#NCSEN: Senate Conservatives Fund targeting Burr for 2016?
Former South Carolina senator Jim DeMint caught a lot of grief while in office for actually believing that Republicans should vote in line with the party platform. He put together a group called The Senate Conservatives Fund to identify and fund solid conservative candidates to jump into GOP US Senate primaries across the country.
DeMint left the Senate to take on the top job at The Heritage Foundation. The leadership mantle at SCF has been passed on to former Virginia attorney general Ken Cuccinelli, but the group’s mission remains the same. Recent polling shows North Carolina’s senior US senator with 31 percent approval. Burr has earned the ire of conservatives for sabotaging the 2013 ObamaCare defunding effort, not helping the anti-amnesty fight, voting for every debt ceiling extension, and approving this year’s CRomnibus. Forsyth County sources close to Burr have been telling me for years that 
Burr was going to hang it up in 2016. But Burr threw cold water on that idea in an interview with National Journal during the recently completed US Senate campaign.
Some of our more reliable sources out there have tipped us off that mailings and emails from the SCF are circulating across the Tar Heel State. The mailings are quizzing people about their feelings on Burr and whether they would vote to reelect him. There are also questions about issue positions that would make you more or less likely to vote for Burr. There is also an option for naming other candidates you would rather see as the GOP nominee for US Senate from North Carolina in 2016.
This doesn’t necessarily mean the SCF will make a move on Burr. But it DOES show that they are seriously thinking about it.
Where do I donate?
Burr needs to either retire or be ousted by primary.
Any Conservative who backs or votes for him gives up any right to complain about the big government politicians in DC.
Try http://www.senateconservatives.com
One can join without having to pay any dues, and that will get you all of their emails keeping you up to date on conservative campaigns.
When I contribute to campaigns, I look at the recommendations of SCF and the Club for Growth ( http://www.clubforgrowth.com )
Senate Conservatives also helped get rid of Congressman Cantor and Congressman Hall. The only incumbents to lose. They have just run ads against Boehner and Whip Scalise.
I think McHenry and Ann Wagner need to be targeted for doing Scalise’s , Dixie mafia meets Italian Mafia, dirty work.
They need to target Pittenger,McHenry or Ellmers if they see an opening.
I think this is one of the ads you are talking about, entitled ”Betrayal”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HYzzqIC7_w
Is Greg Brannon available or is the fraudulent cell phone app case too much baggage?
What is the latest on Brannon’s appeal of the jury decision?
In the final analysis, I have to conclude that Brannon’s court case had little to do with the outcome of the 2014 Primary. Rather, Brannon, just got outgunned by all the out-of-state money pouring in to put Tillis over the top. In support of this, I would point out that Tillis barely beat out Brannon in Wake County where both, Brannon’s name recognition and public consciousness of Brannon’s legal issue was highest; while Tillis performed far better in outlying areas of the state where Brannon’s name recognition was low as was public knowledge of the civil action Brannon was involved in.
Brannon’s court case did not move the needle in the polls after the media had a field day with it. That was not the cause of his loss. Money was part of it, but failure to hammer Tillis’ record was another. Brannon’s campaign failed to get the message out strongly enough on the major differences in their positions on issues. Brannon’s campaign was poorly run. Brannon would make an outstanding US Senator, but he was just an average candidate (of course, Tillis was below average on candidate skills).
I was working the polls in a local race at primary time and talking to voters in early voting, it was clear that the fact the Hagan launched a major attack on Tillis led many GOP voters to conclude that Tillis was the major GOP opponent. Hagan picked the opponent she wanted to run against, and it almost got her reelected. Without the national wave barely pushing him over, Tillis was floundering in the general election.
I think it was Hagan’s money, even more than Rove’s money, than nominated Tillis.
I have been a Conservative Republican all my life. Jesse Helms was always my political hero because of the Conservative values that he always stood for even when it wasn’t the ‘popular’ thing. He stayed strong in his belief system. When Senator Helms died, I thought there would never be anyone so bold. I was wrong. My new political hero is Greg Brannon. He stands strong on Conservative values…something the Republican Party is drifting away from. Republicans claim to want Conservative values, but fight with everything they have against the true Constitutional Republicans like Greg Brannon. They are terrified of him because he holds them accountable and is fighting to protect our Constitution and our God given rights. We all need to be as bold as Dr. Brannon. If we were, our country would not be in the shape it is in now.
Totally agree with your assessment. Greg Brannon is the true, honest, informed and courageous conservative that I will support in every way I can, Kim. Glad you feel the same way. I also admired Jesse Helms’ commitment to strong moral principles and to the principles of liberty. And I worked in his campaign because of his principled character. I do believe Brannon has the same immovable commitment to Christian morality and to championing Constitutional governance.
I hope that we can convince Dr. Brannon to run against Burr. He has kept his website alive and feel as though he will seek the nomination in 2016. I was impressed with his knowledge and understanding of our organic Constitution. He will fight for our rights just as Jim Dement and Wilson from South Carolina. I will back him again. He has so much potential.
Well, if he did, not saying he’s viable too win the Primary, but he’d have advantages he didn’t enjoy in the 2014 race…..there is no incumbent Democrat to attack his establishment GOP rival and Burr’s popularity with GOP voters back home is questionable, especially after the CRomnibus, and his now-infamous “Defunding Obamacare is the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard of”.
If die-hard conservatives want to deny Burr the GOP nomination, they better nominate someone besides Greg Brannon.
Greg Brannon LOOKS like an idiot whenever he talks. He has a wide-eyed approach to tv interviews that makes you believe he has taken too many pills before he got on air.
Another thing, it is WONDERFUL to see Constitution-loving people running for Congress. However, they need to be able to discuss those issues without making every other word “Constitution:”. it is distracting and makes Brannon look more nutty than he usually does. Its like listening to like people who like cant make like a sentence without like using the word like.
Optics matter, people.
What would you say to a primary challenge of Burr by Vince Coakley?
Suggest his name to the SCF. I do not know enough about him to say, but we need a good alternative to Burr.
That is quite a suggestion. I could easily get behind Coakley with my voice and my wallet and a Coakley candidacy would make liberal heads explode.
Dear Observant,
You must consider the principles of liberty irrelevant in order to make such a statement about Greg Brannon.
Unlike you,I’m inspired by every word Greg Brannon utters, and absolutely amazed at his knowledge and commitment to EVERTHING that matters when it comes to governance.
The problem is that we need less of your ilk making decisions, and more people who are informed so that they will know how lucky we are to have a high quality candidate to support, like Greg Brannon.
Dear “Observant Debate Watcher”,
It is ok to disagree with someone on the issues, but to attack someone personally like you did is childish. It just proves you have no idea what the issues are or what the Constitution even says. To make fun of or put someone down like that only proves your ignorance and you are the problem. You have no idea who Greg Brannon is or what he stands for. If you were man enough to talk about the issues, you would call Dr. Brannon on his show and debate him. Yet you stoop to childish behavior and hide behind a fake name. Man up dude…Greg Brannon has and he is fighting the real fight!
Give me a break.
I have met him and agree with him on most issues especially the social issues.
It is important that people who want to be the standard bearer for conservatives actually work on the way they communicate their message. Dr. Brannon needs to get a media-savvy person to help him with how he communicates with people not to change his stands on the issues.
Sorry but if people want to be public servants they must be able to communicate with the people they hope will elect them and who they hope to represent.
Really, is it that difficult to come across as sane and is it too much to ask for that a candidate take the time to communicate what he/she stands for without looking like an idiot in the process?
Not being a politician and coming across as a politician is one of the best things about Greg Brannon. He speaks from the heart, not a script or talking points. He is real, you don’t see that EVER in the political world. We need more Greg Brannon’s…not tear down the one that is fighting for us.
Greg Brannon does have some work to do on candidate skills. He would make an outstanding senator, but to get there, he needs to be a better candidate. I saw his improvement on the campaign trail from an early event to a later one, where he became more focused on current issues and less longwinded. I think he still has room for improvement.
He also needs to have more coordination with his campaign team on message. I am not sure which side the problem was on in the last campaign, maybe some of both, but in a successful campaign, the candidate and the campaign team need to closely coordinate on message.
For Godsakes, move on from Brannon if you want to primary Burr. He is a good man, but an awful candidate.
Burr needs to go. I like Greg Brannon. He is a great guy and he knows his stuff, but if he truly cares about advancing liberty in NC then he needs to recognize that he is damaged goods and that he needs to help us find a better candidate who can really start a fight.
He needs to endorse Vince Coakley!
My parents grew up watching Ronald Reagan on the TV. Well, I grew up watching Vince Coakley on TV. He saw me off to school every morning!
Vince has the ability to establish wide appeal on a level that Brannon could never quite tap. DRAFT HIM FOR 2016!!