In this installment of their weekly Sunday Six conversation, PF Whalen and Parker Beauregard of The Blue State Conservative discuss six sellout RINOs whose critical positions of power are up for grabs in November.
#6: Maryland Governor Larry Hogan
PF: For those who argue that Larry Hogan is governor in a deep-blue state and that it’s better to have a RINO than a Democrat, I would ask you to look at Maryland’s next-door neighbor to the south. Virginia is also a deep-blue state, and one in which a true conservative named Glenn Youngkin was elected governor only four months ago; and he beat his Democratic opponent handily, in fact.
Perhaps it’s because Hogan is in a blue state that he decided to engage in an outrageous display of virtue signaling a few days ago. Since Maryland heavily favors Democrats, maybe Hogan felt it necessary to inexplicably attack Ron DeSantis and Florida’s parental rights protection bill. Perhaps Hogan’s trying to protect himself from losing votes and that’s why he has yet to veto a bill that would increase the number of abortions in his state.
But no matter how you cut it, Larry Hogan is far from conservative, and in most ways he’s no different from a Democrat. Maryland Republican voters should insist that Hogan governs like a Republican and not a woke Democrat. I probably sound like a broken record, but it’s true: Conservatism works. Whether we’re talking about fiscal policy or social issues, conservatism is effective and logical, and it’s worth fighting for.
#5: Illinois Representative Adam Kinzinger
Parker: Read this excerpt from Wikipedia and tell me you don’t loathe this guy:
“On May 19, 2021, Kinzinger was one of 35 Republicans to join all Democrats in voting to approve legislation to establish the formation of a January 6 commission to investigate the storming of the U.S. Capitol.[112] He was also one of two Republicans to join all Democrats in voting for a January 6 select committee.
On November 14, 2021, Kinzinger, in an interview with Rolling Stone, said that he regretted voting against Trump’s first impeachment: “If I went back in time, I would vote for the first impeachment.” In the interview, he also called Tucker Carlson a “manipulative son of a bitch”.”
As with your next selection, Kinzinger has announced he will not be seeking reelection this upcoming 2022. We can thank fleeing Illinois residents for their impact on reducing the electoral count, and therefore the number of U.S. Reps, in the corrupt, failing, and deep-blue state.
Kinzinger’s decision is likely based on two-fold reality of his current in-electability and the fact that he’d be competing against another Republican incumbent. Fine. But here is what voters have to decide: Will the same people that inexcusably sent Kinzinger to Congress SIX times keep making the same mistake when they get a chance at a do-over in the reminted 16th District? Here is hoping for a wake-up call.
#4: North Carolina Senator Richard Burr
PF: Yes, I know Burr has decided not to run again in November, but that’s the entire point. In a state that should deliver conservative votes in the Senate on a regular basis, Republicans must nominate a staunch conservative, and they should have that opportunity during their primaries on May 17th.
There are multiple examples we could cite to support the assertion that Burr is a RINO, but the most obvious is his vote to convict President Trump during his second impeachment last year. It’s totally acceptable for anyone, including Republicans, to disagree with Trump. In fact, it’s fine to despise the guy. But for Burr and the other six Republicans to cast such a vote to remove Trump from office was inexcusable. Burr might not like Trump, but for him to agree with the obviously partisan Democrats that Trump’s actions on January 6th amounted to inciting an insurrection defies all logic.
There are a total of 26 candidates who will be on the ballot next month in North Carolina in their efforts to fill Burr’s seat, and 14 of them are Republicans. I’m not going to endorse a candidate in that race, but I will say that Ted Budd, Mark Walker, and Marjorie Eastman all appear to be viable candidates that would be far better than what we’ve seen from Burr. North Carolina is not a deep red state, but it is red. And if a Republican runs as a true conservative, they should be able to come away victorious in the fall.
#3: Wyoming Representative Liz Cheney
Parker: In 2020, the state of Wyoming carried Donald Trump to the single-largest margin of victory against Joe Biden. Of every vote cast, he captured fully 70% of them. That was up slightly from his 2016 haul of 68% of total votes.
Why is this important and relevant? Because one of the former president’s biggest interparty rivals is the lone House member from that state – sellout RINO Liz Cheney, heir to an established family name in the swamp. She also took home nearly 70% of Wyoming’s votes in her own 2020 contest, but it is impossible to reconcile the fact that only one of these two names is going to pave the future for the Republican Party. Either voters stay with the GOP RINOs that do the bidding of their Democrat superiors – or they break from decades of D.C. collusion and actually represent voters’ interests.
Thankfully, Cheney’s departure from the immediate scene seems imminent. Following her participation in the corrupt and illegitimate proceedings of the January 6th Commission, the Wyoming GOP Central Committee voted to no longer recognize her as part of the party. She was also removed from her House leadership position. Moreover, her Trump-backed opponent Harriet Hageman is currently polling ahead of her. Of note, though, is that Wyoming has an open primary system; that means Democrats could theoretically flood the ballot with support and usurp the voting system.
Amazingly as well, Cheney has not ruled out a presidential run in 2024. Is it possible to demonstrate a lack of self-awareness more than running for president on the Republican ticket after what she’s done? These people are as relentless as they are stupid.
#2: Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski
PF: In our weekly piece on the worst RINOs in Congress that we did in late-March, Murkowski made the list at #5, and rightfully so: she’s absolutely awful, and can always be counted on to vote like a Democrat, particularly with judicial nominees. Murkowski couldn’t wait to throw her support behind radical leftist Biden SCOTUS nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson. And let’s not forget, Murkowski also voted against Trump SCOTUS nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
What’s so frustrating about Murkowski’s leftist tendencies is the fact that Alaska is an extremely conservative state, and its two senators should be dependable conservative votes. Murkowski is facing a strong challenger in her primary race from Kelly Tshibaka, who has been endorsed by Donald Trump, and there’s a good chance Tshibaka will win that fight. But even if she does, we – conservative Republicans – won’t be out of the woods.
Remember, Murkowski also lost her race in the Republican Primary in 2010 but decided to launch a write-in campaign against the candidates who were on the ballot, and Murkowski won. We must give credit where it’s due, and it was an extraordinary victory for her. It was only the second time in American history that such a thing happened. So, not only do conservatives in Alaska need to ensure Murkowski loses her bid to be renominated this summer, they need to guard against another independent run from Murkowski in the general election.
#1: Any Republican that supported, or still supports, medical tyranny.
Parker: This issue was too big to address with just one candidate. For me, as I think it should be for others, the future of freedom seems to right now hinge on our ability to restrain the government from imposing nebulous and arbitrary emergency powers on the population. Despite holding 28 offices during the hystericized wave of Covid, how many Republican-led states – who in many cases had the support of a Republican-majority legislature – offered freedom over mandates?
Red state or blue state, too many of us suffered the same end results: We lost our businesses, our kids were forced to wear masks, we still wear masks on planes, and even more of us were subjected to vaccine mandates. It is unconscionable that anyone be forced to endure what Americans endured for the past two years, but if there is a spectrum I would almost say it’s worse coming from a red state. We expect Democrats to rule with an iron fist; we expect “conservatives” to defend individual liberties.
Sadly, we now know that many conservatives in name are not in principle. They wear the Scarlet R for RINO. Nothing better exemplifies this than folks who do not take a stand against vaccine mandates.
It seems safe to assume that most voters in November have a choice in governor, Senator, Representative, and various more localized races to remind these traitors to liberty that they sold us out for Big Pharma, Big Medicine, and a false narrative. Even if the narrative had been true – is sacrificing freedom the answer?
Another emergency will come to pass. That can be guaranteed. Whether it takes the form of a virus, climate, food, etc., something will happen. If we do not have the right safeguards in place, we will be subject to even worse outcomes than before.
This story syndicated with permission from The Blue State Conservative