Fact: Dan Evans was an essential figure to the history of the Republican party in Washington state, including its rise under the leadership of Evans himself, Slade Gorton, Joel Pritchard, et. al. [pan to the exploding head of Doug Parris]
Current reality: Dan Evans's ongoing drift to the left appears to have rendered him out of touch - literally - with the GOP today. From the Herald of Everett earlier this week:
"It's foolishness that the Republican Party has basically lost the support of much of the Puget Sound. That should be our strength," Evans said.Republican leaders said the party needs to recruit more candidates who better represent the communities they wish to serve.
"You cannot get one mold of the candidate for every single office," Evans said. "The kind of candidate that will win in the farm country of Eastern Washington is not the kind of candidate who will win the suburban crescent of the Puget Sound."
What's missing?
Evans acknowledging the actual candidates who ran great races in suburban districts (including the 6th, 25th, 26th, 41st, and 44th LD's). They actually fit the mold of his sentiments above. It's unclear if he's aware what these candidates were doing on the ground this year.
Why reporters keep turning to him for analysis of the current GOP is beyond me.
Posted by Eric Earling at November 12, 2008 07:36 PM | Email ThisRossi is no political genius. Evans doesn't get it any more. And neither does FORMER Sen. Gorton.
There's a reason Slade lost as well... so using him for anything wasn't the brightest move Rossi could have made.
Posted by: Hinton on November 12, 2008 09:11 PM" Why reporters keep turning to him (Dan Evans) for analysis of the current GOP is beyond me. "
For the same reason they talk with Alex Hays and Chris Vance and Luke Esser and etc., because they share the same political agenda and by talking among themselves they substantiate each other and fabricate the image of a 'Republican' Party that serves their political self-interests at the exclusion of all others.
Posted by: b on November 12, 2008 09:14 PMAnd WRT ''at the exclusion of all others'':
Are you suggesting that party leaders and candidates for Governor should all be in the same mold as former State Senator Ellen Craswell ??...
Yeah; THAT would really increase the (R) vote percentage in state-wide elections. sheesh....
It's similar in Illinois with Jim Edgar, but much worse. At least Dan Evans doesn't "think about" coming out of retirement and running again every cycle and at the last minute saying his wife won't let him.
Posted by: T.J. on November 13, 2008 01:46 AMhttp://www.thereaganwing.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=PagEd&file=index&page_id=370
Posted by: Doug Parris on November 13, 2008 03:19 AMDan must have missed the out of state infiltration by other states to the Puget sound area (primarily California) since the time of his glory days.
Posted by: Rick D. on November 13, 2008 07:06 AMMany of the environmental rules of today came from the Evans administration. To his credit in those cases, it was more a policy of doing the best you can than punitive measures like today. Much, much different from the enviros of today. It was more practical.
Obviously, the guy has lost it and hasn't adapted. He is like the Jackson Democrats who refuse to accept what the Democrat party has become. Evans refuses to accept the futility of talking to the greedy neoDemocrats.
Posted by: swatter on November 13, 2008 07:30 AM" I can and will happily support Luke Esser to serve another term as State Chairman; he's done a good job. "
You would. By your standards, I can understand why you would think " he's done a good job. "
" sheesh.... "
Posted by: Brian Thomas on November 13, 2008 07:43 AMReally? I must have missed it. How much did Rossi win by, again?
Evans has zero impact in politics. Zero. He is so politically tone deaf that he qualifies for a disabled parking permit.
What he WAS doesn't matter. The question is this: What is he now? And what he is NOW is someone who could quite comfortably run as a leftist like, say, Rodney or Jarrett.
As a result, few really give a damn what Evans thinks. And in the end, the ONLY question that matters when it comes to which "political icons" you use to shill for your campaign is this:
Did you win?
If you didn't win (and I don't believe Rossi did win) then it was a bad idea... kind of like supporting the waste of $75 million for a fricking basketball team when the people in the largest voting base in the state not only said "no," but "HELL no."
Someone on this board (me) said that was a very bad political move. Someone on this board (me) from that point forward said that Rossi was going to lose.
Clearly, pulling Evans out of the cupboard like a fire extinguisher availed Rossi nothing, except further confirmation of his "Mainstreamer" cred.
And how'd that work for him?
Posted by: Hinton on November 13, 2008 08:48 AMAn easy one, Eric. Because his constant refrain that the Republicans' problem is that they're too conservative fits with their own prejudices. That despite the fact, as you point out, that the candidates who have been running and losing in those districts by and large have been just the kind of "moderates" Evans says we need to be running. Nevertheless, both he and the press have their story, and they're sticking to it.
Posted by: friar on November 13, 2008 09:01 AMThe demographics of Seattle and the surrounding urban environs has changed dramatically since Evans first won election in 1964. Back then we even had a Republican Mayor in Seattle. We haven't had another one since 1969.
A Republican couldn't get elected in Seattle now if his name was Barack Obama.
Republicans need to quit obsessing about earning the votes of big city liberals. It just isn't going to happen. Ever.
Even worse, if Republicans continue to pander to the left ala McCain and Bush they won't win independents and Reagan Democrats either.
Posted by: Bill Cruchon on November 13, 2008 09:31 AMI didn't see a whole lot of vitriol in the above posts. There were a lot of time has passed and facts from his previous flirtation with power as the governor, but no, I didn't see what I would call vitriol.
Posted by: swatter on November 13, 2008 12:45 PMIt's a fools errand to attempt to appeal to urban areas that are overwhelmingly populated by the hard left.
If the Republican Party really believes it can win over cities full of angry, body-pierced, abortion pushing vegetarian socialists they can forget about ever winning another election.
Posted by: Bill Cruchon on November 13, 2008 01:00 PM" To read the vitriol expended on Dan Evans, a good, decent man, reinforces my decision to pick and choose on the GOP ticket. Most of the current crop could not carry this man's jock strap! "
" this man's jock strap "
What use would Dan Evans even have for a 'jock strap'?
Posted by: Brian Thomas on November 13, 2008 02:11 PM