Why are people worried about Steele?

[cobaindrain]

In my opinion, with 3 1/2 days to go until the vote, Cardin is pretty much almost "safe". Yet people here still think we might lose it and the lunatics on the right think Steele has a chance. Even Sean Insannity yesterday peddled false information at the beginning of his show and said Steele was winning.

All the polls from the past 7-10 days show Cardin up by 5, 5, 6, 9, and 5 points. Sure Cardin has narrowed it a little, but so has Santorum and Dewine...and even the GOP has given up on those two clowns and stopped giving them money.

The Steele/Cardin race has "settled", with so little time before the election there is probably little chance of any major movement in Steeles direction. Let's stop worrying about this one.

[Bitwit1234]

1. Wayne Curry

I think the democrats after the election should start a campaign against Wayne Curry.

This turncoat accepted help and support from white democrats all his political life. He had Jesse Jackson and all the big wig black democrats helping him. THEN after leaving office he fell into a deal and made a heck of a heck of a lot of money, in the Fort Washington deal.

Now getting all the help he could get from democrats,EXCUSE ME, WHITE DEMOCRATS, he hopes to join the republicans. He joined the republicans because the democrats don't do enough for blacks. How old was he and didn't his parents remember the Selma march. Where were the republicans. Does he remember the lunch counter incidents, where were the republicans. Doesn't he remember schools, they white democrats who were killed supporting the black people in the south. Where were the republicans.

WE ALL KNOW WHERE THE REPUBLICANS WERE. THEY WERE THE ONES THE DEMS WERE FIGHTING TO HELP GET EQUAL RIGHTS FOR THE BLACKS IN THE SOUTH.

So now Wayne Curry says the democrats don't do enough for black people.
WHAT HE SHOULD EXPLAIN TO HIS RACE IS WHAT THE REPUBLICANS HAVE DONE, ARE DOING AND WILL DO FOR BLACK PEOPLE. And tell the people how he could have gotten where he is now with out the help of WHITE DEMOCRATS.

[ChiciB1]

2. Russell Simmons Is Supporting Steele... That Much I Do Know... n/t

[truebrit71]

3. Russell Simmons needs to focus on promoting foul-mouthed comics...

...and shut the fuck up about politics then....

[fujiyama]

20. Then Russel Simmons is fuckin stupid

Any poor or middle class person that thinks a wealthy republican, cares about them, is incredibly stupid. Steele is the biggest fool of them all, used by the GOP like a fiddle.

Fuck Simmons. And fuck those supporting Steele and the likes of him. Steele is slick and I suppose a few will fall for his act.

I think most black people think of Katrina and other disasters when republicans come to mind. Their antics are really desperate this time like that ad with the two black women praising republicans and calling the Dem party the party of slavery.

[politicasista]

8. Cathy Hughes of RadioOne, TVOne is supporting Steele also n/t

[TheVirginian]

4. Three reasons:

1) First, obviously, is race. Steele is targeting African-Americans and infrequent votes, both of whom are regularly underpolled.

2) This race isn't like Pennsylvania or Ohio, where DeWine and Santorum have never held a lead. Steele also is not an incumbent, so while those two elections are "referendum" elections, Maryland has a "choice" election, which is also more competitive.

3) Steele has run an extraordinary campaign. Most of the buzz about him has been completely self-generated, as opposed to candidates hyped by family name or by outside groups. People weren't paying attention to Maryland until Steele made them pay attention there. This is never something you want to shrug off.

A five-point lead with four days to go is far from "settled".

[shireen]

9. the race factor

Steele is targeting African-Americans ...

He's wasting his time; most African Americans are too smart and saavy to fall for Steele's pandering BS. Baltimore City is predominantly Black, yet they consistently voted for Irish-American rock star mayor, Martin O'Malley, over other Black candidates. They know who best represents their interests, and will vote Cardin for Senate.

...infrequent votes ....
Infrequent voters won't vote unless they're pissed off. This election gives them a lot to be pissed off about, so I doubt if Steele will get their vote.

Steele has generated attention because he's refused to refer to himself as a Republican in his ads.
:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:
Great way to appeal to his base!

The determining factor in this race will be the damn voting machines. Will they screw up again, like they did in the primaries? I can't believe we're having this problem in 2006, 36 years after we landed men on the moon! :grr:

[Hippo_Tron]

15. Isn't the race factor also not represented in polls from the white perspective, though?

Aren't there going to be a lot of Republicans who will get in the voting booth and say "I don't want a black senator" or just stay home on election day for the same reason?

[Burma Jones]

5. Steele has also been advertising himself as a Democrat

He's a scummy piece of work. There are a few guys in PG county that want to punish the Maryland Democratic Party, so they're backing Steele. They should be hung out to dry.

[LZapata]

6. Don’t Count Your Chickens

Anyone who underestimates Steele’s chances almost certainly is unaware of the depth of the resentment in the African American community. A lot of people are very, very unhappy at the way Mfume was treated by the Democratic establishment. I support the Democratic ticket, but I was Mfume’s Volunteer Coordinator of Volunteers for Montgomery County, and I know much he was shunned by the powers that be (who also did their best to make fundraising difficult). With less than a tenth the money, and almost none of the power-brokers behind us, Mfume came within three (yes 3) percentage points of winning. Most folks in the Black community know that if it had been anywhere near a "level playing field" Mfume would have walked away with the election.

That disappointment/anger could easily result in a Democratic loss to a conservative Black candidate.

[shireen]

11. Mfume, an amazing man but not as well known around the state

That disappointment/anger could easily result in a Democratic loss to a conservative Black candidate.

I doubt we'd see that kind of backlash. They're going to vote for the lesser of two evils, in this case, the lesser evil would be the Dems.

I'm disappointed by the way the Senate primaries turned out for Mfume. I was rooting for him as our Dem. candidate. My fear is that he's not well-known in the rural areas and small towns in MD, and that could have worked against him.

[FreeStateDemocrat]

12. How would this help the working class people of MD or our country?

Voting based on race rather than the issues is fundamentally wrong. Since you may know, is Mr. Mfume actively supporting Ben Cardin? Obviously, all Democrats should support the candidate that will do the most for our working class and we both know that is not Steele. I hope that a significant portion of Black community is not so shortsighted that it will not recognize the fact that Mr. Mfume has a bright future in the Democratic party in Maryland, in whatever direction he choices, that is not based on his race but his excellent character and leadership. I found him to be a very articulate spokesperson for key Democratic values and l would have supported him vigorously had he won the primary or in any future contest. Now is the time for Democrats to come together and put their differences aside and elect the person who can help our state and country the most, Ben Cardin. After the election, the differences and grievances you have stated need to be fairly resolved but not supporting Cardin will only harm that process not advance it. Mr. Mfume, with his greater statewide recognition and demonstrated campaign skills, will make them heard through the strength of his showing in the primary contest and his hoped for assumption of the Baltimore mayor’s office. Maryland Democrat’s have to be looking forward to the realization of Mr. Mfume’s bright future and a Democratic victory next Tuesday can only strengthen the Black communities position in Maryland politics and a vote for Steele would be against the best interests of all conscientious, fair-minded Maryland citizens.

[newyawker99]

13. Hi LZapata!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[Burma Jones]

14. I think Mfume would have won the Primary for Governor

and you're right, with a level playing field Mfume would have won the Senate Primary. With a level playing field, we wouldn't have had Kerry as our Nominee in 2004 either.

That being said, if Steele wins, it will be a disgusting day in Maryland history.

[sampsonblk]

18. Welcome to DU!

Steele is a skillful candidate. His ads are meaningless, but very impressive for their tone. Unlike Harold Ford, Steele is smart enough to face the issue of race head on. I don't think he has a chance of winning. But his skillful run has solidified his place as a sell-out Republican we'll have to look at year after year. The GOP is going to keep this guy around for a long time.

[shireen]

7. i'll stop worrying when Cardin wins & and is sworn in.

Steele gives me the creeps, my BS meter goes off the scale whenever I see his commercials. I'll be very upset if he wins.

I lost confidence in our electoral process when Kerry "lost" the election 2 years ago.

I was not surprised by the MD voting fiascos during the primaries, it was an accident waiting to happen and the Democratic-led state legislature must take some responsibility for it. TrueVoteMD worked so hard for verifiable voting but unfortunately, logic does not prevail when it comes to politics.

Therefore, we can't be confident of anything till Cardin gets sworn-in as junior senator from MD.

[happydreams]

10. It's his name....

"STEAL": :scared:

[Hippo_Tron]

16. Well according to Steele's facebook profile

He's hip-hoppin his way to the US Senate.

[cobaindrain]

17. ha!

:)

[starmaker]

19. 100% VAPOR BALLOT

no way to count