Comments about ‘Mad elephants! GOP delegates took out anger on incumbents’

Bennett campaigned on a platform that his opponent had been in way too long and he would only serve two terms, he lied. He didn't get anything done and it was time for him to go. I think he's a decent guy just time for him to retire.

Our 'normal' (as they like to think of themselves) delegates have shown to be too far to the extreme right. It is now time for the pendulum to swing back to the center. The country was founded on principles AND compromise; unfortunately this year's delegates think it must be the 'ultraconservative' way or the highway.

Those of us that are not drinking in every word of Sean Hannity and Glen Beck and not filled with paranoia about our country becoming 'socialist' need to show a presence at the delegate meeting. Otherwise we will continue to read stories about delegates who are more AGAINST someone than FOR someone.

This is not just the Republican party where people are going to see change. A lot of people are fed up with the way they are having decisions made by who they put in office that do not reflect the voice of their community. This is not Glenn Beck generated, I for one don't listen to Glenn but lived long enough to see what communism and socialism and big governments did to other countries, destroying them financially and literally ruining people's lives to succeed on their own. The government needs to back way off and let us govern our own states and communities. I thing I would like to see Washington cleansed and I think we will see that on both sides as people are fed up.

To Carpe Diem.

Your underestimation of the thoughtfulness in the actions delegates took yesterday is frankly insulting.

In fact your attitude is exactly what everyone is so up in arms about.

The country is becoming Socialistic, government controlled redistribution of wealth cannot be defined any other way no matter what kind of fancy colorful package you introduce it in.
People have had enough and want real change.

We are not in the mood to compromise our values any longer. There has been way too much compromise that has lead us down the path of more and more government control and now is the time to draw the line.

You will continue to see what happened yesterday happen again and again in the coming months.
And trust me when I say that we are more FOR someone else then we are AGAINST the incumbent.

This is much more than the tea partiers or anger at incumbents. This is the far right that has been trying to take over our party for years. They have never been able to get this far before. Usually, they just wreak havoc at the convention and then the mainstream conservative Republicans take over during the primary. This year they managed to actually destroy a senator and they did it in the most hateful way possible.

Don't get me wrong. I didn't like some of Bennett's votes and I having nothing against the other candidates. But, what was done to Senator Bennett was mean, nasty and unfair. He should have been given a chance to get to the primary. Then the voters could have decided.

I suspect it's difficult for the nation to understand Utah's political structure.
Fox News had a panel discussion on how a "powerful and influential" senator was booted by the Republican party.
They didn't seem to realize that this was done by just 3 and a half thousand people - not a Republican open primary. Even the title of this article references the "Mad elephants! GOP..." (I seriously doubt that Senator Bennett would have lost in a State wide primary.)
Utah has rejected a powerful and influential senator for someone who will be well down the totem poll with minimum influence (a regular tempest in a tea pot).

Well, the extreme right wing is moving the party further and further into oblivion. The six year senate term of whoever's elected will coincide with six more years of an Obama administration and a democratic controlled congress and if he keeps the extreme tea party views, he will get nothing done. If he changes his opinions, then the tea partiers will be upset. It's sad seeing the Republican party distance itself from the majority of people and failing to capitalize in a time when many people are upset with the status quo. If they emphasized intelligent conservative ideas instead of thoughtless rhetoric they could probably regain power. Instead they will continue to lose power and influence in a time when they had a chance to regain it.

When the house is burning down, that is not the time to be 'moderate.'

Incidentally, I do believe that much of this administration's philosophy is a disaster. For example: politicians and lawyers know more about healthcare than physicians do. They passed a law focused on health insurance calling it "healthcare." Insurance and care are not synonyms. This "healthcare" is likely to add to our overwhelming debt.
In order to stop this administration I think one needs senators who are powerful and influential rather than unknown and low in priority. This is why I think this was a step backwards rather than a step forwards .

The Utah GOP has really jumped the shark and given themselves over to the angry, incoherent, childish fringe. You know things have gotten out of control when Bennett loses and in response you have a room full of red-faced hollerers making coyote calls in delight. These folks need to go read "The Mormon Ethic of Civility."

Your going to have an extremist on the GOP ticket who favors getting rid of the department of education and pulling out if the UN Meanwhile, Sam Granato, a well-respected member of the community, successful small business owner,active LDS, fiscal conservative is on the democratic ticket. Let the right keep trying to out-crazy each other for a few months, and Sam's going to look awful good come November.

I don't have any kids. But my taxes pay for education of other's children. Isn't that socialist?

I'm a fiscal conservative. I didn't support the recent health bill. But I get irritated when people talk about the current administration suddenly taking us to a socialist state. Wealth redistribution has been around for a long time in the U.S. There's currently less wealth redistribution than there was during any time in Reagan's administration. And who doesn't support public education?

It's fine to abide by conservative principles, but a huge chunk of the current conservative frenzy is driven by the media and sucked up by people who don't question it.

Where were all of these complainers when the Republican caususes were being held to select delegates to the state convention; they complain now, but I'll bet none of them even bothered showing up for the caucuses.

It would have been nice to see all these Republicans who claim to oppose the free-spending in Washington and all the red ink show a little of this while Republicans were running the show.

With President Bush in the Whitehouse and Republicans controlling both the Seante and House, our national debt doubled.

They twice passed tax cuts on the wealthiest 1% and couldn't find anything to cut on the spending side. They passed a huge Medicare prescription drug benefit without finding cuts to other parts of the budget. They started 2 wars and never even looked for a place to cut back.

Now, however, because the Democrats are in power, the people who never thought spending was a problem under Republicans are now up in arms over spending when we have a Democratic President. Where did all these Johnny-come-lately's come from?

Also, to "Hunt" you talk about redistribution of wealth, that is a Republican specialty, they just like the money to go from workers to the elite/CEO class. In 1979 (beforeReagan) the average CEO made 37 times more that the average worker. By 2005, that went up to 282x under Republican wealth redistribution.

The Republicans can't allow the extremists to take over the party if they want to win the next election.
People who use threats and intimidation to get their way are not the kind of people you want making the rules.

More incumbents would have gone down if it hadn't been for the presence of more than 200 illegal "automatic delegates," delegates who are given seats just because they are part of the inside crowd in the party -- the elected officials and the party leaders.

Too bad the first-time tea party people in the room didn't understand that Dave Hansen was asking them to put themselves in a straight jacket before they got in the ring to take it out on their elected officials.

Without the use of their fists, they only scored one (maybe two if you count Ben Ferry) knock outs.

So to the state delegates at this year's convention, you've got twelve months to get your mind around the fact that automatic delegates are illegal and that we simply can't seat them again at next year's convention. Otherwise, even if a majority of you vote to dispatch the current party officers (Dave Hansen continues to be "employed" as a political consultant to Orrin Hatch though serving as party chair, if I am not mistaken) you'll still end up with Dave and company when the autodel votes are added in.

The extreme right also booed Governor Leavitt. His offense? He didn't want handguns in state office buildings. Never mind that we had the best run government in the nation. The Democratic party is loving this.

Ignorance in action. Vote a man out for voting his conscience.


If Mitt cannot get 75% here he cannot hope for the presidential nod. I think he has waffled on too many issues.

Our party needs to find and field a candidate who we can promote and who can lead. Currently our party is bereft of that natural leader. That will hurt in 2012 as Obama is now gaining in the polls again

Utah is going to be ruled by a angry mean spirited emotional gang. The tea party rules! (How many heads will roll?)

Zeal without knowledge.

It's time for Utah to change and allow all the folks to decide who their candidates are going to be. The current system gives to much weight to the fringes.