Without a doubt Republican action in Delaware in 2010 ranks as the most idiotic of the 2010 and 2012 campaigns. Of the races I've written about so far a lot of the really stupid stuff the candidates said came after they won the primary. Delaware is a very different situation, which is why it takes the title of dumbest Republican moves in 2010 and 2012.
In the Republican primary in 2010 the voters were faced with two choices, a moderate Michael Castle and a Tea Party radical Christine O'Donnell. Considering the deep blue nature of Delaware you might think it doesn't matter who the Republicans choose as they are going to lose anyway. Well Michael Castle was not just any moderate Republican, he was extremely popular in Delaware. In fact he had won 12 statewide votes prior to 2010, never losing. In 1980 he won the lieutenant governorship and the governorship in 1984 and 1988. He then went on to win Delaware's At-Large district from 1992 - 2008. The lowest percentage he got as representative was 57% in 1992. He was so popular in the state that in 2008 when Republicans were being obliterated nationwide and when Obama won 71% of the vote in Delaware, Castle still won, also with 71% of the vote. So what sort of résumé did Christine O'Donnell have that the GOP chose her over Castle? Well in 2008 when running for the same Senate seat, O'Donnell lost to Biden by almost 30%. If it doesn't seem stupid enough already, early polls showed Castle beating Democrat Chris Coons by 20%.
If that's not bad enough, O'Donnell also said some pretty crazy stuff. She said masturbation was the same as adultery, there were weekly school shootings after prayer was removed from school (it was never in schools), insulted Castle's manhood, claimed that God audibly spoke to her and told her of his support, evolution is myth and that the government is 50% of the economy. Despite all these crazy comments and beliefs, I've saved the best two for last.
At one point O'Donnell admitted to having dabbled in witchcraft and that one of her first dates took place on a Satanic Altar. These comments led to the creepiest campaign advertisement of all time. Watch it here.
My personal favourite O'Donnell quote was on she said to Bill O'Reilly on his show whilst they were discussing monkey cloning.
Yeah, she seriously said that!
O'Donnell eventually lost to Democrat Chris Coons by 17 points in a race they were sure to win if they had chosen Castle.
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| Michael Castle source: www.wikipedia.org |
If that's not bad enough, O'Donnell also said some pretty crazy stuff. She said masturbation was the same as adultery, there were weekly school shootings after prayer was removed from school (it was never in schools), insulted Castle's manhood, claimed that God audibly spoke to her and told her of his support, evolution is myth and that the government is 50% of the economy. Despite all these crazy comments and beliefs, I've saved the best two for last.
At one point O'Donnell admitted to having dabbled in witchcraft and that one of her first dates took place on a Satanic Altar. These comments led to the creepiest campaign advertisement of all time. Watch it here.
My personal favourite O'Donnell quote was on she said to Bill O'Reilly on his show whilst they were discussing monkey cloning.
" American scientific companies are cross-breeding humans and animals and coming up with mice with fully functioning human brains."
O'Donnell eventually lost to Democrat Chris Coons by 17 points in a race they were sure to win if they had chosen Castle.
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| Christine O'Donnell source: www.theaustralian.com.au |
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