Opinion Editorial
By: Kurt Feigel
One of the things we learned in Guerrilla Politics 101 was you never go into the stronghold of your opponent because it will stir up a hornets nest and turn out voters. Well I don’t know if Feda Morton’s campaign is causing more voters to turn out but they have been stirring up the hornets nests around the 5th District.
Her campaign has been fueled largely by “family values voters”. They have “political and social beliefs that hold the Nuclear family to be the essential ethical and moral unit of society.” This definition found at Wikipedia is a good one and I would say I ascribe to that belief myself.
Further, “these groups variously oppose abortion, pornography, pre-marital sex, homosexuality, certain aspects of feminism[7], cohabitation, separation of church and state, and depictions of sexuality in the media.”
To that I’d say “Me Too”.
Historically the above Christian Values were morphed into the newer moralist driven “Family Values”. Typically… in a 1998 Harris survey it was defined as “loving, taking care of, and supporting each other” by 52% of women and 42% of men, as “knowing right from wrong and having good values” by 38% of women and 35% of men, and as the traditional family by 2% of women and 1% men. The survey also noted that 93% of women thought that society should value all types of families.[12]
The above can be summed up as “good people” and as any true Christian knows there is no such thing.
If your talking about “Family Values” and the “essential ethical and moral unit of society” that “unit” being Marriage then why are so many people that ascribe to that belief jumping on a campaign of a woman who has been married THREE times?
This oddity would make great sense were the field populated by a bunch of lecherous drunkards and adulterous scum. However to my knowledge Hurt/McPadden/Boyd/Verga/Ferrin are all still happily married to the same woman for the many years they’ve been married. Many of them have kids and have kept that “essential ethical and moral unit of society” intact.
Say it with me now “1 man and 1 woman”. Well…I guess it all depends on what your definition of “is” is.
I’m sure Feda is a nice lady. I’m sure she is a nice teacher. I’m sure she has from all accounts I’ve received, served her local Republican Party well. But not once has anyone ever been able to tell me why they, as “Family Values Voters” are supporting her instead of one of the FIVE other candidates I previously listed. Isn’t this just hypocrisy to support someone who lives something other than what she professes to represent? Isn’t this saying one thing and practicing another? They say the family “unit” is the core of society, but are willing to set that aside to suit their political ambitions. What else might they be willing to set aside to suit that agenda?The truth?
There are other reasons not to support Feda Morton. I’ve detailed those out in past postings. Yet, those are mainly raw political reasons. For me as a TRUE family values voter, Unlike those I’ve encountered, online and in person, I can not and will not support her candidacy in this race, now or after June 8th.
“Everyone makes mistakes” you might say. Well this may be true. But “everyone” is not trying to be my congressional representative. I’ve got other choices before me.
Brad, I’m not sure about being disingenuous, it was an attempt to input some much needed comic relief. If we can’t laugh at something, some folks might want to slit their wrists.
I thought this blog was about Feda and her lack of family values.
xxxx
This is not about Virgil Goode who is a political has been after losing an election that he should have won by 700 votes to Tom Periello. Goode was a loser then and the GOP will never back him again. Politics doesn’t treat losers with rewards, especially embarrassing loses like Goode’s defeat.
Mr. Lloyd:
Mr. Boyer made a blanket statement of purported fact after someone else had written a post that disparaged Martha Goode. I will simply say that, in my opinion, at the time the events happened many folks who were close to the situation would have viewed Boyer’s statement as laughable.
To their credit, Martha Goode and Virgil Goode were able to put aside their personal differences and cooperate in raising their daughter who grew up to be a fine person — charming, funny, intelligent and enlightened.
Do I have a point or a purpose?
Not in this instance. I do, however, have a rather healthy respect for facts.
Mark, I understand where your sentiment is coming from. Just thought others might not pick up on the joke, especially when I’ve heard similar statements about Tom from people who had not a hint of humor in their voices.
I’ve said before, I think we need to be very careful to let our rhetoric simmer, not boil over. And, unfortunately, the backbiting and vitriol aimed at the other side has already spilled over onto our side.
Calm and collected must be our M.O., all the way into November & beyond, if we hope to grow our ranks. There’s plenty of room for passion, but not a square inch of room for poison.
And, by the way, calling the current Congressman “Tommy the Commie” is neither cutesy nor comic. It smacks of McCarthyism, and it’s just plain dumb.
Remember how all those folks whose children had been treated by Dr. Perriello reacted when his son was called a New York lawyer? Well, the lesson to be learned is not to double down on a bad bet and, two years later, try to brand him the heir of Lenin and Stalin.
I could really care less about “family values” or how “Christian” claims to be… Character traits I look for in a candidate are their ability to articulate their argument, coherently answer a question and handle the pressure. Feda does not meet that criteria … Anyone can profess to be anything. Actions speak louder than words and in my experience… if you have to repeatedly tout your conservatism – you don’t fit the bill – - that goes for Mrs. Morton-Kidd and Mr. Hurt.
If we all get behind someone like McPadden/McKelvey we can defeat Hurt and have a candidate with no record for Perriello to use against him this fall like he did with Virgil.Virgil Goode is a VERY good man thats why EVERY one of the candidates is trying to get his endorsement.Everyone is trying to blame Virgil for losing when the fact is we ALL are to blame for not working harder to keep Virgil in office.
Jeffersonian1, you claim a healthy respect for the facts. That’s great. Me too. You take offense to a nickname that I flippantly tossed into the discourse. I apologize for my boorish tone. My flippancy certainly had no reference to his family, or the lifetime of dedicated service his father offered the community where he practiced medicine. With your healthy respect for the facts, check out the votes that our honorable sitting congressman has made. I hope you respect the fact that he supports the “Gov’t take Control” Obama/Pelosi agenda all the way down the line. My apparently offensive “tag” made reference to his support of much higher taxes, increased government regulation, the destruction of industry, the loss of jobs, and the incomprehensible growth in the size and cost of the federal government. So, branding him as an heir of Lenin or Stalin may be out of line if that is what you think I was doing. So, we are taking that off the table. Will you please politely fill in the blank as to which European or Latin American collectivist hero you might think would be an appropriate comparison, based on the facts, of course. Perhaps after being enlightened, I might be able to inject a little more appropriate humor into this dialogue.
Bradley, I am being civil. You have to give me credit for trying.
Mark,
I’m sorry. Perhaps I should have clarified. I believe that you, like myself, have a belief in furthering civility and dialogue, rather than cutthroat and demagogue. My comments on the vitriol and poison were directed more at the latter set.
I urge you to keep on keeping on, my friend.
Sam-
You have succinctly nailed down a point I’ve been hammering for over 8 months now. Thank you.
I firmly believe this post unlocks what everyone is thinking, but no one willing to say it. Watchdog’s response is true:
“People are missing the big part of this story. It is not the divorce(s). It is the fact that so many people that ascribe to the “Family Values” model of politics are supporting FKM despite those divorces.”
And, agreeing with Mark, we all know the “big leagues” will bring out the “big guns” and go after FKM for this no doubt. I agree that if FKM were the only candidate standing up for the family unit in this race, a vote for FKM would be valid…however, we have several candidates to choose from who also stand for the family. We must keep the bigger picture in mind.
And Lucy, WOW! Throwing out the woman card!! What a low one that was…makes me want to go burn my bra right now! Give me a break!
Anne-
Great response. I think you’ve kind of captured the essence of this issue in perhaps a slightly less accusatory fashion than the original post. Not saying Kurt’s tone was overtly confrontational, but it was obviously construed that way by some. And thank you for pointing out the not-so-subtle Gloria Allred quality of Lucy’s comment. This thread is mostly made up of males who were perhaps afraid to broach that issue (myself included).
And, just by the way, is that your real name or a clever L.M. Montgomery reference? (Sorry, but I’m a bibliophile. So, are you from Prince Edward *Island* or *County*? ;D)
Mark,
I see what you are saying, this is Kurt’s blog and no one is denying his right to say whatever he wants. However, this article is inappropriate. What do you think that a conservative independent will think when he or she sees these kind of accusations being thrown around about a congressional candidate. If the TEA Party wants to have continued success they must move to slap down personally destructive attacks such as this one. Otherwise, people will be turned off by the negativity that articles like this generate. It is this article and not the responses to it that is causing the division.
It is true that Feda has campaigned on a moral values platform. However, that does not give us the right to make unfounded conclusions. Those close to Feda have stated that she did not commit adultery. I tend to believe their accounts.
The truth is that we all know what this is really about. Feda Morton has become a threat to the candidate that some people have strongly supported for months now. People such as Kurt Feigel ruled Feda out early on, because they thought she talked about abortion and protecting marriage too much. Feda has gained momentum and they are in meltdown mode.
For those who say that Feda has no chance of winning, they are seriously mistaken. Feda has just as much chance as McKelvey and Verga, and probably more of a chance than McPadden. I know this because I know how Perriello works. Perriello will try to manuever to McPadden’s right socially. Perriello tried hard to make inroads into the religious community here in the 5th in 2008, and unless we nominate someone who can counter that, we will be playing right into Perriello’s hands. So Feda would actually be stronger on that front of things, not weaker.
Steven, I had to go back and RE-read the post. Kurt did NOT make reference in his post to adultery. You must have dredged that little nugget up by listening to the rampant gossip. What else might you have heard?
Have you been involved with the Tea Party movement? I’m terrible with names, please introduce yourself to me at our next event. If I have already met you, and can’t connect a name with face, I do apologize.
You claim that, “If the TEA Party wants to have continued success they must move to slap down personally destructive attacks such as this one. Otherwise, people will be turned off by the negativity that articles like this generate. It is this article and not the responses to it that is causing the division.” I beg to differ. The beauty of the Tea Party movement is that it is about telling the TRUTH. Not being PC, or being afraid of how reality might offend someone. The truth is the truth, and no matter how anyone wants to hide it, twist it, or deny it, the truth remains the truth.
My previous comments address this, so go back and read them. The truth is that Feda, as good a person as she is, acknowledging all the noble things she has taken part in and achieved has some baggage to deal with. That is a TRUE statement. You can spend all the time you like in rationalizing your position, and it changes nothing. The Perriello/Pelosi/Obama attack machine, funded again by Soros, is going to be in full throated screech mode until November, and should Feda get the nomination she has worked so hard for, she will have to deal with the baggage. This is another TRUE statement.
It is PRECISELY the comments that are divisive. The post is the post. It is the opinion and position of one man who posted what others have been thinking. Another TRUE statement. Was it PC? No. Did it offend some people? Yes. Does he have a right to his opinion? Yes. Does he speak for the entire Tea Party? No. Do you speak for the entire GOP, or the Feda Morton Campaign? Hmmm?
FYI-The Tea Party success will come from taking PRECISELY the OPPOSITE course of slapping down those who voice their opinions. Conservatives for FAR TOO LONG have kept their opinions to themselves for fear of offending the tender hearted, while identifying the truth. Was he more confrontational than he had to be? Maybe. But, I also sense his frustration. He wasn’t trying to hide that either.
I agree we should be civil, and allow others to disagree with us, without being disagreeable. BUT, we as conservatives need to learn to deal with the truth, use the truth to our advantage, speak it clearly, and NOT deny it exists so someone can be deceived by never hearing it. That is a big part of what got us into the mess we find ourselves today.
Bravo, Mark! That was heartfelt, truthful, and *should* be the end of this discussion. (I know for a fact it won’t be, but one can live in hope, right?)
All I know for a FACT is that Feda’s most recent endorsement comes from a group that CNN is reporting is lead by a homosexual who goes on trists with male prostitutes.
Feda should denounce this group and remove the endorsement from the FRC from her website immediately.
Read all about this great organization supporting Feda here:
http://www.mediaite.com/tv/family-research-council-co-founder%E2%80%99s-rentboy-speaks-on-anderson-cooper-360%C2%BA/
Mark,
I agree with you that we must embrace the truth, however, it must be the WHOLE truth. All we know is that Feda has been married three times, we know little to nothing else, including the circumstances behind the divorces. Regardless, this article attacks someone’s character. All the while, the author obviously does not know all of the facts about the situation. It is irresponsible to speculate when we know very little actual facts. Making a public attempt to defame someone’s character is not civil discourse. We get angry when Democrats do these kind of things.
I do believe that not only the TEA Party, but also all campaigns should denounce all personal attacks that could harm the families of the candidates.
Unfortunately, this does reflect negatively on the TEA Party, because it gives the appearance that the TEA Parties are directing sleaze politics at one another. I know that is not true and you do as well, but we both know how Perriello and his allies will frame this.
I do NOT represent Feda’s campaign. In full disclosure, I did spend one Saturday helping to gather signatures for her to get on the ballot, that is it.
There are many conservatives who are looking to the TEA Party for leadership, I hope that the TEA Party will not sacrifice its credibility over personal attacks and destruction of character.
Instead of questioning each other’s character, why don’t we stick to real issues or at least focus on getting all of the facts before we jump to conclusions.
Just to clarify,
I in no way, believe that the whole Tea Party going into a negative attack mode. I am concerned however, that the Tea Party can end up becoming divided over infighting if it is not careful. I say this as someone who wants to see the Tea Party be sucessful.
I’m new to the Tea Party but after reading this article and many of the associated comments I am reminded of Ronald Reagan’s philosophy:
“Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican. It’s a rule I followed during that campaign and have ever since.”
I think it would be far better for those who wish to support a particular candidate to espouse his or her virtues rather than trying to tear down some other candidate.
@jeffersonian1 – Jimmie – Come out, Come out of “hiding”!
What you have to remember is that the democrats will not hold back any punches, on her or anyone.
Everytime a divorcee runs for a higher office, they run ads trying to connect a broken vow with character in the minds of the voter.
Right or wrong, if any of her previous husbands have an axe to grind, they will have their 15 minutes of fame with $1,000,000 spent telling their ‘side’ of the story.
These posts will look like love letters when the democrats get through.
Fred, Is the TEA Party now the Republican Party?
Sam, EXACTLY! I was waiting for someone to say it.
sam the butcher.
No, the Tea Party is not the Republican Party but that does not mean that we can’t adopt good practices whatever their source. I’m afraid we are going to end up splintering into a bunch of partisan factions. Mark Lloyd said it best:
“But, moving forward, I have a fear, a real fear, that this infighting is going to become so damaging that on June 9th we will find ourselves, as conservatives, so fractured, and damaged that we will not be able to come together…”
Perhaps the best thing to do is think of who of the 7 can best bring together the beliefs of the 5th and still beat Perriello. My problem with Feda has nothing to do with this article- it has to do with the fact that moderates will vote for Periello in droves if she is nominated. With due respect to Mr. Boyer and his friends- they will back a person who best shares their beliefs (I have no problem with that) but they seem unconcerned to how that person can and will perform in a general election.
If Perriello could pick his opponent I believe that it would be Feda Morton or Laurence Verga (Ferrin not included) they would be the easiest to beat in a general election. I think McPadden with his return to the gold standard and several other things would be a toss up.
His bottom 3 would be Hurt, Boyd, and McKelvey each has different strengths and all would likely have the money they needed to compete.
Listen to the May 6 video of the candidates speaking at the Lynchburg Tea Party at
http://virginiafifthwatchdog.com/2010/05/videos-lynchburg-tea-party/
Then, let’s have an honest discussion of the best candidate that can beat Tom Perriello.
I think Ferrin is pretty much out of it as he doesn’t show up for many events. The Independent will have trouble getting enough support. Hurt will have to defend his vote for the biggest tax increase in Virginia history, Verga has very serious health problems, Boyd just does not fire me up, Morton-Kidd is shrill, and her presentation reminds me of Hilary unfortunately. I like McKelvey’s positions, but don’t hear him explaining them as well as the others. I think Mike McPadden knocked it out of the park with his constitutional knowledge about the Federal Marriage Amendment, and will be the best candidate to take it to Tom Perriello.
Fred,
Is speaking the truth now “speaking ill” of someone?
We should be voting for the BEST candidate… And the TEA Party is not the Republican Party. So how is that splintering? The 5th needs a good strong candidate who will adhere to the constitution and do the job he or she is sent there to do. Should Sen. Hurt win the primary are you going to support him simply because he is a Republican? A Republican that, might I add, has a pretty shoddy voting record and is an utter failure when it comes to public speaking/debate.
I don’t know who you are Sam, but nail on the head. I agree, vote for the BEST candidate. I haven’t decided who the best candidate is, but I have decided 100% positively that Robert Oglethorpe Churchill Hurt is not the best candidate.
Sam,
Telling the truth is fine, but dealing in a lot of conjecture and rumors should be off the chart. If we are to win this election we need the strong support of everyone including the family value and social conservative voters.
Yes, we should be voting for the BEST candidate. I am not a fan of Sen. Hurt and he is certainly not one I will support in the primary. Personally I lean toward Mike McPadden at this point, but if Sen Hurt should by some chance win the primary I will support him. I will in fact support the winner of the primary regardless of who it is and I hope all of us will do likewise—even if we have to hold our nose in doing so. Anything would be better than giving Pelosi another vote.
Wow, Fred just completely showed us how to continue the problem we have in this country of electing big gov’t, RINO style candidates:
“I will in fact support the winner of the primary regardless of who it is and I hope all of us will do likewise—even if we have to hold our nose in doing so. Anything would be better than giving Pelosi another vote.”
And honestly, what Fred is saying is pretty much what every candidate EXCEPT for McKelvey has said. And pretty much what everyone in the 5th is saying. If we want actual positive change, it’s important to realize this new style of politics isn’t about getting Perriello out, it’s about getting someone good IN, otherwise, we are back to square one, only with a new, crappy congressman.
McK is the ONLY candidate that has said he will not support a candidate just b/c they win the GOP nomination, that he will support a Constitutional conservative (which is subjective at this point in this race). I also lean towards McPadden at this point, but unfortunately his admission that he will back whoever wins the primary gives me significant pause. He claims to be the candidate of principle, but that is hardly a principled stance. My head is spinning at this point, but getting back to the point of this article, I do know that I will not be supporting Feda under any circumstances.
Divorce or the number of divorces do not matter unless fkm is “running” to be the pastor of a church. I am appalled by the content of most of the posts here
Red (and others) -
I would not be so quick to assume that the “stars” in this primary fight will somehow align behind Robert Hurt, should he secure the nomination. In fact, from my conversations, it would seem a majority of the 7 would do no such thing. I am not at liberty to disclose names, but it shouldn’t be difficult to deduce.
Just remember: birds of a feather flock together. And, as 2010 unfolds, we will see the dividing lines between establishment hacks & new blood conservatives stand out in stark relief. (See Utah’s Senate race, etc.)
Fred, you are such a good Republican soldier. But most of us have had enough. We aren’t buying what they’re selling. I was thinking about the “Perot Factor” that so many in the GOP like to espouse, and what really strikes me is this, IF people would vote for the best candidate and not for the lesser of two evils, would we find ourselves in our current crisis? Taking that a step further, it’s people thinking like you that have us in the mess we are in and should NEVER speak of Liberals or Dems turning a blind eye and electing whoever has a D beside their name. What is the difference? Are you voting for a party or a person? Oh wait, you answered that, didn’t you?
“I will in fact support the winner of the primary regardless of who it is”
Now I have to get to work and deliver some meat.
The reverend is not happy with you Watchdog: http://solovskoy.blogspot.com/
“It is shameful and low to publish such mud and I suspect who is behind it.”
Does anyone else see the irony in this statement?
He goes on to say that, “Feda is way up this week because of the endorsement of Gary Bauer and the attack by Watchdog.”, and he predicts Feda will win the primary with 28-30% of the vote.
I will be amazed if Feda makes it into the top 4.
The poor, poor Reverend. He is not only delusional, but a hypocrite as well.
He is delusional and when this race is over the only person patting him on the back will be himself. He doesn’t even get his facts straight. I’m not a “McPadden Staffer”. I’ve only been to Mikes campaign office once just to see the new setup. I’m a consultant (contractor) on tech related stuff. I never even spoke to Mike about this post till after it was published.
Reverend … is just a sore looser. In the past he hasn’t had anyone to go after when stuff blew up in his face. Now he does and contrary to the bible “Man’s Wrath does not bring about the righteousness that God Desires” or “Vengeance is mine” is on a holy crusade to smear a Good man’s reputation because he lacks honor. When I was first introduced to Mike by Mr. RevMdiv…: “it was ordained by God that he was to be our next congressman” now it’s “ordained by God that he must never be our next congressman” The guy is a loose screw and people should not encourage his insanity, but there is no talking sense to people. Just look at this thread now 86 comments long.
Someone should tell FEDA that it is over she should drop out NOW. The word im getting is Feda’s campaign manager has quit along with other members of her campaign.If she wants to do the right thing she should drop out and NOT endorse anyone that would be the death of any campaign.
Good point Will. But wouldn’t it be nice if she would drop out and endorse Robert?
Sam good point, that would be a gift from above.
I will vote in June ! …attended meeting at Rustburg High, and Liberty Law .
apart from personal attacks Feda stands out …
McElvey has no mud on him yet ….