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Abernathy Strategies
RepublicanGazette
Tuesday, February 19, 2008 "When news breaks, we fix it" Published daily except some days
Submissions welcome
The Republican Gazette welcomes Emails to the Editor and press releases. All submitted items must include the name and contact information for the author of the article, and all articles will only be published with the author's name included. Thank you for reading and participating in The Republican Gazette, another of West Virginia's most biased publications.
All opinions are those of The Republican Gazette and its editor, Gary Abernathy, except letters or commentary signed by others, and do not reflect the views of anyone else, including clients of Abernathy Strategies.
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Having Fun With Mojo
Still cutting your taxes -- if you live long enough!
Hey kids! Mojo here! Did you read the news? I'm still cutting your taxes! As you know, I'm slowly but surely whittling away at the food tax! Now, I'm taking the scissors to the business franchise tax! That's right! I'm eliminating it completely! Well, not right away! But it will be all gone by 2015! Or is it 2025? I forget! No matter! Many of you will not be alive to see it! But if you pass away before then, you can die knowing your Governor is eliminating taxes left and right! Rest in peace! GOP luminaries at Peana fundraiser
Rush is still the King, but title is honorary
Love him, hate him, or regard him with total ambivalence, there is no denying that Rush Limbaugh is a legend in his own time. Rush emerged on the scene at a time when Americans received their news and commentary almost exclusively from the three major broadcast networks which, in turn, followed the lead of the New York Times and Washington Post in regard to deciding the content and tone of their broadcasts.Conservatives were resigned to the undeniable leftwing bias of these news organizations, and were left to depend on a few niche publications -- the National Review and Human Events, primarily -- to offer something other than the usual liberal pablum.Then along came Rush. Giving voice to millions of Americans who didn't buy into the forgone conclusions of Big Media, Limbaugh offered a blend of absolutism coupled with cockiness coupled with humor -- he claims nothing less than "talent on loan from God," after all -- to grab the nation's attention. Conservatives finally had a defender and advocate, and liberals had a clearly defined villain. Republicans loved him, Demorats abhored him, but no one, including presidents, could ignore him.Rush came to prominence in the late 1980s and reached his pinnacle during the Clinton White House years. Even when they didn't agree with everything he said, conservatives loved Rush just for being there and serving as a thorn in the side of liberalism everywhere.In the process, Rush became a media megastar, known, like Elvis, Garbo, Cher, etc., by one name -- when someone asks if you heard what Rush had to say, no one asks, "Rush who?"One advantage Rush enjoyed for years was being the lone rightwing voice in a leftwing media world. But today -- thanks to his own success and the mimicry of others -- Rush finds himself in a very different media universe. The advent of Fox News and its various personalities like Sean Hannity and Bill O'Reilly have cut into Rush's domain, as have countless lesser known but just as far right or libertarian voices. It is not as easy for Rush to lay sole claim to being the voice of the conservative God, and his dilemma has never been more evident than during the 2008 presidential campaign.Facing the same problem as Republicans everywhere, Rush has struggled to find a candidate to support, but he has been clear about who he does not support. Early on, Rush clearly favored Fred Thompson (which made me happy) and, sometimes, Mitt Romney as the "true conservative" candidates. He expressed open disdain for John McCain and Mike Huckabee. He also seemed to like Rudy Giuliani, even with Rudy's obvious anti-conservative social positions.Rush's feud with McCain goes back many years, and seems in part connected to the Arizona senator's complete refusal over the years to cow tow to Rush's clarion horn. But for Rush to claim that McCain is not a conservative -- when in fact McCain has no more moderate or liberal leanings than any of the other GOP candidates if you wanted to niptick them all -- is to see Rush position himself on a dangerous precipice. He now risks regulating himself to almost cult status, insisting on a conservative litmus test that only a 
RUSH LIMBAUGH
narrow band of faithful followers can agree with, point by point. Does anyone remember the John Birch Society?
Rush Limbaugh remains influential and controversial. Still broadcast on more then 600 stations, he retains his position as the most listened to talk show host in America.I like Rush Limbaugh, and I agree with most of his conservative philosophy. And yet, I support John McCain for president, and I believe McCain's career and life largely -- not completely, but largely -- reflect Limbaugh's conservatism. Obviously, millions of other conservative Republicans feel the same way. There is no denying exit polls in state after state showing McCain winning the majority of Republican votes (and often splitting or coming close with voters describing themselves as "conservative" or "very conservative"), and not just riding a wave of independents or Democrats, as his detractors claim. Rush's failure to influence the GOP primary results makes undeniably true what Rush himself as always claimed -- that his listeners are not mere sheep turning to him subserviently for their marching orders, but instead are a silent majority who simply agree quite often with what he puts into words.During this presidential election season, conservatives have listened to Rush, considered his conclusions, then, in rather substantial numbers, quietly disagreed with him about John McCain. Rush is at a point in his career where he need not care or worry what anyone thinks of him. Undoubtedly financially secure, he will continue to provide his unique mix of news, commentary and parody for years to come, and the conservatives among us will mostly agree with him and chuckle along with his pokes into liberal eyes. But just as the proliferation of cable TV and the internet has diluted (actually, killed) the influence of the Big Three networks, so too will Rush's domain be more and more noticeably crowded by the many voices now reaching an ever-fragmented audience. Rush will always be the King of Talk Radio, but increasingly only in the way that Elvis, in his last years, was still called the King of Rock'n'Roll. It is a title and position owing more to an affection and respect for past accomplishments than for the influence he wields today. Still, long live the King.
A Happy Valentines Day
Chuck and Becky Flannery welcomed their new baby into the world on Valentines Day last week. Emma LeighAnn Flannery weighed 8lbs, 9oz. Chuck, a Campaign Finance Specialist in the office of Secretary of State Betty Ireland, is considered the foremost authority on campaign finance law in West Virginia.
Lisa Peana's fundraiser Monday night drew a good crowd and nearly a full lineup of GOP statewide candidates to Rocco's in Ceredo. On hand were gubernatorial candidate Russ Weeks, Attorney General candidate Dan Greear, and Secretary of State candidate Charles Minimah. Also on hand were 30th District House of Delegates candidate Fred Joseph, Wayne County GOP Chair Mark Maynard, West Virginia Republican Club Vice President Charles Bolen, and Huntington mayoral candidate Kim Wolfe, among others. Lisa was introduced by Sen. Vic Sprouse, and she spoke eloquently about the need for new representation from the 17th District.Weeks gets support at DOH rally
Republican gubernatorial candidate Russ Weeks made some impromptu remarks Monday at the rally held by Division of Highways workers, and received several promises of support from the disgruntled employees in attendance.DOH workers have voiced complaints about auctions of equipment and what appears to be a plan to farm out highway work to private companies, as well as unfilled DOH jobs.Weeks expressed his support for the position of DOH workers, and many of them spread the word to others in attendance to support Weeks in November.
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WEEKS
