(GOP State Rep) Debbie Stafford Switches To Democratic Party

[truthpusher]

Source: AP

Debbie Stafford Switches To Democratic Party

By Steven K. Paulson, AP Writer

Saying the Republican Party no longer represents her values, GOP state Rep. Debbie Stafford of Aurora announced Thursday she is switching parties, becoming the 40th Democrat in the House of Representatives.

(snip)

"My answer was to join a party that better reflects my values and respects my contribution. I am not leaving the Republican Party as much as I believe the Republican Party left me," she said.

(more)

Read more: http://cbs4denver.com/local/local_story_284175841.html

[MannyGoldstein]

1. Most Republicans Would Be Right At Home

Hell, today's "Democrats" are far to the right of most Republicans of the past 60 years. Crap, it was a Democratic president who pioneered outsourced torture!

[Froward69]

2. muckraker... Who then?

[MannyGoldstein]

3. Who First Outsourced Torture?

Clinton.

[Froward69]

4. Prove it!

[MannyGoldstein]

7. Read It And Weep

Really weep. Because it is very, very sad. Of course, most folks on DU really don't care. But, hopefully, you will.

http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/10/30/061030ta_talk_mayer
http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2005/02/14/050214fa_fact6

[Froward69]

11. No weeping here

OK the new yorker... "Rendition was originally carried out on a limited basis, but after September 11th, when President Bush declared a global war on terrorism, the program expanded beyond recognition."

ok before bushieboy... Limited basis. I dint think this is anything necessarily new. I wouldn't place it squarely on Bill clinton. Ive read stories of episodes during the cold war... I really don't mind. The expansion part is what I have a problem with.

be careful your argument is straight out of the repukes play book. I am centrist but not conservative. I see propaganda and revile it.

[MannyGoldstein]

12. Do You Really Want To Defend Torture?

Kidnapping a person from one country to send them to another country to be tortured is awful. Just awful. Utterly and totally unamerican, and uncivilized. Clinton was the first to do this.

Why on earth would you defend this practice? Do you actually think it is anything other than abominable?

[Froward69]

13. nice trap you got there

I aint falling... no we would do better playing chess, a real woman for them, rewarding compliance. and so on. that gets results. bushy boy fails to realize torture does not work. why are you needling???

[MannyGoldstein]

14. This Isn't A Game. It's A Simple Fact.

At least consider it a bit.

[cstanleytech]

24. I don't give a flying

*^$@ who started it first, its wrong and it should be stopped.
So lets stop trying to play the he did it first game as a means of justifying the use of torture and stop our government from being twofaced and not torture people and that goes for the childish games of "define it" as well that I have seen going on.

[IndianaGreen]

27. Sorry, but MG is right. Bill Clinton began rendition in 1995

I started a thread about that within the last two weeks, with articles and links provided.

The only difference between Clinton and Bush renditions is that in Clinton's case, he had a foreign power do the kidnapping, while Bush has the CIA do it. In both cases, the torture is done in and by another country on our behalf.

[stillcool]

6. The CIA?

[paulk]

10. go shit on an MA thread

as a resident of CO, I'll take this.

[usregimechange]

5. CO turns blue-er!

[NoGodsNoMasters]

8. Realtively meaningless, in the scheme of things...

But it gives me a little charge nonetheless. Another one down, and now on our side, cool stuff.

[Mojorabbit]

15. I am leery

of party changers esp if they are socially conservative. If they are going to vote with the republicans on certain matters instead of with the Dems we end up with Joe Leibermans in our party. I am glad that more republicans are opening their eyes but would rather have more progressives....

[codjh9]

9. Yeehah! If only more of the Republican VOTERS would realize that this ain't the

party of Eisenhower any more, or even NIXON! And switch over. (Why would I say Nixon? Well, I believe the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act went in when he was in office... it wasn't until Reagan that the environment became something to forget about and ridicule those weirdos for caring about it).

[minnesota_liberal]

16. Dems control both chambers of the CO General Assembly

CO State House: 40 Dems vs 25 Repubs

CO State Senate: 20 Dems vs 15 Repubs

[aaronbees]

17. One at a time ..... eom

[flaminbats]

18. Will she run for Congress next year?

I doubt she switched parties to join the majority in the state House, especially since she can't run again. Tancredo is running for President, but Stafford would have a chance of winning in the 6th district. she would also make an excellent candidate to replace Wayne Allard.

[Toots]

19. Oh boy another DINO

Just what the Democrats need.

[Didereaux]

20. Another 1940-1950's Dixiecrat.....whooopeee! yeah right n/t

[Javaman]

21. Funny how she changes a year out from elections.

if she really believed that the republican party left here she should have changed back in 2000 when they fucked the election.

nothing to do with party affiliation, everything to do with getting reelected.

[davidinalameda]

22. who cares why she switched now

the thing is that she switched

[Progressive Friend]

23. Rats, sinking ship, etc.

[IndianaGreen]

25. I don't care for any of these fair weather friends.

Back in the 1980s, several Democrats switched to the GOP using the same pretext that Debbie Stafford is using. The bottom line is that these politicians like to remain in office and that once they realize their party is on its way down to a major defeat, they will do anything to remain in power, including changing party affiliation.

Senators Shelby of Alabama and Nighthorse Campbell of Colorado were Democrats that switched to GOP. We don't want this sort of scum!

[cali]

26. So you didn't care for Jim Jeffords?

True he didn't become a dem, but he firmly allied himself with the Senate dems, just as Bernie has.

And before you start blasting him, make sure you're aware of his record in the House and Senate.

[Toots]

30. Ben Nelson has allied himself with Democrats as well

I would feel better if she were to declare herself an Independent. When she says she is a Democrat and then votes with the Republicans how does it make one feel? If she had integrity she would say she was an Independent.

[Quantess]

29. It's only one of a long list of political tricks

that help a politician stay in power.

[MetaTrope]

28. So, what's her voting record?

[El Supremo]

31. Stafford has been invited to our Democrat's HD40 meetings next week.

It will be verrrry interesting. We worked so hard to unseat her and now she is supposedly one of us.

She HAS said that she will not be running for anything in the future. But who knows?