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Friday, Oct. 1, 2010 | 2 a.m.
Jon Scott Ashjian may be a self-aggrandizing egomaniac who is in the U.S. Senate race only for attention.
But even so, he sure got attention this week — from a well-known D.C. lawyer, who called him to see if he could be persuaded to get out of the race, and then from Angle, who met with him the following evening to no avail.
"I'm in it to win," the colorful — and quite possibly delusional — Ashjian said in an interview Thursday, adding more spice to a hot race that shows just how worried the Republicans are about the Tea Party of Nevada candidate siphoning votes from the Tea Party Express darling.
If white-hot comments about autism and incendiary comments about hot senators aren't crazy enough for you, how about that D.C. lawyer on tape calling Ashjian "a whack job" and Angle meeting with him at the home of the Republican who was crushed by Harry Reid in 2004?
If I hadn't heard the voice mails and talked to everyone involved, I wouldn't believe it myself. But here's what happened, according to what I have pieced together:
Sometime last week, Sid James, the titular head of the Tea Party of Nevada, talked to an Angle supporter, who wished to remain anonymous, and they had a conversation about Ashjian hurting Angle's chances to defeat Reid. So the Angle operative called Cleta Mitchell, a bigfoot D.C. lawyer with experience in many campaigns and who is helping Tea Party darling Christine O'Donnell in Delaware, too.
What followed next is too weird to be true.
Mitchell talked to James, who then called Ashjian. That's where the stories begin to diverge.
"She threatened and bullied me," Ashjian claimed. "She told me she wanted me to withdraw as a candidate because I was helping Harry Reid. I told her, 'Obviously you haven't read The Wall Street Journal.'"
That was a reference to a recent piece in the national newspaper, a profile of Ashjian he seems quite proud of.
"She kept repeating to me, 'If I'm in the race, Sharron can't win. I am ruining it for them.' She wanted me to do the right thing and step aside."
Ashjian added, "Nobody can get me out of this race but me. As goofy as it sounds, you're going to see in the next few weeks, the race is between Harry Reid and Scott Ashjian."
Actually, that sounds more than goofy; it sounds downright insane.
Which is, in a nutshell, what Mitchell said about Ashjian when I talked to her late Thursday, sentiments she repeated in voice mails I obtained in which she emphasizes the importance of Ashjian endorsing Angle but also derides him as an egomaniacal loon.
"He had a list of demands and wanted us to get litigation dropped," Mitchell said (denied by Ashjian). "By the end of the conversation, I thought this was pretty crazy because this guy is nuts. I knew that this was not going anywhere."
Mitchell apparently tried to call James to tell him about the fruitless conversation, but dialed a wrong number (twice) and left some tart voice mails that I have posted on my blog.
Mitchell told me she didn't bother telling Team Angle about the conversation because she thought it was a waste of time for Angle to meet with Ashjian, as she claimed he demanded. (Ashjian says he was asked to meet with Angle.)
But Angle, who probably would meet with just about anyone, met with Ashjian for an hour Wednesday evening at Richard Ziser's home — you may remember him as the author of the anti-gay marriage amendment who lost in a landslide to Reid in 2004. But Ashjian said he has no interest in getting out and told Angle so.
Angle's campaign confirmed the meeting late Thursday.
Said spokesman Jarrod Agen: "Ashjian's team approached our campaign and asked for a meeting with Sharron because they thought that his candidacy was helping Harry Reid. Sharron agreed to meet with him and made it clear that any vote not for Sharron Angle is a vote for Harry Reid."
But did Angle try to get Ashjian to relent and endorse her? "She said she'd appreciate his support same as she would say to anyone else."
Well, not quite anyone else. Just the guy with the big ego and big mouth who will be right below her on the alphabetized ballot and who could take enough votes to cost her the race. Or at least that's the possibility Team Angle and Mitchell considered this week, giving Ashjian a chance to look important and them to look scared.
"I'll invite you to Charlie Palmer's in D.C. for the victory party," Ashjian told me.
My question: I wonder if he'll be invited.
Jon you need to discuss issues like Yucca
A review of recent emails among certain Reid staffers, Jaczko staffers and officials with NRC Office of Congressional Affairs show frequent contact among the three. They are heavily , redated to prevent seeing if they are trying to influence NRC deliberations on Yucca Mountain. Whatever the reason for NRC's delay on the Yucca decision, the South Carolina and Washington officials told the D.C. appeals court Monday it should wait no longer. "Briefing before the NRC was complete in mid-July, more than two months ago," says Monday's court filing. "The issue should be capable of a relatively swift resolution, as it is an issue of statutory construction and does not involve any factual disputes...." But "despite the NRC's promise to 'move with all due haste' to reach a decision, the NRC has remained utterly silent since this court vacated the expedited briefing and argument schedule" in late July, the South Carolina and Washington officials said.
Some officials and others speculate that Jaczko may be trying to delay the Yucca vote until after the November 2 election, and thus protect Reid from an embarrassing Yucca re-birth if NRC does not overturn the CAB decision. An NRC spokesman declined comment Wednesday on the timing of NRC's action on the Yucca case. Importantly, there are many other reasons that could be delaying NRC's release of the Yucca decision, not the least of which is the difficulty of negotiating what will be the most closely watched commission decision in years.
The emails between Reid, Jaczko and the NRC Office of Congressional Affairs cover the period between March 2008 and April 2010. Released as the result of a Freedom of Information Act request, they are partly redacted, and the communications of certain staffers are fully redacted.
Just as killing Yucca violates clear directives in the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to develop the repository, killing the congressionally mandated OCRWM violates the law, said the South Carolina and Washington officials. The NRC is reviewing a June decision by a panel of NRC judges, known as a Construction Authorization board (CAB), which said DOE has no authority to yank the Yucca license application, Although there is no solid information to support this view, each passing day without an NRC decision on Yucca feeds speculation that the delay may be tied to Reid's Senate re-election battle in Nevada.
O/T: As usual bleakFuture goes off on another 2000-word cut and paste tangent about something totally unrelated to the subject at hand.
Scott Ashjian has won a surprising amount of support because many right-wingers question Sharron Angle's mental stability. In a choice between two loons Ashjian is slightly less loony.
I agree with LastThroes' assessment that between those two, Ashjian appears to have some semblance of rationality, but not much.
I actually think Ashjian in the race will be good for Sharron Angle.
That way, when she gets vaporized and Senator Reid wins, she has someone to blame her loss on. Because we all know that Sharron Angle points the finger all over the place and blames everyone for everything. Everyone except...herself.
I can see it now. The first thing that emits from Sharron Angle's lips after the election is over: "It was a communist islamo nazi socialist plot by that nefarious triumvirate of impending doom comprised of President Obama, Senator Reid and Representative Pelosi to split the votes!"
It never ends in the Tea Party faction world of the Republican Party. They always stay in character and resort to acting like a rabid chihuahua dog in attack mode.
You've got to love democracy. If thirty people want to get on the ballot, and they all follow the rules and somehow get on the ballot, then we have lots of choices. That should be good for everyone, including the person who comes in second and now has the chance to say, "We wuz robbed!"
This election needs to be made into a movie.
Too bad we don't have a parliamentary system that would allow more views to impact the political process.
Asijian is a solid candidate for the teabag movement, and dovetails beautifly with others in the same political mindset: Palin, O'Donnell, Limbaugh, Sean Insanity,
pjoke:
[[Ashjian is NOT a serious candidate, as we all know. Ralston likes this guy because he guesses he will take votes from Angle.
Sorry, Mr. Ralston. this guy will take votes from Reid, why?
Most voters dislike Reid, but many also do not like Angle due to Reids lies and smears.]]
++++++++
In what universe is playing back a person's own words lying and smearing? Sharron has provided all of the material used against her. Ashjian, if he has any impact at all on the race, will most certainly take votes away from Angle, not Reid. I just received my ballot yesterday and there was Scott's name right under Angle's.
She called Ashjian a whack job??
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! That's rich!
It won't be that close... Angle and Ashjian combined have no chance.
There are not enough idiots even in Nevada to elect them.
Memo to right-wingers:
Scott Ashjian is the Tea Party cnadidate.
Sharron Angle is the Republican Party candidate.
Why is that so hard to understand?
I'm stocking up on popcorn and soda! It's gonna be a wild ride!!
"Ashjian will draw votes from Reid. This happens because the ONLY voters left that can be fooled by him, are disaffected DEMOCRATS."
each dem that votes for Ashjian, or for none of the above help Angle.
Bwahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!! Ah, Hahahahahaahahahaha!
LOL
Most democrats can be called a lot of things by their opponents, but stupid, delusional, and crazy aren't on the list when you mention voting for tea party candidates to them!
Think about this--if we were not forced by law to pay taxes, to support the illegal household's, we would have more than enough money to concentrate on our own impoverished American people. My guess the unions do not want billionaire Meg Whitman in office, because they will not be able to influence her as Jerry Brown with questionable monetary favors and campaign contributions? Let's face it--after a whole year has passed, this elusive illegal alien female maid comes out the woodwork to accuse Whitman, of all sorts of improprieties. This lady has already admitted she broke immigration laws by using false identification, and then she suddenly comes forward to denounce Meg Whitman. Unions and other entities have plenty of money to spend, to deceive the Public with their own ideological premise? Incidentally--Gloria Allred has a ominous agenda and a political appointee of Bill Clinton. It's my opinion as an Independent that its all a fabrication.
Call up your Senator or Congressman at 202-224-3121. Remember if we don't speak up for ourselves--NOTHING WILL EVER CHANGE. Lastly, keep a intelligent eye on the polling stations as illegal immigrants who have given us the finger on our immigration laws, will think nothing of violating our sovereign citizen's rights in fraudulent voting, especially with absentee ballots in states with slipshod laws.
But nothing can be done about those who already have violated our laws, except mass deportation or the permanent operation of verifying the legal status of labor, by using highly upgraded E-Verify. The (FAIR) Federation for American Immigration Reform (an activist group concerned in reducing immigration to the U.S.), used the U.S. INS (ICE is the new merged version) statistics on how many illegal immigrants have illegally settled in each state. The U.S. Dept of Education's current overheads per pupil by state, and found the estimated cost of educating illegal immigrants students and U.S. citizen children of illegal immigrants in 2004 was $29.6 billion. Seven years later the amount appropriated as currently cannot even be imagined? In 2008, about 344,000 babies were born to parents of whom at least one was an illegal immigrant. These babies were given legal status, under the Fourteenth Amendment , as American citizens.
These offspring represented eight percent of the 4.3 million births in the United States that year. These figures are just estimates of illegal immigration to the United States, and there is very little data on the dollar value placed on taxpayers. However, one thing is a 100 percent for sure the cost of supporting foreign nationals and their broods, far outweighs what they pay in taxes or any other expenditure and is still spiraling upwards. This is why all incumbents must not be given a second chance, beginning with Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV). Reid like all the others has turned a blind eye to taxpayers in subsidizing millions of illegal aliens. His own state of Nevada as with California is overwhelmed with illegal aliens and the taxpayers have grave concerns for their sinking economies. We need representation of new Governors, Mayors and elected officials, who are opposed to any kind of Amnesty, such as the Dream act or the subtle description of a path to citizenship.
I'm not overly fond of Meg Whitman, Carly Fiorina but she at least won't sacrifice California taxpayers as Jerry Brown to adjoin with other pro amnesty entities. The majority of Democrats are pro-amnesty, although a few Republicans are corrupted by special interest groups to attain the goal of allowing--ALL-to stay. I repeat that business owners in the majority find no responsibility in paying for health care, education or a mixture of other freebies. Barbara Boxer of California is a strong advocate for Amnesty, so is Speaker Nancy Pelosi and many others, who if are returned to their Washington seat will aggressively seek another negative reform. This retaliation against all incumbents is the measure of proof that they have ignored the interests of all Americans, who have not been indoctrinated by the lying of the Liberal media or the open border fanatics. American voter's message is clear-- that it's time for you to adjourn and go back to a private job or just retire on your copious benefits.
Its incumbent open-season, that all those who oppose immigration enforcement must be discarded, so legitimate lawmakers can take their places. Immigration law comes down to the main matter and that's money? It's the costs that American taxpayers have to bear, to subsidize anybody who slips past the border agents, or deceives the federal inspector at the airport. Costs to support illegal immigrants is substantial and the politicians, open border lobbyists don't want the true costs to be revealed to the American public. If the--REAL--fences had been constructed the full length of the US/Mexican border, Arizona would never have needed to enforce its own immigration laws. The whole cheap labor invasion has always been about money, throughout the most highlighted 30 years. Both parties must be held responsible, for this invasion.
Nothing more than silly gossip- a distraction from the real issues. Vote for Sharron Angle
Harry Reid will sail to a solid win.
Crazy teabaggers will pack their nutty tea bags
and go home.
#1 in unemployment.
#1 in foreclosures.
#1 in bankruptcys
#50 in education.
How do you like what Harry Reid has done for Nevada so far.
The craziness never stops...Angle actually believes that Dearborn, Michigan is under Sharia (Islamic) law!! Where are the guys with nets when you need them!!
A more likely scenario: voters go into the voting booth and realize that the choice is between sanity and insanity. They get serious and realize that they don't want to be governed by someone who isn't firing on all cylinders. They know that can't be good for Nevada.
Reid wins by 10-15%.
notacon......can I place a bet on your 10-15% prediction?
Hey, Sun! Why do I get the feeling that solsinner is pjoke aka gbigs?
Is it because of the multiple posts on each and just about every story? The same words and writing style? That solsinner magically appeared right after pjoke disappeared? Or is it because solsinner agrees with something pjoke said the day after it was removed?
Sgt..I'll buy you a beer if I am wrong!
It's too late, republicans.
Voters already know that Angle is the most
extreme, radical to ever run for public office.
Every plan that she has is BAD FOR AMERICANS.
SAVE OUR STATE AND COUNTRY,
VOTE HARRY REID.
As for republicans on this web-site, who change
their web-name every other week, it will not
help you.
This is typical republican deception.
Republicans can't stop lying and can NEVER be
trusted. It's in their DNA.
I disagree with you, teamster.
Republicans are not allowed to have DNA.
They don't want to be traced to anything. They continue to strive for plausible deniability.
In the Republican world, if caught in a lie, respond, "NO! It was a communist islamo nazi socialist conspiracy to insinuate I said that, and anyways, if I did say that...I MISSPOKE!"
Or just use Sharron Angle's new campaign slogan... "That's not what I said...."
And if none of the above works, just jump up and down, froth at the mouth and scccrrrrrrrrreammmmmmmm, "THE DOG ATE MY HOMEWORK! AND I'M STICKIN' TO THAT STORY!"