Dems Boosted Trump-Backed Republican Doug Mastriano for PA Governor and Now He Could Win
“Honestly, I feel this is Mastriano’s campaign to lose.”
Democrats have been playing with political fire, and now it may come back to burn them.
They raised the profile of certain ‘MAGA Republicans’ because they thought those would be the easiest candidates to beat. One of those candidates was Republican Pennsylvania governor candidate Doug Mastriano.
Now Democrats are coming to terms with the reality that Mastriano could win. Talk about a backfire.
Holly Otterbein reports at Politico:
Democrats boosted a MAGA longshot in the Pa. gov’s race. Now he’s got a real shot at winning.
Jackie Kulback was just one of the Pennsylvania GOP leaders who was worried in May when Doug Mastriano clinched the Republican primary for governor.
Mastriano was a MAGA state senator who worked to overturn the 2020 presidential election and Kulback thought he would struggle to win the critical battleground state in the fall. But she’s feeling differently these days.
“The higher the gas prices go, the more electable Mastriano is,” said the chair of the Cambria County Republican Party. “Honestly, I feel this is Mastriano’s campaign to lose.”…
But as the political environment has worsened for Democrats across the country, the gubernatorial race in Pennsylvania has begun to look more competitive than either party expected. Polls show Mastriano behind Shapiro by only three to four percentage points, which is within the margin of error. Though many still have doubts about Mastriano’s ability to run a successful campaign, that has made Pennsylvania Republicans more optimistic — and served as a wake-up call for Democrats, particularly in the wake of Roe v. Wade being overturned.
Here’s a question. If MAGA Republicans are such a threat to our democracy, as Democrats have insisted, why are they boosting these candidates?
Is it possible that Democrats were lying, and this is all really just about politics? It sure looks that way.
Ben Zeisloft of the Daily Wire notes that the Democrat candidate Josh Shapiro is starting to sound a little panicked:
Despite working to select Mastriano as his opponent, Shapiro has been highly critical of his rival.
“I am someone who has stood up for law enforcement. I am someone who has stood up for the rule of law, and he has been the exact opposite. He is dangerous,” Shapiro told KDKA. “He is destructive, and I would argue just for the fact that he was there on January 6 and sided with the insurrectionists over law enforcement, he is unfit to be the governor of the commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”
Pennsylvania is poised to be among the most closely watched states in the midterm elections.
Won’t it be fun if Mastriano pulls this off?
Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.
Democrats boosted a MAGA longshot in the Pa. gov’s race. Now he’s got a real shot at winning. https://t.co/7STjR1UTp5 via @politico
— Pradheep J. Shanker (@Neoavatara) July 20, 2022
Featured image via YouTube.
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Comments
The only endorsement that has counted this year is Trump’s. That is not an accident and speaks volumes about how mistaken too many Republican “conservatives” are for belittling and discounting Trump with the same insults the Dems and NeverTrumpers use. Luckily, there are far more of us who “get it”.
#meantweets2024!!!!
Good, because it looks like Oz is likely to lose by a large margin even without cheating.
Still can’t understand why Donald gave the nod to a Muslim fully embedded with all the Islam trappings. Islam and its Shariah (considered divine and directly from their Allah) is utterly incompatible with the Constitution.
Apologists will claim 4-D chess, or some Secret Plan.
Oz is of Turkish descent and was born in Cleveland, He ain’t exactly a bomb throwing radical. As you may know, Turkey is far from being a radical exporter of terrorism or jihadists. Quite the opposite. Modern Turkey remains largely secular in comparison to Iran or Saudi Arabia.
Not every follower of Islam is the same any more so than every follow of Christianity or of Judaism is the same. Some could and have argued that aspects of Christianity and Judaism are incompatible with our system.
For example Placing ones obligation to the Constitution might be viewed by the uncharitable and extreme as placing worldly interests and fealty in place of God; ‘ thou shall have no other gods before Me’.
Oz’ wife is a Swedenborgian.
I’m just glad I don’t live in PA. I would not want to vote for Doctor Oz and for kind of different reasons (that take all the points for and against him into account). But I happened to catch a clip of him on his show literally cringing over video of an African woman who somehow ended up with maggots in her lip. Yes, it’s gross and disgusting, but this woman was a patient, afflicted with a horrible condition that she had no control over (I didn’t follow up, but it seems that woman had a cut lip and random flies laid eggs there), and “Doctor” Oz was grossed out, on national tv. It was unprofessional at best, a grimace for ratings at worst. Can’t stand the man.
Out of Oz or McCormick Oz was the more conservative because he might have be telling the truth that he changed his positions while we know McCormick endorses Davos, and cancel culture applies to corporate America for left wing political causes.
By the way if Oz was a Muslim that would make me more likely to vote for him because it would mean he shares most of my values when it comes to social issues, and I do not for a second believe the hyperbolic Bush era demonization.
Please put the Bush era dehumanization campaign against Muslims out of your head, we are either going to win as a religion based coalition or be swept aside by secular leftism.
“By the way if Oz was a Muslim that would make me more likely to vote for him because it would mean he shares most of my values when it comes to social issues”
Keith Ellison, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, Andre Carson
I’ve only met a few Muslims personally and we didn’t discuss politics, so I don’t know if you are right or wrong, but the track record of those on the national stage does not bear out your statement. I’m willing to be convinced, but I want to see strong, principled support for the Constitution by an elected Muslim first, with a healthy percentage of Muslims in his/her district or state voting for him.
Like Ilan Omar?
You mean progressive secularists with Muslim parents?
Fine allow me to knock the hell out of your stupid argument
Christianity is a progressive leftist cult
1. 48 Democrat senators (only one not nominal Christian is Chuck Schumer)
2. Every Democrat congressman with the exception of the two squad members who are nominal Muslims
So you came up with 4 progressive leftists with parents who are Muslims
I just came up with hundreds all of whom are more influential you dummy (Governor of Minnesota by the way is to the left of Keith Ellison and a “Christian”).
Find me an Imam who endorses CRT, Transgenderism and abortion (Muslim youtubers by the way loved Matt Walsh’ documentary).
Keep dehumanizing Muslims you will make secular leftism look better to them.
“Out of Oz or McCormick Oz was the more conservative because he might have be telling the truth that he changed his positions while we know McCormick endorses Davos”
Way to gloss over the third choice, who would have been better than either.
Because Trump knew the third choice would surge at the last minute? Because he is some kind of wizard?????
I’m not even someone who usually defends Trump but criticizing him for wanting the beast of Davos to not become a senator is absurd.
I wish she had won, I am glad that at least the worst option available failed.
You seem to treat elections as horse races. If you back someone who doesn’t represent (indeed, historically violates) what you believe, just because you think he has a better chance of winning than the candidate you would otherwise support, what does that make you?
First you sir failed to address let alone refute a thing I said which is a sign of a small mind and someone not arguing in good faith. I have never seen you engage in debate you tend to just throw a soundbite and tune out.
Second there was no evidence in 2016 that Trump was in any way a conservative.
Third with Oz how do you know Oz isn’t telling the truth about his changing positions? Trump was in the same position in 2016.
Furthermore when Trump made the endorsement the choice was Oz or McCormick. McCormick is 100% a leftist. You can’t back use of corporate America as a tool for enforcing leftism on the culture without being leftist and if you support that I don’t give a dam what you feel about taxes or the traditional Republican wasting money on the military, and no you won’t tempt me with a promise to cut funding for social security.
Oz never said he supports corporate America cancelling conservatives and using its power to enforce progressive leftism, McCormick did.
Out of the two of them it is much better Oz won there is a chance he is one of us. There is a 0% chance McCormick is.
Feel free to go back to LI threads from the primary to see that I was supporting the third option that surged at the last minute.
I live in the present not the past and I want Oz to win not the Democrats to take the senate sorry if you are having trouble getting that through your head.
You shouldn’t even give a dam who wins the senate you support the status quo of leftist oligarchs doing everything undisturbed by Republican legislators, and have called legislating based on Marsh v Alabama “Totalitarianism” (your words).
My understanding is that Oz kept his duel citizenship not out of any loyalty to Turkey but because it was the easiest way for him to get into that country to see his extended family. I know many people in my area that are duel American/Canadian citizens and no-one questions their patriotism. When I enlisted in the Army I even rode south to catch the plane with 2 guys from Quebec that joined our military instead of theirs.
Dual citizenship is more common than you might expect. The US has both Jus Solis and Jus Sanguinis citizenship, along with a lot of other countries. There was a brouhaha over Sen. Cruz’s Canadian citizenship, but that was because he had Jus Sanguinis US citizenship through his mother, and Jus Solis Canadian ship due to his father bringing the family to Alberta for work. Had there been no Castroite revolution in Cuba, with its change in citizenship law to rid the country of opposition, Cruz would’ve been born with three nationalities.
Because all options on the table sucked. But Trump demonstrated that his endorsement matters. The problem is not with Trump but with the PA GOP. At least Oz wasn’t endorsed by Pence or McConnell or Cruz (who always seems to endorse the RINO favorite).
Oh shut the hell up. Enough of this strident anti-Muslim garbage from the right.
Did you see who was running? It wasn’t like there was a good choice.
It is pretty early in the campaign to tell. His opponent is far left wing and due to health unlikely to be an energetic campaigner.
If Oz runs a smart campaign against the Biden/Obama agenda he probably has a pretty good shot.
You’re trying to convince hopeless Trump-hating nose holders.
That was a reply to Ironclaw.
My son who then voted for Biden because he didn’t like Trump and thought Biden would be a moderate…
has said that after 3 months of Biden he wished he had voted independent, after 6 months of Biden wished he had voted for Trump, after a year of Biden decided it would be a long time before he ever voted for any Democrat for anything, no matter who was running for the Repubs.
That is an example of sanity.
Why anyone would vote for Dems for anything unless they are already one of the 30% who will vote D no matter what, idk.
Hopefully there is enough sanity in the hinterlands of PA and enough suppression of the cheat to prevail.
A slow mugging, in other words. No doubt his opinion is widely shared.
“after 3 months of Biden he wished he had voted independent, after 6 months of Biden wished he had voted for Trump”
Makes me wonder what “voting independent” could possibly mean in this context.
Jo Jorgenson?
Pat Paulsen?
If I had to vote “independent”, Pat Paulsen would be my choice. In every race.
It meant that he was regretting voting for Biden, but had not yet overcome his dislike for Trump
Back when I was still technically a Republican, the Colorado Republican Party did not like the overwhelmingly nominated Republican candidate for governor here, because the TEA Party liked him. They refused to campaign for him in any way and paid for an “independent” candidate. Watch what the Pennsylvania Republican Party does, and do not forgive any treachery.
Subotai Bahadur
Thank you! Someone who can actually see through the anti-Trump nonsense. It doesn’t matter who won the GOP nomination in PA. All of the candidates were awful. Trump demonstrated that the voters are following his lead so your observation is dead on. The GOPe is doing the same thing in Georgia and Arizona. It’s the McConnell vs MAGA battlefields.
What a delicious irony if Mastriano has enough coat tail to sweep in Oz in his wake…
Same thing going on with the Maryland Gubernatorial race. DNC funded ads for Dan Cox thinking he’s unelectable. Surprisingly, Cox beat out the establishment so while it’s a long shot in deep-blue Maryland, Biden buyer’s remorse might make this a close race. Maryland sorely needs a change of direction.
Democrats who disapprove of Biden generally think he is being to weak and soft on Trump and Republicans, that he is deliberately stalling his agenda in congress and that he isn’t left wing enough, isn’t doing enough of what Fauci tells him to do and isn’t shutting down the oil industry fast enough etc.
Left wing populists disapprove of Biden for those reasons, politically they are not your friends and they are the Democrats most likely to hate you. They aren’t voting Republican.
We really need to stop planning based on delusion. Every conservative politician who has counted on left wing populists both here and in Europe has lost. We ran the experiment. Left wing populists aren’t voting conservative, their policies and rhetoric has a near total overlap with mainstream left wing parties here and Europe.
I count on people noticing how much it costs to fill their car up and how much that weekly trip to the grocery store has increased in cost over the last year or so. Even communists have to eat, and they notice when it takes most of what they have to pay for it.
In other words you are not counting on his overall approval rating but on courting people who aren’t leftists.
Biden’s poll ratings are highly misleading, leftists just feel he doesn’t do enough lockdowns, isn’t destroying the oil and gas industry fast enough and doesn’t arrest enough people for wrong think.
Your method good, using Biden’s approval rating bad. Not a single right wing politician who has courted the populist left has been rewarded for it.
In AZ, it’s the Republican establishment that is doing the job for Democrats.
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2022/07/20/proxy-war-establishment-tries-to-take-on-trump-again-this-time-in-arizona/
How can there be anyone left who doesn’t accept that 2020 was a stolen election?
Key word Phil being “accepted” ( as opposed to “know”)
As I said in a thread a while back, “accepting” the election is the key to identifying the RINO.
There are simply 2 choices ( not a 3rd)
Trump won the election and it was stolen from him OR
Joe Biden got 81 MILLION votes ( more that Trump and more than Obama ever did)
The left’s stake in this is obvious so no need to discuss that motivation- lets move to the RINO.
Since Trump ( and millions) had a SUSPICION of election theft- then the fiduciary duty of the GOP should be to ensure Joe Biden actually DID get 81M votes. (That establishes the baseline because with Trump as the “claimant”- the burden of proof is on him alone)
The left should have gone along with this WILLINGLY because if you ever wanted to “SHUT TRUMP UP AND TOTALLY DOWN” and basically bring his existence and influence to an end forever and ever A-men- then PROVE he LOST.
Conduct an open and transparent audit from ballot to verification to vote then add them up. If Trump looses then rub it in his face until he does the “wicked witch” thing and melts into the ground. At that point, Trump has no alternative, no case and no come back- he was beaten fair and square in the middle of the ring.
The left’s ( and RINO) argument of “there’s no evidence” is a lie routinely used by professionals in legal-speak to avoid a point almost like a suspect saying “I don’t know what you are talking about”- it means NOTHING.
Here’s why- to START any investigation- there must be REASONABLE SUSPICION ( the lowest bar) that a crime has been committed. Its the investigation that gathers/vets the EVIDENCE.
The left and the RINO colluded to STOP the process of investigation even WITH REASONABLE SUSPICION ( plenty of legitimate stuff ranging from statistical analysis, videos and everything else.
They did the usual “play on words” trying to exchange “evidence” for reasonable suspicion in terms of definition and application.
Every individual who has ever been through “statement analysis” and the Reid Technique interrogation training knows how this works- its a standard employed almost everywhere.
So, at the end of the day- it was not ( and never was) any “claim” by Trump or anyone else that shows the election was factually stolen that stands the test of scrutiny…
Its all the effort from the Left and the RINO which refused to “prove” Biden legitimately got 81M votes that shows the election was stolen. They did this by obstructing or going around every legitimate attempt to follow the law and let reasonable suspicion ( the legal standard) to spawn a proper investigation.
Trump ( nor anything he said or did) had any effect on THEIR actions ( and lack of)
So, any RINO who wants to “move on’ or “accept” the results without a proper investigation and vetting is a co-conspirator in the theft either before, during or after the fact.
Excellent analysis and breakdown of the Left/RINO strategy to quell any doubts about or resistance to the validity of the election results.
Spot on!!
@Delight, Thanks
Trump hit the left in the ideology and fractured them.
He hit the RINO in the wallet. (RINO’s like that “soft power” and getting the purse from being the perpetual “contender”)
The left is easy- they hate Trump because he is the antithesis of them and they make that clear.
The RINO doesn’t love or hate Trump- they simply had to restore the cash flow and the “system” where they can perpetually be the underdog needing funding.
Like medicine, Trump was there to CURE problems- not “manage” them into eternity while draining an IV of green from the public till and private interests.
The RINO realized real quick after seeing many of Trump’s successes that they too would be held to that standard ( yes, they would actually have to DO something and not just ask for money to “eventually” do something)
The turtle, Linda, Pierre and the rest simply will never allow themselves to be pushed into a position where they will have to take an action. Working takes away from fundraising.
That’s why they got on board and covered for the left as well as obfuscating all efforts for MAGA candidates. “Winning” will cost them too much money.
That’s why they want to “move on” because they KNOW its INEVITABLE that their crimes will be discovered with any proper investigation so they have to PREVENT the investigation.
They know full well what the fruits of any proper investigation will be and they have from election night. (they knew before then)
NOW they fear the sizable group of MAGA candidates can form a “squad” big enough to start intimidating them and forcing that action ( or even worse- costing them their personal cash cow). That’s why they want MAGA to go away.
The TEA party was a concept and group of people and it did some good. MAGA is at the core of the American Way and transcends a concept or ideology but is ingrained in the American Spirit which is why they have such a time suppressing it and why it is passing all traditional boundaries.
Yes, the left and the RINO are scared- we need to keep them that way and be as relentless as they are.
Sorry, that’s an easy one to answer. They boost them because they’re confident they can beat them. They’ve been doing that for decades. Exhibit A: Todd Akin.
About time it backfired.
“They raised the profile of certain ‘MAGA Republicans’ because they thought those would be the easiest candidates to beat.”
Geez. These idiots learned nothing from, 2016, did they?
By all indicators Republicans should win everywhere, that don’t trust vote integrity in Philadelphia, surrounding counties and Pittsburgh is my concern
This x 1000.
It’s nice to see everyone’s confidence in Mastriano’s chances, but all this media means is to signal the Dems where they need to ramp up their cheating operations. Sad to say. IMO.
Why Trump MUST run in 2024 and win:
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2022/07/18/kasich-trump-ship-is-beginning-to-head-down-if-he-announces-for-2024-he-will-help-democrats/
It’s the final showdown that destroys the Uniparty. The Dems are self-destructing even with the help of the GOPe. The final blow will be Trump retaking the WH after getting robbed in 2020.
@meantweets2024!!!
If the Trumpers on this site are looking for Trump’s endorsement to matter in the General election, you’re in for a rude awakening. Mastrianno in Pa us getting his ass kickef by Shapiro in tv adverts. Mastriano is a clown and is going to get his ass handed to him. A disappointment in the extreme.
Trump is going to assure Republicans won’t win the Senate in November and he will lessen the “red wave” that could have been. Maybe then right wingers will get a clue. Probably not, however, if the commenters here are any clue.
Hello Troll
Go back and tell your handlers we are not buying what you are selling so run along back to Politico and take your crank with you.
Your conduct does reaffirm what we know that the left is really running scared- otherwise they would be gloating and not telling us how bad it would be.
You need to work on convincing yourself of your false propaganda first- you suck at direct marketing.
Your side is set to lose an Ohio, Georgia, and Arizona senate seat. Wisconsin is most likely a hold for us to.
I also doubt you want to bet on Nevada remaining blue in November.
Georgia is looking iffy, Danny. Warnock is likely to win. I doubt Abrams wins (again/sarc), but that’s not set in stone, either.
I should have paid closer attention to the Georgia senate race.
Either way we have pickups to.
Would have liked to see Larry Hogan run in Maryland, even as a longshot that would have forced Democrats to divert resources to defend what would be otherwise a safe seat.
Regardless we have opportunities for pickups, don’t let the Democrat narratives demoralize (or Republican narratives either).