Analysts are pointing to Dem. candidate Danny O’Connor’s last minute admission that he’d vote for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House as possibly costing him support in yesterday’s special election in the OH-12:
After O’Connor admitted he’d support Nancy Pelosi as speaker on live TV, it became a defining moment in the final two weeks of the campaign. https://t.co/G8XXKLNW69
— Ken Spain (@Ken_Spain) August 8, 2018
And from the Cook Political Report’s Dave Wasserman:
A few positive developments for Rs in #OH12 homestretch:
1) Danny O'Connor (D) bungles Q on whether he'd vote for Pelosi
2) Anti-Trump Gov. Kasich (R), still popular here, agrees to cut ad for Troy Balderson (R)These could be the difference in a tight race. We'll see on 8/7.
— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) July 31, 2018
Here’s the exchange where MSNBC’s Chris Matthews got him to admit the truth:
Lotta what-ifs in a race this close, but I wonder how this one shakes out if Chris Matthews doesn’t wrestle O’Connor off his talking points on supporting Pelosi… https://t.co/B9OTAXZBHi
— Mac McClung Fan Account (@LPDonovan) August 8, 2018
And the GOP jumped all over it:
Here’s the TRUTH about #OH12’s Dishonest Danny O’Connor:
-After long dissing Pelosi, he now says he could vote for her as Speaker
-He’s been caught inflating his resume multiple times
-He’s echoed Pelosi talking points in opposing Tax Cuts— GOP (@GOP) August 6, 2018
Republicans are telling reporters that this made a difference in the race:
We’ve heard this before. Rs say they made Pelosi the issue — they say O’Connor really didn’t have any weaknesses besides her. (He was a good candidate, from my experience) pic.twitter.com/8X1W8eus4A
— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) August 8, 2018
O’Connor talked about Pelosi’ being “toxic” — CNN’s word, not ours — among “some” voters, saying Dems are ready for a “new generation of leadership.” John Berman let him off the hook and didn’t ask him to explain his Matthews comment:
"Folks are ready for a new generation of leadership. Families want to see Washington deliver type kind of actual solution for the things that they're dealing with,” #OH12 Democratic candidate Danny O'Connor says of his lack of support for Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi pic.twitter.com/TQ9B98Cugq
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) August 8, 2018
But over on MSNBC, he flip-flopped back to “no I won’t” vote for Pelosi for Speaker:
Danny O’Connor tells @JoeNBC “no I won’t” vote for Nancy Pelosi for Speaker of the House
— Michael Del Moro (@MikeDelMoro) August 8, 2018
Yeah, right. We’re pretty sure that if his vote made the difference between a Dem vs. a GOP for Speaker, he’d vote for Pelosi. The media folks interviewing him should call him on this.
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Related:
Did undocumented aliens (the kind from space) accidentally help the GOP in the #OH12 special election? https://t.co/k9KMLNl1d0
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) August 8, 2018
THERE it is! Alyssa Milano suspects 'Russian meddling' in #OH12 special election, and here's why https://t.co/jRNR9ps0dq
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) August 8, 2018
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