Wednesday, November 15, 2006

Simmons Concedes

Classy exit:

Here in Connecticut the people have made a choice, and so the question is, “Where do we go from here? Do we continue the effort as was the case in 1994?”

I say “No!” Let’s not prolong the uncertainty. Let’s call it a day. I concede the race.

I wish Joe Courtney and his family all the best in the future. He ran a good race, and he deserves our respect. Although we may have disagreed on some issues, we were never disagreeable in our personal relationship.

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

I hear there are some republicans in Enfield who are glad Simmons lost. Whoever was running for the House seat in the 58th said that Simmons should have lost, because he is a RINO.

Not alot of help.

Anonymous said...

Classy exit, the way we loose tells more about us than the way we claim victory.

Good job Representative Simmons!

Anonymous said...

I hope there is still a place for gentlemen like Simmons in politics. I love the photo on the NYT web site of Hillary looking anguished over the Pentagon testimony. It is, oh, so much easier to throw stones than build a solution ....

Gabe said...

Maybe head of the state GOP?

Anonymous said...

Anon5:02--

Smell the coffee. There is no solution to Iraq. It's humpty-dumpty.

If there is a way out, it would only be through the creation of a new strongman, along the lines of Saddam Hussein. But having sold the world on a new Iraq "democracy", even that would be seen as an American failure.

Watching the hearing today on C-Span, I am amazed at the whining of State Dept. spokesperson David Satterfield. "Iran and Syria are undermining our efforts..." No effing kidding. I mean who would have expected that, the Shi'a pushing for payback against the Sunni, and control of Iraq. In the immortal words of Condi Rice, "Who could have imagined!"

Geez, Condi. I don't know. Maybe none other than Daddy Bush, Brent Scowcroft and Colin Powell.

Anonymous said...

I gained a newfound respect for Simmons during this recount battle. His class has been unmatched.

I think head of the state GOP would be a fine place for Simmons. Maybe he could whip the party back into winning shape.

Anonymous said...

Simmons should retire. The Republican party is done in Connecticut as is much of the Country. Maybe Rob could consider a local council or board of Ed seat but Republicans are history in Connecticut for at least a decade or longer.

Anonymous said...

Anon 528 -

Keep telling yourself that. Does the party have some issues? Yup. Is the party "done"? Nope. Reality check - it was only 91 votes. That ios far from done.

Anonymous said...

How about Rob and Nancy Johnson as co-chairs of the CT GOP? One takes the east, the other the west. If they are into party-building, it would be a great dynamic duo.

Genghis Conn said...

Simmons is all class. An honorable exit for an honorable guy. We'll see him again someday--if not in 2008, then in 2010.

Anonymous said...

MVD:

(I'm anonymous 5:19.) I am an unabashed Courtney supporter and completely disagree with Simmons politics and the negative tone upon which he ran the campaign, however, the dignified manner in which he has carried himself after the election is worthy of respect.

Anonymous said...

Kudos to Rob Simmons!

Very classy and graceful exit. He reflects well on CT.

fuzzyturtle said...

I don't live in his district.. but that concession speech is a breath of fresh air.

Gabe said...

I'm with anon 5:19 and 7:22 - I'm pretty sure I don't agree with Simmons on anything and, in the rare case where I do agree with him, its probably because he was caught and released owing to his Democratic district. But that was still a classy exit.

Anonymous said...

The Second CD won't be close for a while. It had a weird series of events the past decade or so: first, an unpopular Democrat (Gedjenson) who managed to hold on as long as he could, then a Republican who was a decent guy with excellent constituent service who could mask his GOP voting record.

It's a strongly Democratic district and a good D incumbent like Joe Courtney won't have a problem getting re-elected in the future.

Anonymous said...

I think Rob is still spry enough to make a comeback in '08....the wind way have shifted a lot by then

Notice the Dems lost a lot of ground in the Gov's race from 02 to 06...eastern CT may not be as Dem generically as it once was

Anonymous said...

Jodi will be forced to say nice things about Joe Courtney for the next 2 years unless she wants to take some hits from her House & Senate Leaders. This should keep Rob out of the seat in 2008. You also cab bet Chris Shays will be giving Joe C a few pats on the back too.

Anonymous said...

"There is no solution to Iraq"

Sure there is- Stop the PC touchy-feely BS and start pounding on suppliers of insurgents.

A clue for ya, it isn't Iraqis trying to kill our troops.

Anonymous said...

Oh please Anon 8:25, you know full well this gubenatorial was out of the ordinary and not indicative of a trend.

Anonymous said...

John McCain and Rob Simmons '08 ticket? :-)

Anonymous said...

ABout as likely as the F. Flintstone/B. Rubble ticket

Anonymous said...

SENATOR SIMMONS rolls of the tounge nicely as well....

Anonymous said...

Congressman Simmons was an honorable Republican hack. He is a military gentlemen who served his President in the military, CIA, and as a congressman. Problem is his job was to serve the 2nd District, not the President, in Congress.

Anonymous said...

If only Lieberman could have conceded the primary as gracefully.

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