Florida ‘Gators for McCain’ Chair Resigns, Votes For Obama
Monday, November 03, 2008 at 12:29 pm
You know it’s not looking good for Sen. John McCain when the head of the University of Florida’s more than 1,000-strong “Gators for McCain” announced his resignation yesterday and said he had voted for Sen. Barack Obama.
According to The Independent Florida Alligator, the university’s daily student newspaper, Josh Simmons, chairman of the “Gators for McCain,” attended an on-campus rally featuring Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. Joe Biden yesterday, not as a protester but as a supporter.
“I wanted to see the next vice president of the United States,” said Simmons.
Simmons said he voted for Obama about two weeks ago.
“I’ve seen a different McCain than the one I signed up to work for,” he said.
While just one student, Simmons’ conversion is another example of Obama’s cross-party appeal. In my experience, students who join party and campaign-affiliated groups tend to be among the most partisan of the partisans. This is especially true of student officers like Simmons. If even a few of them on the Republican side are persuadable, that doesn’t bode well for McCain’s prospects tomorrow.
8 Comments
Comment posted November 3, 2008 @ 7:25 pm
I'm so excited to have already voted for Obama.
I'm middle class, I come from a small town, my family hunts and I know that Barack Obama is the best choice for me and my family.
Comment posted November 3, 2008 @ 7:56 pm
Liz, if you're from a small town, middle class, hunt, and voted for Obama; then you're mistaken. Obama does not care for or respect small town values (in fact he has been caught on camera making fun of them), is known to have supported every piece of anti-gun legislation out there, and his tax plan will likely raise your cost of living substantially. Businesses do not pay taxes, consumers do. All business taxes are passed on to consumers as a cost of production. When Obama says he will raise taxes on those evil rich he is going to raise prices on the people who shop at wal mart and who buy gas at the BP station. But hey, you never mind that, you just go be proud anyway. You voted for the least experienced candidate on half a century, and he doesn't reflect or respect the values you just daid you hold dear. Brilliant!
Comment posted November 3, 2008 @ 8:31 pm
Rob, I suggest you look a little further into the way the tax system is in the U.S. Also, you might want to check out what your GOP candidate used to think about tax cuts for the rich. J.McCain has been bought by the Republican party, and his running mate, I´m afraid is the candidate with the least experience. Remember that the person second in command is just that, a candidate nonetheless. Finally, regardless of how Senator Obama votes on things like gun legislation, you need to understand how politics work in the United States, and I´m afraid that his policies about such issues are irrelevant to the job he will be elected to do. I recommend a bit more research before you hustle other people about their choices for this election.
Comment posted November 4, 2008 @ 7:55 am
This guy stayed as the head of the Gators for McCain for TWO WEEKS after he voted Obama? He HAD to have been in meetings pretending he supported McCain. How terribly dishonest.
Comment posted November 4, 2008 @ 2:01 pm
Brittany,
Maybe you should look into the Tax system further. Last time I checked the “rich” already pay a disproportionate share of the income taxes. This is called a progressive tax. But don't take my word for it go check it out for your self on the IRS website (http://www.irs.gov/taxstats/indtaxstats/article…).
Those at the lower end of the scale pay little or nothing. You obviously believe in redistribution of the wealth so you expect to get something from Obama's tax plan whether you've paid income taxes or not.
As for understanding how politics work in the US you might want to do some additional research. As President Obama with a Democratically-controlled House and Senate he can sign any piece of legislation that is presented to him which I fully expect he will do. He has never shown any signs of bi-partisanship and there is no indication that his speeches concerning this are anything more than just that, speeches. So his policies and political leanings would be relevant.
It's unfortunate that the majority of the media outlets were in the tank for Obama and thus provided a free means of promoting his message (Media have favored Obama, study says: David Bauder, AP). Had Obama's thin resume, legislative record, and associations been scrutinized as thoroughly as they did with Sarah Palin it might be Hillary Clinton that John McCain would be running against. But alas, they found their knight that would vanquish the evil Bush empire and restore order and balance in the world.
We shall see.
Comment posted November 4, 2008 @ 2:08 pm
Any McCain supporter who votes for Obama wasn't a real McCain supporter.
“The masses are asses”. Even in my beloved Alma Mater.
Go Gators, Go Johnny Go, Go!!!!
Comment posted November 6, 2008 @ 8:05 am
While the election is over Simmons' “conversion” is hardly an example of Obama's appeal but of Josh's desire for the spotlight. I am a UF student and volunteer who worked along with Josh and Jessica Corbett in organizing many McCain events. Josh was terrible to work with going behind peoples backs and undoing things you had already done. In addition if he felt compelled to support Obama why did he not resign immediately instead of voting for Obama secretly while continuing to obstruct our efforts from the inside. It is one of the most dishonest actions I have encountered. It should also be known that he already scheduled media interviews for the time of the Biden rally before the local Republican Headquarters had spoken with him about his resignation. Clearly he had planned the conversion long in advance as a way to garner the spotlight and perhaps help with his stated goal of attending University of Chicago for Law school where Obama is well connected. Basically Josh Simmons is the ultimate illustration of why so many people hate politics because it is full of self serving corrupt thieves and lairs.
Comment posted November 6, 2008 @ 4:05 pm
While the election is over Simmons' “conversion” is hardly an example of Obama's appeal but of Josh's desire for the spotlight. I am a UF student and volunteer who worked along with Josh and Jessica Corbett in organizing many McCain events. Josh was terrible to work with going behind peoples backs and undoing things you had already done. In addition if he felt compelled to support Obama why did he not resign immediately instead of voting for Obama secretly while continuing to obstruct our efforts from the inside. It is one of the most dishonest actions I have encountered. It should also be known that he already scheduled media interviews for the time of the Biden rally before the local Republican Headquarters had spoken with him about his resignation. Clearly he had planned the conversion long in advance as a way to garner the spotlight and perhaps help with his stated goal of attending University of Chicago for Law school where Obama is well connected. Basically Josh Simmons is the ultimate illustration of why so many people hate politics because it is full of self serving corrupt thieves and lairs.
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