Rachel Alexander explains how the left targets Republicans they can't beat on election day:

It has been almost five years since former Alaska Republican Senator Ted Stevens tragically died in a plane crash, and over six years since he left the Senate in humiliation. The left viciously targeted him when he was 84, abusing the legal system using classic Alinsky tactics until Stevens' name and career were utterly destroyed.

Unable to beat Republicans at the ballot box as often as they want, the left now selectively targets Republicans who are less likely to be able to defend themselves, frequently using the Democrat dominated legal system to tie them up in court for years, destroy them financially and tarnish their reputations. Stevens came from a sparsely populated rural state, and so was an easy target not having the support of a strong conservative news source or powerful local conservative organizations. His takedown, along with that of Tom DeLay, have become prototypes on how to crush top influential Republicans using the legal system. Since the witch hunts against them, the left has copied that method to go after Dinesh D'Souza, Bob McDonnell, Sheriff Joe Arpaio and Rick Perry to name a few.