ON TARGET

11-14-17        By Dave Gunn

 The Hit

        Things were going well for Judge Roy Moore.  He had emerged from the primary as the leader, vanquished the Swamp favorite Luther Strange, and had opened up a double-digit lead over Democrat Doug Jones, whose campaign to present himself as a centrist instead of the pro-abortion, anti-traditional marriage far-leftist he really is had failed to gain traction.

      Then came the hit.  The Washington Post, a liberal paper with a declining circulation yet great influence among the liberal lap dog fake news media, published a hit piece designed to take Moore down.  Four women – Leigh Corfman, Wendy Miller, Debbie Gibson, and Gloria Deason - accused Moore of various improprieties from sexual to alcoholic beverage misconduct, all almost 40 years ago and supposedly occurring when they were underage and Moore was in his early 30’s.

      This immediately stampeded the Washington establishment Republicans who could not distance themselves fast enough and far enough from Roy Moore.  Many said that, if the accusations are true, he should quit the race for Senate. Few defended him.  Some, most notably John McCain and Mitt Romney, demanded that Moore step down due to the seriousness of the accusations whether they were true or not.  We wonder if they ever heard of “presumed innocent until proven guilty?”  Yours truly hopes that, if he is ever accused of a crime, John and Mitt are not on the jury.

      It is interesting how that Democrats will not throw one of their own under the bus even when he is guilty (Bill and Hillary Clinton), but Republicans will do so with a mere accusation absent any proof. This fecklessness has ruined many a promising political career.

      We remember Herman Cain, whose presidential campaign in 2012 was gaining in popularity.  Then several women oozed out of the woodwork to accuse him of sexual offenses.  The outcry was so great and the support from fellow Republicans so lacking that he quit the race.  As soon as he dropped out, the accusers disappeared.  Mission accomplished.  After all, the party that claims a lock on the black vote could not allow a black conservative to be nominated by the Republican Party.

      So what do these accusers of Roy Moore want?  When asked this question, Gloria Deason’s attorney, Paula Cobia, said, “ . . . no glory, no  financial  compensation, no justice.”  Well said.  For the women to get any financial compensation or justice, they would have to prove their accusations in open court.

      Now Beverly Nelson has accused Moore of trying to sexually assault her about 40 years ago when she was 16.  She claims that Moore locked her in a car, but when he was unable to overcome her pushed her out of the car while it was moving.  This immediately raises a few skeptical questions: [1]  How did Moore push her out of a locked car?  [2]  Why didn’t her parents, noticing the wounds she must have suffered from being pushed out of a moving car, not take legal action?  This too does not pass the smell test.

      Meanwhile, it has been discovered that at least one of the women, Debbie Gibson, is a Democrat operative with ties to Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, former Senator Patrick Murphey and Senator Bill Nelson.  At this writing, investigation is being made into the other three women.

      The Washington Post has claimed that these women did not seek out their paper.  So how did their reporters know anything about them?  Did they come down to Alabama and interview women door-to-door until they found four accusers?

      Still, the story didn’t begin with the Post.  There are two likely sources.  One is the Doug Jones campaign, which was getting desperate as their numbers sank far below Moore’s

      The other is the Washington Republican Swamp, led by Mitch McConnell and the Senate Leadership Fund, both embarrassed by Moore’s nomination over their hand-picked alligator, Luther Strange.  Certainly if they are not the source, they are glad for whoever is, for there is now talk in Washington about either mounting a write-in campaign for Luther Strange or refusing to seat Moore if he is elected.

      Either would be a serious tactical error.  In the first case, the division of the Republican vote would give the election to Doug Jones.

      In the event Moore was elected but not seated, the conservative/Christian grass roots in Alabama would be so turned off that they would stay home and allow Democrat Doug Jones to be elected in a second special election just to teach the Swamp a lesson.  Of course, that might be more palatable to them than to have a Republican senator they can’t control.  What they may not realize is that Moore’s supporters have very long memories, and their wrath might extend into the 2018 election.

 [Dave Gunn is the nom de plume of Dr. David E. Gonnella, Pastor of the Magnolia Springs Baptist Church in Theodore, Alabama.  The opinions expressed are his own, and do not necessarily reflect those of the church or its membership.]