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A Plea to John Shadegg
Don't Retire, Congressman
By Bluey Posted in Congress | John Shadegg — Comments (16) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
Twenty-six Republicans are departing the House this year. Only one of them is being asked to stay. That either says something profound about the other 25 or something very special about that lone congressman.
Like my fellow contributors at RedState, I have great respect and appreciation for Rep. John Shadegg. After announcing his retirement earlier this week, Shadegg has faced a flurry of requests to reconsider. The pleas seem to be working. Shadegg will reportedly spend the weekend "pondering whether retirement is really the best thing."
The Arizona Republican has been on my radar from the time he served as chairman of the Republican Study Committee. I was proud to be part of the editorial board at Human Events that endorsed his candidacy for House majority leader in January 2006. We supported Shadegg again in November 2006 when he ran for House minority whip.
Although Shadegg failed to topple the Republican establishment on those occasions, he made a lasting contribution in both races as the candidate who stood for reform. In his first race, he denied Rep. Roy Blunt the top spot, paving the way for Rep. John Boehner to lead the GOP. Boehner brought with him a commitment to clean up Washington's wasteful spending habits -- a charge he keeps to this day. We have John Shadegg to thank.
The loss of Shadegg would be devastating for a party that's trying to return to the principles that propelled it to victory in 1994. Shadegg was part of that special class, and he's been a tireless advocate for fiscal discipline, smaller government, lower taxes, a strong national defense, returning power to the states, and greater personal freedom.
Today 145 members of Congress signed on to a letter urging Shadegg to reconsider. Another letter is in the works from the public policy community and conservative movement. I want to add my name to the list of those making a personal plea to Shadegg. He's a special congressman who has much to offer on many issues. Keep your fingers crossed that he changes his mind.
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A Plea to John Shadegg 16 Comments (0 topical, 16 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
It Has to be
by Whitehorse
a humbling & gratifying experience to have so many people recognize the contributions & worth of Shadegg, regardless of his final decision. I hope he stays, somewhat selfishly, because until we get all 435 we can't have enough good, solid conservatives who "get it."
I usually ignore political gossip, but on p. 102 of "Below the Beltway," author John L. Jackley wrote that Shadegg was caught in flagrante delicto with the wife of fellow GOP freshman Rep. John Christensen of Nebraska - by Christensen himself!
The page that contains the allegation is posted here.
I would blow it off, but the accusation is in a book published by Regnery, which owns Eagle Publishing, Inc., which owns RedState. Can someone at RS contact the folks at Regnery for a reality check on this?
We already had that one, thanks. <NT>
by Moe Lane
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
was it true or false?
by Troy Art
Did anyone at Regnery back up this accusation, or was this dismissed as horse hockey some time ago?
I couldn't find anything online that debunked the charge of adultery or the ensuing fistfight with the cuckolded husband.
Thank you for phrasing it that way.
by Moe Lane
It removes a certain doubt in my mind about whether you'd actually care whether or not it was true.
:holding up hand: Please. It's late, and I need my sleep. Save the disingenuous reply for the morning.
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
Character counts.
If the allegation is true, I'd say that this is no great loss to the GOP delegation and the voters of AZ can find a candidate who'll represent them and their values.
If the allegation's false, I won't be purchasing any more Regnery books.
:clapping: Nicely done, Troy.
by Moe Lane
Either way, you get to attack something conservative.
Mission accomplished, and we're horrible, horrible hypocrites. Now get off this thread before I do it for you.
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
And, just so you know:
by Moe Lane
This line you're peddling would be a lot more believable if your last visit here hadn't been a similarly ham-handed attempt to change the narrative. So work on that, 'kay?
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
You have the relationship backwards
by Ben Domenech
1. Regnery is owned by Eagle, not the other way around. We have no relationship with Regnery - in fact, we have to go through the same channels other bloggers do to ask for review copies of their books.
2. This book was printed in 1996, when Regnery was under completely different leadership. Think about it: you ask us (Redstate) to make a statement about an author we don't know and a book we have no relation to or opinion on. There is no one here who was around in 1996. I was 14. Demanding a "reality check" on this is simply ludicrous.
3. This is one of a number of rumors of infidelity on the GOP side, and is printed as such if you care to actually read the text in the page you linked to. Doing a bit of digging, it seems Jon (not John) Christensen divorced his wife in 1996, and it was widely rumored at the time that she had had affairs with any number of people on the Hill. These rumors were all unsourced, and each more lurid than the last - such things can be bought for pennies in Washington DC. And it seems that in this case, Shadegg and others publicly refuted this incident at the time - scroll down to the second item here. It seems it was a different gentleman (if you can call him that) entirely.
Shadegg insists he's happily married and that the face-off never happened.
Shadegg told us, "When I heard the rumor, I went to Jon Christensen. He told me he'd heard six other members of Congress mentioned." Together they hatched "a strategy to dispel this silliness." Christensen suggested that they sit next to each other on the floor so that "you and I can be seen talking cordially."
According to Shadegg, Christensen "knows who the guy is. He's not a congressman. He lives in Kansas. I understand Jon walked in on his wife with this man."
Christensen, a conservative member of the Christian Missionary Alliance, might want to blame the Democrats for the gossip. But it's also been the talk of his fellow Republicans.
"We're not sure how it all got started," said a source close to Christensen. "But it doesn't affect him."
To compare to stories that are actually believable, I'd point you to the widely-sourced cake and overalls incident involving Jim Moran, as reported in the Washington Post. Other people saw this one, not just unnamed Hill staffers.
While out of Congress now, Christensen has apparently bounced back - following shortly after his divorce, he married Miss America.
As for John Shadegg, we judge him not on what you would like to be true or what rumor mongers say, but on what we know to be true: that he has been and continues to be a hero for conservatism, that he and his wife are reportedly happily married and have stayed that way in the thirteen years since this incident was originally "reported," and that this is now the second time you've come here repeating accusations spawned at Crooks and Liars.
Hence: Goodbye.
Not to mention all the other one-handed readers descending on this thread, of course. :)
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
Perhaps his decision is motivated by the fact that he is trying desperately to make a difference but gets back-stabbed by the rank and file D.C. insiders who like the 'business as usual' routine.
Seems like that is how many of us who fought so long and hard for the GOP are feeling these days. What good does it do when you want to fight but are surrounded by appeasers?
This is the reality we deal with, and it's the day-to-day ordeal that Shadegg has to endure. Hell, who is likely going to be his party's nominee for president but the biggest sellout we've seen in his party's history!
That would be more than enough to prove to me the futility of fighting alone. My best to Representative Shadegg. He was one of the worthy few. I don't blame him if he's had enough.
Oh and I almost forgot, I'm still not voting for John McCain regardless of who his VP is or who he runs against. Since the GOP wants to commit suicide, I'm standing aside and letting them.
It's not just
by kchand
GOP suicide. It's about doing real harm to this country. Do you remember the 4 years of Jimmy Carter?
He needs to stay
by FirstState
His solutions on health care are the only way out of the mess we're in. He needs to stay and finish the job, lest we end up with "free" government-run care.
__________________________________________
Delaware Politics
We need Shadegg
by Kristen Luidhardt
I completely agree and appreciate your post. My former boss, Rep. David McIntosh, came to Congress in '94 along with Shadegg., and he always spoke highly of him.
We need his leadership. I hope he reconsiders.
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Thanks for saying that.
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I'd like to see Shadegg stay for another term because I have the feeling this Congress is going to need him -- badly. He's spent a long time in Washington and I'm sure there's a part of him that wants to return home, to a more normal life, to live with actually normal people again, but I hope he'll think it over carefully before he throws the key away...
Because our Congress is going to need a guy like Shadegg in the House of Representatives. Because he has the unequivocal support of Conservatives and because I was proud to help his bid for Majority Leader. And because although I don't know his plans, I think one of the most important places he can be -- for America and for Conservatives in 2008, is in Washington.
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