Boyda Embraced by Republicans

Ally Klimkoski is a founding blogger from Everyday Citizen, Future Majority, and authors the Youth Guide to Politics for WiretapMag and The Nation. She is a well known national progressive blogger that lives here in Kansas and often advocates for Rep. Boyda's policies. We are excited to have her guest post here today.

Republicans are having a political orgy today talking about the New York Times piece that addressed all of the problems Rep. Boyda might face if Sen. Hillary Clinton is the democratic nominee for president.

I think its nice to let them have their time to play and declare victory before any votes are cast. As my momma would say in that sweet southern way of hers, bless their hearts....

What is neglected by media and clearly all of the conservatives drooling over this is that the article talks about how embraced Rep. Boyda is by Kansas Republicans.

"The mere mention of Mrs. Clinton’s name as a potential president drew a strong reaction from Tom Doperalski, an official in rural Pottawatomie County who had just finished meeting with Ms. Boyda about how to contend with growth issues arising out of the increase of troops stationed at nearby Fort Riley.

“The people I talk to, they just cannot imagine a worse scenario,” said Mr. Doperalski, a Republican who heads the county commission. “They just don’t think she can be trusted.”

Its no shock that Hillary Clinton is not a friend to Kansas Republicans, and I think its safe to say that they aren't interested in sharing a pizza with her any time soon. But these same Republicans, the ones who don't work for the Kansas GOP, or for the Jenkins or Ryun campaigns, still address their admiration of the dedication Boyda has for the KS-2.

Greg Unruh, the administrator of a hospital that she visited the other day, said, “I may be of a different political party, but she has done a good job as a freshman.”

And Mr. Doperalski, the county commissioner, as well as his two fellow Republicans on the three-member board, says any antipathy toward Mrs. Clinton will not necessarily mean enmity toward Ms. Boyda. “She will be judged on the job she does,” he said.

So... Republicans seem to like her. At least the ones that aren't right wing nutjobs.

Also, notable is the commentary on Media Matters who mentions that none of the democrats quoted in the piece say that Clinton would be a problem for Boyda:

"In his article, headlined "Vulnerable Democrats See Fates Tied to Clinton," Hulse quoted only three Democrats: Reps. Nancy Boyda (KS) and Chris Van Hollen (MD), chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and Clinton communications director Howard Wolfson. However, none as quoted supported Hulse's assertion that "some Democrats in Republican-leaning states and Congressional districts ... fear ... sharing the ticket" with Clinton.

[...]

"By contrast, Hulse quoted two Republicans asserting that Clinton would hurt Boyda's chances of re-election if she were the Democratic nominee: Patrick Leopold, campaign manager for Kansas state treasurer Lynn Jenkins, who is running against Boyda, and Pottawatomie County Commissioner Tom Doperalski. But while Doperalski stated that "[t]he people I talk to, they just cannot imagine a worse scenario" for Boyda than having Clinton as the Democratic nominee, Hulse also reported that Doperalski "says any antipathy toward Mrs. Clinton will not necessarily mean enmity toward Ms. Boyda."

Rep. Boyda has done a spectacular job declaring her loyalty not to a party but to her district. With her recent war against NAFTA as an indicator and Jim "Gone Washington" Ryun himself as the contrast, it isn't hard to see why everyone, regardless of party is grateful for Boyda's leadership.

As a refresher - Weekends Boyda Spends in Kansas: All but a few. Weekends Ryun spent in Kansas: Few if at all. Of course one weekend it was because she was in Iraq with the troops... What about landmark Legislation passed by Boyda in just one year rivals work done by both of her opponents? And, how many times has Lynn or Jim been on Lou Dobbs talking about stopping Illegal Immigrants?? And at the end of the day Rep. Boyda doesn't live in a 7br house or a house that was a gift from Tom Delay and Jack Abramoff.



Special Note to Conservatives: Take some time to talk to your own voters about what's important to them. You might be surprised how out of touch you really are.