give you dribble, someone needs to wipe their chins and tell them not to send anymore spit in the mail.
Although, come to think of it, maybe that’s the word you meant to use, based on the crap they send out as responses.
You are correct, although in this instance they probably can be used interchangeably.
Douglas C. Meeks
He doesn’t want to be called a Democrat? Cool. let’s call him what he is: another conservative loser.
As usual, Griffith is as sharp as a napkin. He failed to learn from Tuesday’s election the grisly fate that awaits Democrats and Republicans who run to the Right of their party’s values.
It made my day knowing that another lib actually believes that NY 23 was lost because the independent candidate ran to the right of the GOP establishment-picked nominee who dropped out and subsequently endorsed the DNC candidate.
Keep thinking like that – you’re already in for a rude awakening next November, but your delusions will make it all the more enjoyable.
Ok, let’s see if I can figure out what it is you are trying to say here Bob. Let’s start with NJ, they had a Democratic governor who from all reports really sucked at the job and he lost to a Republican who ran a mediocre campaign (which was all that was required it seems). Hmmm, nope that one doesn’t fit your snippet. Ok, let’s look at Virginia, had a state that usually WAS Republican but due to the adoration that the voters of that state held W and his corrupt administration, they put a Democrat in office, a situation which they corrected as soon as they got a decent candidate to vote for in what everyone is calling almost a blueprint on how to run a campaign. Hmmm, well darn, that don’t fit into anything you said either. OK, let’s go to NY-23, that’s gotta be what you meant. We had a local Republican (in name only) who supported almost all the Democratic platform who was handpicked by what has to be the dumbest bunch of Republican state party officials EVER running against an Independent candidate that while I thought might be a nice change from business as usual politics from what I read turns out to be a real live geek (I saw a press conference of his on election day, I can see why Joe Q. Public might think twice about voting for him) and you had a Democrat that would get the nod from enough people just using a mental stability yardstick. Add the insult of outside right wing (well meaning but not appreciated by most locals) politicians telling them to vote for the geek, so the loyal Republican in the childish act of the year, pulls out and endorses the Democrat. This was the Republican’s race to lose and they did it handily but gee whiz, still don’t fit your short rant. I think Bob, that all I can see is just another bitter liberal looking for facts and without any just throws around generalities that just don’t fit. I am sure Parker Griffith would be glad to follow your advice if anyone had a clue what it was.
Douglas C. Meeks
In the 2 national races progressive Democrats replaced a moderate Democrat and a Republican (the latter a historic switch). In the local races, the Democratic candidate for governor in Virginia ran away from the party’s platform and got clobbered by a moderate Republican. In New Jersey Corzine went negative (a trademarked Republican tactic that the President campaigned against) and got beat by a moderate Republican.
No joy at all for conservatives there.
Look at the opening skit of SNL: http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/clips/fox-news-election-open/1173560/
Hate to burst your bubble, but ALL of those elections were local. In order for them to be considered national, the candidates would have to be running for an office that extends across at least one state’s borders.
As for SNL, I quite watching over a decade ago – well after it quit being even remotely funny.
Since Griffith voted against the health care bill and the health care bill contained the Stupak amendment, Griffith is pro-abortion!
Either way, Griffith is a one termer. He WILL be replaced by someone to his political right.
Mo, did you spend four academically-grueling years biulding your resume for medical school? Did you spend another four years doing countless hours of research and studies once you were in medical school? Did you attend a residency program, in which you spent another two years doing the same things, only out of college and recieving about 40k per year? Did you help people fight a difficult disease that has baffled doctors for many years? Did you have to wake up every morning knowing that the people you are going to try and help today have a serious, life-threating disease that could kill them? Did you use your difficult platform as an oncologist to try and minister to patients going through the roughest time of their life? Did you have look a father or mother in the eye and tell them their son or daughter isn’t going to make it? Or vice versa?
The answer to all of these questions is no. Doing the things above require a tremendous amount of commitment, intelligence, sacrifice, toughness, and many more favorable characteristics. And the last thing I mentioned in the first paragraph, that takes mental strength that I cannot even imagine, and that you have never proved you have.
I do not agree with every single policy of his, but I am glad a proven, venerable, mentally-tough, gray-haired retired physician is my Congressman, and will be until he retires.
Finally, as I mentioned before, he went to school for 8 years (10 if you count residency) to become a physician, so considering you are running for public office you may want to call him by his rightful title, which would be Dr. Griffith. Or if you don’t like that, you can say Congressamn Griffith, or Representative Griffith, and you can keep saying that for quite a few years, because you are not going to beat him and that guy has some fight left in him, despite his 67 years of living.
Mo, did you spend four academically-grueling years biulding your resume for medical school?
[...]
Did you help people fight a difficult disease that has baffled doctors for many years? Did you have to wake up every morning knowing that the people you are going to try and help today have a serious, life-threating disease that could kill them? Did you use your difficult platform as an oncologist to try and minister to patients going through the roughest time of their life? Did you have look a father or mother in the eye and tell them their son or daughter isn’t going to make it? Or vice versa?
The answer to all of these questions is no.
Some would argue the answer to alot of those question is no for Parker Griffith as well.
If there is one person I have even less respect for than a pretentious jackass who insists on being called by a title rather than his name, it’s a pretentious jackass boot-licker. Off your knees, Jim, you’re a little soiled.
Using THAT warped logic, we would require all Congressmen to be doctors and lawyers (oh yea, thats kinda where we are) maybe, JUST MAYBE thats why we have the problems we do, they are so out of touch with how normal people live. You’re breaking my heart on the trial and tribulations of beings a rich doctor.
Douglas C. Meeks
Just curious, Jim — Do you use the same line of “logic” to defend Sen. Tom Coburn? Did you use it to defend Sen. Bill Frist? I’m sure you did, because you would never lower yourself to being a lame partisan hack.
Yeah its kind of like Roy Moore who keeps referring to himself as a Judge. Oh and Jim sucking up to politicians like you just did is part of the problem with this country. I remember back in the 80’s and 90’s listening to low income democrats praise Al Gore,Jim Sasser,Jaime Whitten and Howell Heflin at those free bbq/catfish dinners they’d have. They’d praise them just like you did with Parker. The thing is though most of those democrats I kept in touch with who would walk up to Gore,Heflin and the rest of them and say that are still in the same economic mess today as they were back then. Point is, sucking up to pols and waiting for them to solve your problems instead of realizing you have the solution to most problems has ruined untold amounts of lives in this area.
Jim,
You should also ask Mo if he sent nurses around Huntsville Hospital to perform his rounds instead of doing it himself and then charged Medicare and insurance companies for an actual doctor’s visit nonetheless. Illegal and immoral it would seem. Did you even read the peer reviews last fall? I really can’t get over the Parker Griffith irony; this guy was part of the problem. And venerable? I don’t know if I should laugh or vomit. And the only thing this guy was ever committed to, whether it was oncology, funeral homes, or radio stations, was lining his pockets with greenbacks. I am sure he will continue to do more of the same. And if this guy tries to tout his past medical career in the next election, I am sure there will be even more to come out about his sordid past. Of all the the insults to hurl at this guy, “Democrat” should be the least of his worries.
If Mo is nothing like Parker Griffith, then he is WAY ahead of the game.
Good post however as this moves into more heated campaigning for Congress, let’s see Les Phillip post on here so it’s not one-sided with Mo Brooks freely getting his message out.
“And if this guy tries to tout his past medical career in the next election, I am sure there will be even more to come out about his sordid past.” -”Griffithisgone” or whatever
Actually Wayne Parker resorted to bashing Griffith’s medical “record” in 08 when he realized he couldn’t beat Griffith with popluarity or a politcal record or his “middle-class mentality” or whatever else he claimed to champion of. If you don’t believe me then you did not see the multiple ads on tv. Anyways, how did that work out for him?
Jim you must realize that Wayne Parker’s tactics would have worked in a normal election year without the Anointed One bringing all his cultist followers to the polls. What was it 51% to 49% or something like that? (feel free to correct me if I am wrong, memory is no longer my strong suit). Just to make it clear, I am not endorsing those tactics (or the truthfulness or deception in them) , just pointing out that business as usual in dirty politics would have carried the day in a normal congressional year.
Douglas C. Meeks
First, I agree with Mo on his quote below, which is why we need to elect Les Phillip to office to bring true conservative leadership to Washington!
“America needs leaders with a clear vision of where we have been, where we are, and where we must go. A leader does not have association by convenience, switching his loyalties to whoever provides the most political mileage.”
Second, it is time for people in AL District 5 to elect someone who represents their values in Washington and that candidate is absolutely Les Phillip. If you don’t know about him or what he stands for, become educated at http://www.lesphillip.com.
Jim,
Some bad logic for starters. Didn’t say I was a supporter of Wayne Parker or his tactics — just anti-Griffith. I simply thought it was disgraceful for somebody (read: anybody) to tout a medical background that was so obviously tarnished. Griffith in his white lab coat. What a joke. I felt, and still feel, strongly that the people had a right to know that Griffith had whitewashed his past. It sickens me that people like you still jump to his defense and want to use words like “venerable” to describe him. I know more about him than I care to. Why don’t you Google Luther Brady. Like the Father of Radiation Oncology made this stuff up. I can’t believe that people like you who can read and write still don’t get this was real. In our sleepy, southern town, right under our very noses, this really happened. Wake up and get with the program, Jim. All I can say is that karma is a b***h. He’ll get his someday, in this lifetime or the next…and I’m sure it won’t be pretty.
And Meeks is correct in stating (paraphrasing him) that in any other election year, Griffith would have drowned in his own stench. That was the exception, and it won’t happen again. Don’t know very much about the candidates, but I’ll support anyone that goes up against Griffith.