(commented on April 27th, 2012 @ 6:43 am)Mr Cayton, et al,
Challenging a principle or an action on its merits should always be within the realm of fair play.
But placing blame for a firing circle when my candidacy and my person has been under attack since day three (many, many unfounded attacks, some withdrawn from the internet and some not. At one point 50% of my opponents website was dedicated to me, including a whole page because I was "whining" about her attacking me after we agreed to run a clean race) and then suddenly when my campaign responds, there is a response from you?
Where were you two months ago? You certainly weren't chastising your candidate for her personal negative (and mostly false) attacks.
You also seem to notice when one candidate was picked by a faction in Raleigh, but not your own candidate by another faction in Raleigh despite that she admitted that she was selected on tape in your forum.
You want to put forth a legislative candidate who's best trick is just attacking and sidelining other members of the party?
When Pat McCrory wins, when I win, when half a dozen other Republican candidates win that have been polarized by her campaign (and her choosing folks who she herself called RINOs only a year ago over other local candidates)... how is she going to come back from that? She cannot then support me, or Pat McCrory, or any of the half dozen others she has been sidelining because she has been tearing us down during the primary?
Before we started this race we agreed that we would run our own clean races and then whoever would win, would then support the other in the general elections. Be honest. That cannot happen any longer after months of attacks.
By all means, please criticize the application of conservative principles. Everyone certainly should do that. But this hypocrisy of trying to lay blame on others for this rift has got to stop.
This rift was started by one person and one campaign and it most certainly was not mine or the people who realized towards the end of the primary campaign that I was the strongest Constitutional Conservative candidate and then in turn backed me.
You cannot turn back time unfortunately. Perhaps Raleigh should have made a better "selection".