My, what a crimped and shriveled vision you have of “democracy,” Mr. No Longer – somewhere between Saddam and Hugo Chavez. I don’t know the figures off the top of my head – you probably do – but I’d think Dems in that district are at least 35-45%, and with a lot of Decline to State added, that’s over half the voters. Is your idea of democracy to behave as though all those folks have no choice but to vote for the 20-year Republican incumbent again and again and again?

It’s your prerogative to behave that way in a “safe district” but don’t try using “democracy” in the same sentence.

Ed Royce wants to shrink the government? That is highly debatable. Didn’t he support G.W. Bush? And didn’t chickenhawk Royce support all the wars we are mired in, including the drug war? How do you think we are paying for all of that? Royce’s actions will lead to higher taxes.

So Royce is a legislator who doesn’t legislate? Useless!

As for the RINO’s he has supported, most of them support redevelopment and eminent domain abuse. And they support higher taxes and fees. And quite a few of them also support public pension spikes! Those are not Republican values, are they?

Art – why would someone who believes in SHRINKING the federal government carry bills? Other than perhaps ones that start with “The following titles of the US Code are hereby deleted” . . . And while you (and I for that matter) may think Ackerman and Jones are idiots, they clearly aren’t RINOs. But you are. That is why you are no longer one. There is a very specific use for that term and it doesn’t have anythign to do with “disliking” your opponents. RINO’s are people registered as republicans who do so merely because, were they to registger with another party with whom they agree politically, they would be unable to get elected. Neither Ackerman nor Jones fit that definition. While I love Norby, arguably he fits that term much better than the two you attach to that term because, as a philosophical libertarian, Norby probably feels more at home with that party. Yet he chooses to register Republican to win elections.

Care to tell us how many bills Royce has carried in the House? Wouldn’t that be zero?

He is indeed usless.

How many junkets has this guy been on on? Answer – hundreds, at public expense.

And to compound things, Royce always endorses RINO’s like Ackerman and Dick Jones.

Useless!!!

Now why did he pose with the party crasher? She was draped all over the little shrimp!

Well, that’s the cynical way of looking at it, and of course that’s just what Royce, Campbell, Miller, Calvert, and Loretta Sanchez would say if nobody else were listening.

But how about going the extra mile to respect the fact that we theoretically have “democracy” in spite of the travesty of our bipartisanly-gerrymandered safe districts?

And how about letting your constituents hear both sides of some issues? And showing your confidence that your own positions can take some aggressive questioning?

Now that I remember, that IS why I brought up the Lincoln Douglass Debates. Douglass was the heavy favorite, Lincoln didn’t have a chance, Douglass didn’t want to “give him credibility,” but Lincoln stubbornly dogged him … and you may not remember, but Douglass still won, went down in history as a great sport and a great debater, and the people of Illinois were the richer for it.

I still say that even though Dana is a lunatic in a dozen ways, I really respect him agreeing to debate Debbie last year, Brandt the two times before, and Gerri Schipske in ‘02. DEBATES SHOULD BE REQUIRED BY LAW.

Duh!

This “duh” communicates quite well the smug complacency of the cynical political insider. Some of us are out here fighting for more democracy though.

Which belies the real reason for the post. To belittle Royce – no pun intended. “Useless”? Again, this demonstrates the lack of knowledge of the poster. Royce is actually regarded in Washington and outside as someone who is knowledgeable of issues, and careful in his policy decisions.

He has won praise by both aisles as someone who actually took the Africa subcommittee charimanship (when the GOP was in the majority) and treated it seriously. Unlike past chairman who viewed it as a slap, he used it to advocate for reforming trade imbalance and montetary issues with Afircan countries; interestingly, he also used it as a bully pulpit for humanitarian issues – challenging the practice of female genital mutilation. Aside from that, he has been a staunch advocate on forein affairs issues in SE Asia. Now that all GOP are in the minority, I guess the term “useless” is a blanket statement for anyone with an “R” next to their name. Does the term “useless” also apply to Joe Biden? I haven’t seen him breaking any ties in the Senate lately. Or perhaps “useless” applies to the President’s economic stimulus plan, which has created 100s of thousands of jobs . . . er, oops!

And #1 – why would anyone debate a candidate who has absolutely no chance of winning? That only gives the candidate credibility. Duh! By the way, Royce holds more town hall meetings than any other congressman I know. He started doing it immediately after he was elected to the House (long before it became commonplace following the 94 Rep. revolution). He continues to do so. He will meet and speak with anyone, anytime. So why debate? He makes his stands on issues well known.

Finally, who cares if he endorsed Ackerman? So what. Congressmen endorse lots of people that loose. Big deal.