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August 21, 2008 09:19 PM UTC

To Jeff Crank and Bentley Rayburn: Thanks for Everything; an Open Letter to Republicans in CD-5

  • 33 Comments
  • by: Haners

( – promoted by Colorado Pols)

I went to bed on Aug 15, 2006 in a pretty good mood.  After changing my mind a coupe of times, I had settled on Jeff Crank as my candidate for congress.  And when I shut my computer down at ten o’clock that night, it appeared that my man Crank was going to be the next congressman from our district.

That next morning, I turned on my radio and listened to the news story from the unity rally-being held with Bob Beauprez and CD-5 nominee Doug Lamborn.

I was devastated.

Not only had I settled on Jeff Crank as my candidate, I had lost all respect for Doug Lamborn (my initial favorite).  The night before, I was happy not only because my man appeared to be winning, but also because I wouldn’t have to decide whether or not to vote for Doug Lamborn.  Now I was confronted with the choice I didn’t want to have to confront; and it was the first thing in the morning.  How could things get any worse?

I held my nose and voted for Doug Lamborn on Election Day.  But it was something that I wasn’t ready to do again.  In my mind, and in the minds of many others, there was a score to settle.  My candidate had been wronged, and Doug Lamborn needed to pay.

I was ecstatic when after many months of rumors, Jeff Crank jumped back into the race.  I know that many of Bentley Rayburn’s supporters felt the same way when he did the same.  Those of us who were angry with Congressman Lamborn now had the means of exacting our revenge.

Charges were hurled, and accusations were made between the campaigns and the candidates.  But the night of August 12th 2008 didn’t hold near the same suspense as August 15th two years prior.  Congressman Lamborn secured the Republican nomination by a large margin.

While the result didn’t turn out the way I would have wanted it to, at the end of the day I did kind of get what I wanted.  I didn’t get my 2008 primary ballot, only to be confronted with the prospect of having only one name in the spot for CD-5.  I had my little chance to exact my revenge against Congressman Lamborn.  Apparently many others felt the same way as well over half of the voters in the Republican primary voted against Congressman Lamborn.

In that, Jeff Crank and Bentley Rayburn provided a great service to our democracy.  They gave people like me more then just a voice-they also gave us a choice.  For that, they are to be thanked by all parties involved.

I spoke to Jeff the other day and asked him what he would like done with his yard signs in my area.  “Keep them.  Throw them away.  Save them as a souvenir, or sell them on E-bay.  I don’t care,” He responded with a chuckle “I don’t need them!”

I compare that with a conversation that I had with a fellow Crank supporter two days ago.  “So, are you planning on going to the unity rally on Saturday?”  I asked him

“No-not at all.” He replied “I just can’t support Congressman Lamborn.”

To that person and others like him, I say this: we had our chance, and we should be thankful for that.  Jeff Crank and Bentley Rayburn put a lot of time, effort, and treasure on the line over a campaign that they knew would be difficult, and in so doing they gave us a voice.  Our voice has been heard, our votes have been counted.  But this isn’t the time to take our ball and go home.  It’s time to get behind Congressman Lamborn and help him be the Congressman we all want him to be.

As such, I invite all Republicans in CD-5, regardless of who they supported, to attend the El Paso County Republican Party Unity Rally Saturday.  It will be at the Flying W Ranch in Colorado Springs, from 10:00 AM to noon.  Let’s come together in appreciation for the candidates who ran and in support for those who won.  I hope to see you there.  If you plan on attending and would like to say “hi”, e-mail me at Haners@aol.com.

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33 thoughts on “To Jeff Crank and Bentley Rayburn: Thanks for Everything; an Open Letter to Republicans in CD-5”

  1. .

    Haners,

    I understand party loyalty, to an extent.  

    The GOP has a long tradition and a storied heritage, and most of it is good.  

    But the reason that the GOP will lose seats in Congress in November isn’t because the Democrats have fielded the most charismatic and desirable candidates;

    it’s because conservative voters are disenchanted with a Republican Party that has lost it’s conservative footing.  

    There will be 3 candidates for CD-5 Congressman on the ballot in November to choose from.

    They are the candidates put forth by the Republican, the American Constitution, and the Democratic Parties.  

    Two of those parties are focused on grabbing and holding onto power.  

    The third party is focused on returning to the conservative principles that this country was founded on.  

    On November 4, conservatives can vote for Congressman Lamborn and hope that the party leaders in Washington that give him his marching orders

    have the courage to change course and return to conservative values.  

    Or they can vote for the candidate of the party that has never swayed from those values.  

    …………….

    Don’t get me wrong —

    Doug Lamborn is a conservative.  If he went to Washington and voted his conscience, he would uphold conservative ideals.

    But that’s not what happens.  

    In order to get committee assignments,

    and in order to get bills brought up for reading and to get them passed,

    Congressman Lamborn has to go along with what the GOP party leadership tells him to do.  

    No Congressman or Congresswoman who belongs to either of the 2 major parties is their own man or woman in Washington, DC.  

    Doug got a prized seat on the Armed Services Committee.  There was a quid pro quo.  He had to give the party leadership something in return for that.  

    Remember, it was during the Republican leadership of Congress that the Administration has been undermining the Constitution,

    from starting the war in Iraq, to eroding civil liberties, to fashioning a “unitary executive” who is more king than elected official.  

    When President Bush said that the Constitution was “just a piece of paper,” the Republican Congress didn’t whimper the slightest objection.  

    When the GOP controlled the Congress during Bush’s first 6 years, the Congress spent more than any other Congress in history.  

    The Republican Party is no longer a conservative party.

    If you want the GOP to get back on track, send them that message.

    Go ahead and keep your GOP party membership,

    but send a conservative to Congress to represent this conservative District.

    That will help the GOP figure out where they went wrong, and how to get back on track.

    .

    1. I appreciate your thoughts.

      However, you have to keep in mind that legislating is a team sport.  Even if a third party candidate were elected from this district they would have to caucus with one of the major parties to get anything done, and therefore would have to worry about playing nice with the leadership of that party.

      Otherwise they’re cast to the side lines and we have zero representation.

      So I’ll vote for the Republican candidate and at least have some degree of representation

      1. .

        Hypothetical case.  

        Suppose that the country was bogged down in the occupation of a foreign country,

        because a corporatist President invaded that country to boost the stocks of the military-industrial complex.

        This could never happen in America, but just imagine if it did.

        Would the highest calling for a Congressman be to sit in Washington, DC, debating peripheral issues ?

        There already are 434 other Congresspersons making speeches that accomplish practically nothing, casting votes that make little difference.  

        Or should the Representative to the US Congress from this conservative District maybe invest his time in getting the government to return to Constitutional principles ?  

        I guarantee you —

        if the Constitution Party candidate wins,

        he will set up his main office in Baghdad, Iraq,

        where the need for Congressional oversight is greatest.  

        No Senator or Congressperson learns anything of value on a 6-hour CODEL visit.  

        But if our CD-5 Congressman is based in Iraq,

        he will focus the spotlight on what is going wrong and how to fix it.

        . . . . . . .

        Golly, we read today that George Bush is finally accepting the fact that we have to leave Iraq.  He has agreed to a timetable.  No more BS about conditions on the ground, which are not getting any closer to Bush’s benchmarks.  

        Our remaining there without a mission is hurting our Army and our national defense.

        This was also true two years ago, back when Bush labeled the option of acting in America’s best interests (withdrawal) as “cut and run.”  

        But now, finally, even Bush can see the writing on the wall.  

        What’s Lamborn’s position on Iraq ?

        Stay the Course until we achieve victory.

        Victory over who ?

        We’ve already defeated al-Qaeda.

        The folks fighting us now are the ordinary citizens of Iraq, who just want us to leave them alone.  

        Obama won’t get us out of Iraq, not as long as his party can still make a buck off of the war.

        Ditto for McCain.  

        . . . . . . . . .

        The country needs somebody with some authority to go to Iraq, stay in Iraq, demand that we get out, and ensure that we do it intelligently.  

        Maybe it could be someone from Hollywood, or a billionaire like Bill Gates or Larry Ellison.  A Congressman would have enough authority to get the job done.  

        Since our District has the only person running for Congress in the whole country who is willing to undertake that necessary work,

        and since he is more conservative in practice than our GOP incumbent,

        why not vote for him, for me ?  

        . . . . . . . .

        Haners,

        if you see what’s wrong with the GOP today,

        and if you see the coming troubles ahead that will result from the anti-conservative policies and actions of the Bush administration,

        why would you hold your nose and vote for more bad decisions and more damage to our constitutional form of government ?

        The Iraq war is severely damaging the USA in innumerable ways.  It is just one symptom of the GOP machine abandoning the Constitution in order to retain its grip on power.  

        Why would you want to “at least have some degree of representation” when that representation contributes so clearly to the decline of our nation ?  

        My hope for the nation is that you young people finally decide that you’re mad as hell, and you ain’t gonna take it anymore.  

        Holding your nose and voting for the lesser of two evils is, well, still voting for evil.

        C’mon, man, do it for the good of your grandchildren yet to come.  

        .

          1. .

            than about the particular candidates.  

            Also, for now, I am flying below the radar of the Federal Elections Commission by limiting campaign contributions.  

            May I refer you to the website of the American Constitution Party,

            http://www.americanconstitutio… ?

            And, if I haven’t already made it clear, I have two key points to make:

            #1.  If elected, I will serve only one term.

            If I accomplish what I set out to do,

            I won’t need a second term.

            If I fail, I won’t deserve a second term.  

            #2.  I am running to make sure we end our adventure in Iraq.  

            That war is destroying America, and invalidating the values and principles we claim to stand for.  

            The two major parties make beaucoup d’bucks off of it.  Diane Feinstein’s husband has personally made over $100 Million off of that war.  Republicans are no different.  

            Neither Obama nor McCain will end it as quickly or as wisely as possible, unless someone representing the interests of the American people (and our military) is dogging them every day until they relent.  

            That’s the job I’m applying for in running for this office.  

            .  

            1. I’m not a CD-5 voter, but I’m curious what you agree and disagree with regarding your party’s platform.

              Also, in keeping with the stated platform plank of non-interference internationally, do you support a full withdrawl of American forces from Afghanistan as well as Iraq?

      2. .

        If your loyalty to the GOP is based on your agreement with the principles that the party stands for,

        more power to you.  

        But what does your team really stand for anymore ?

        Today’s GOP, like today’s Democratic Party, is corrupt.  

        You can choose to overlook the corruption, but then you become part of the problem.  

        It is the duty of each new generation to examine the faults of the previous one, and to make the difficult choices needed to do better.  

        Duty calls.

        .

        1. In that each generation is basically responsible for making the party better.  But it’s done from the inside out, not by voting for another party

          2. .

            I’m the guy who sued the Army in Federal Court to stop them from employing Mercenaries, in blatant violation of 5 USC 3108.  

            Check out the 1 June 2007 Washington Post, Page D1.  I’m the guy who stopped the award of a $475 Million contract for Mercenaries from Aegis.  

            I’m the author of the “Model Communities” approach to stabilizing Iraq.  It proposes to empower the authentic indigenous local leaders of discrete communities to lead and protect their own villages and neighborhoods.  

            The Colin Powell State Department rejected this approach in June, 2004.  

            In October 2005, the commander of Coalition Forces, General George Casey, took part of my approach, misunderstanding how all the parts worked together, and created what eventually became the “Anbar Awakening.”  

            I’m the author of the proposal to create, under the auspices of the State Department, a US Commission on Civilian Losses in Iraq.  Rejected by Ambassador David Satterfield, Secretary Rice’s principal advisor on Iraq, in November 2006, the Department declared that such a function could not be contracted out to me because it was an inherently governmental responsibility to operate such a Commission.  

            This proposed Commission was not about reparations or even blame, but simply acknowledging the loss of life and showing respect for the victims and survivors.  

            Ambassador Satterfield maintains to this day that any show of respect for the Iraqi people, or acknowledgment of how they have suffered under US occupation, would be a sign of weakness and invite / incite open rebellion.  

            I’m the guy who has filed over 20 legal challenges to improprieties in contracting actions in Iraq.  

            I’m the guy who approached Joel Hefley in August 2002 with a letter from Dr. Sadoun Hummadi, a senior official of the Ba’ath Government of Iraq, asking to open a dialogue.  Saddam wanted to step down and go into exile to save his neck.  All he asked in return was a guarantee of safe passage from President Bush.  

            In other words, Saddam Hussein surrendered in August 2002, but Bush wouldn’t accept surrender.  He wanted to be a “War President,” and wasn’t going to be denied.  

            …………

            Are you seeing a pattern here, Stringer ?

            If you do the slightest bit of research, you will see that none of these efforts has produced even the slightest improvement in the situation.  

            EVERY single thing I’ve attempted –

            to either prevent or shorten the war –

            has been a complete failure.  

            …….

            This is one aspect of who I am.  Serial, colossal failure.  

            I’m also an Army veteran, father, and small business owner.  

            .

  2. We should thank Crank and Rayburn for returning Lamborn to Congress.  But rather than looking at alternatives, the conservatives masses will hold their noses once again and like sheep will send this clown back to Washington.

    1. There is plenty of room in the bus for your party’s clowns too. So you guys just keep voting your clowns back into office and we will too. K?  

  3. I still will not vote for Doug Lamborn the upcoming election. But I will vote against the Democrat in the CD-5 race FWIW.

    And I’ll pass on the rally as well.

    PUMA 😉    

  5.    Don’t come crying to us.  Your choice to hold your nose and vote for Lamborn in November was, well, your choice.  

      If you really wanted to be rid of him, you could and would have voted for one-term Jay Fawcett, let him knock off Doug, and in ’08, your preferred candidate would have had the nomination for the asking. (There is no way Lamborn could have tried to run again in ’08 after going down in history as the first, and probably only, Republican to lose in CD 5.) By November of ’08, with Crank as the nominee, the CD would have reverted back to its natural default position.

      I know, you were told if you voted for Fawcett, Nancy Pelosi would end up as Speaker.  Well, guess what?   She did so even without you voting for Fawcett.

      I think you have a Congressman now who is the perfect representative of your party.  And he’s gonna be there for the next 25 years!

    1. I was attempting to show the path that I’ve taken to get to this point, and how badly I wanted Jeff to run again.  It was the means of making a point, but not a point in and of itself

      1. There comes a time when the public’s best interest is served in another arena. I think Jeff Crank can still do some fantastic things for the Republican party and CD-5 but I feel it is time for him to move on.  

        1. Sorry if it sounded like I did/do want that.  I was just trying to clarify something to OQD.

          I agree with you 100%.  Jeff is and needs to move on, as do his supporters.  That’s why I’m going to the rally on Saturday

            1. Newsman and I in various forums here talked about rallying behind the Republican nominee.  We didn’t go knock doors the next day-busy schedules I guess-but I am a man of my word.  That’s why I am advocating that we get behind Lamborn now that this primary is behind us and those of us who didn’t like Lamborn had a fair shot.

      2. Just to make sure there isn’t any misunderstandings, allow me to amend something.

        I was attempting to show the path that I’ve taken to get to this point, and how badly I wanted Jeff to run again [in the 2008 cycle].

        This is not to be confused as my advocating another attempt by Jeff Crank to run against Doug Lamborn-I do not and would not support another attempt by Jeff Crank to unseat Doug Lamborn.

        I apologize if my previous statement was not clearer on this issue.

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