Assuming That Voters Are Dolts Is Rarely A Good Strategy
This post was originally posted before the Illinois primaries on March 6, 2006.
A friend of mine is on the Kerry e-mail list and is kind enough to send me the latest nonsensical musings of America’s Most Unaccomplished Senator. How my friend, who undoubtedly is an NRA lifetime member, got on that list is unknown. So I knew that Mr. Kerry would be out trying to drum up funds for this class of Armed Services Veterans that the Democrats are running for congress. This has been a fairly big deal in the Chicago area due to the involvement of Senator Dick Durbin and my congressman, Rahm Emanuel. Here in the Chicago area they aim to take the seat of retiring Congressman Henry Hyde.
There are two local Democrats who have spent the last two years preparing the ground for a shot at Hydes’ seat. Last December Dick Durbin and Rahm Emanuel threw water on their parades by announcing that they had their own candidate. They had found a disabled Iraqi war veteran. Tammy Duckworth tragically lost her legs while piloting a helicopter in the skies over Iraq. It did not matter that Duckworth had no political experience, likely had spent little time in the area and in fact did not even live in the district at the time that she announced. One need not actually live in the district one represents, merely the state. It is however considered bad form to live outside of your congressional district and I think that she has since moved into the district. Let me say that as a military pilot she is likely a very competent person, unfortunately for Ms. Duckworth, the voters have no way of knowing that. She had only three months to campaign and it seems that she is spending more time out of state raising money than working the district.
If I were a Democrat in that district I would be livid at my party, and by extension, Ms. Duckworth. They insert some woman into the race who until recently had trouble articulating her political views, was not up on local issues, did not even live in the district and who will likely be completely beholden to Democratic money men and politicians. The Democrats believe that running a disabled war veteran against established locals is a winner. Look, as I said, what happened to Ms. Duckworth was a tragedy, but that doesn’t necessarily entitle her to a vote for a seat in the US Congress. She has raised more than 95% of her sizable war chest outside of the district and she has been having problems getting people to attend her events in the district. I do not even want to fathom the voter who does not assume that Ms. Duckworth will be generally beholden to those who would put her into congress. It is a very cynical political strategy and seems to assume that the electorate is composed of dolts.This entire episode strikes me as rather smarmy. The use of the disabled in such a blatant political manner is very unseemly and it speaks volumes about the current Democratic Party and its use of symbols to cover its current lack of substance. I can almost hear the conversation now:
Dem 1: “Yeh, up in Illinois, Hydes’ seat, we got Crane last time, how can we pick this one up?”
Dem 2 “I got a chick with no legs.”
Dem 3: “What the?”
Dem 2: “They were blown off in Iraq”
Dem 1: “Perfect.”
Dem 3: “At least that asshole Bush is good for something.”
Dem 2: “Here’s how I see it; screw the locals, we can get them to drop out of the primary. Throw them a few bones, state contracts or something. Then we “out-defense” the Republicans in the general with the big money advertising!”
Dem 1: “Brilliant!”
Dem 3: “Fantastic!”
John Kerry: “Touché! I’ll call my Band of Brothers!”
Dem 3: “Who the hell let him in here?”
Mr. Kerry’s involvement just adds to the smarminess of the entire affair. I will confess that two years ago I did not care to hear what either candidate did during the Vietnam War, nor did I care in the three previous elections when service or the lack thereof during Vietnam was an issue. I want to know what they plan to do today. Mr. Kerry’s use of Vietnam as one of his strongest campaign issues was ill advised in light of his post-war actions. As a member of the Naval Reserves, John Kerry went to Paris in order to attempt to negotiate some kind of “peace”. Not only does that show incredible pompousness but it was likely treasonous. Citizens can not negotiate for our country, unless of course, their name is Jesse Jackson.
Dr. Sanity, although far more fair-minded than your humble correspondent, wrote today that those Democratic military veterans should refuse the donations raised by John Kerry. Plus she has written a song for Mr. Kerry, ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred Kerry” that ends with these two memorable lines:“In the room Teresa comes and goesBuying Michaelangelos”Thank you, Dr. Sanity.
A friend of mine is on the Kerry e-mail list and is kind enough to send me the latest nonsensical musings of America’s Most Unaccomplished Senator. How my friend, who undoubtedly is an NRA lifetime member, got on that list is unknown. So I knew that Mr. Kerry would be out trying to drum up funds for this class of Armed Services Veterans that the Democrats are running for congress. This has been a fairly big deal in the Chicago area due to the involvement of Senator Dick Durbin and my congressman, Rahm Emanuel. Here in the Chicago area they aim to take the seat of retiring Congressman Henry Hyde.
There are two local Democrats who have spent the last two years preparing the ground for a shot at Hydes’ seat. Last December Dick Durbin and Rahm Emanuel threw water on their parades by announcing that they had their own candidate. They had found a disabled Iraqi war veteran. Tammy Duckworth tragically lost her legs while piloting a helicopter in the skies over Iraq. It did not matter that Duckworth had no political experience, likely had spent little time in the area and in fact did not even live in the district at the time that she announced. One need not actually live in the district one represents, merely the state. It is however considered bad form to live outside of your congressional district and I think that she has since moved into the district. Let me say that as a military pilot she is likely a very competent person, unfortunately for Ms. Duckworth, the voters have no way of knowing that. She had only three months to campaign and it seems that she is spending more time out of state raising money than working the district.
If I were a Democrat in that district I would be livid at my party, and by extension, Ms. Duckworth. They insert some woman into the race who until recently had trouble articulating her political views, was not up on local issues, did not even live in the district and who will likely be completely beholden to Democratic money men and politicians. The Democrats believe that running a disabled war veteran against established locals is a winner. Look, as I said, what happened to Ms. Duckworth was a tragedy, but that doesn’t necessarily entitle her to a vote for a seat in the US Congress. She has raised more than 95% of her sizable war chest outside of the district and she has been having problems getting people to attend her events in the district. I do not even want to fathom the voter who does not assume that Ms. Duckworth will be generally beholden to those who would put her into congress. It is a very cynical political strategy and seems to assume that the electorate is composed of dolts.This entire episode strikes me as rather smarmy. The use of the disabled in such a blatant political manner is very unseemly and it speaks volumes about the current Democratic Party and its use of symbols to cover its current lack of substance. I can almost hear the conversation now:
Dem 1: “Yeh, up in Illinois, Hydes’ seat, we got Crane last time, how can we pick this one up?”
Dem 2 “I got a chick with no legs.”
Dem 3: “What the?”
Dem 2: “They were blown off in Iraq”
Dem 1: “Perfect.”
Dem 3: “At least that asshole Bush is good for something.”
Dem 2: “Here’s how I see it; screw the locals, we can get them to drop out of the primary. Throw them a few bones, state contracts or something. Then we “out-defense” the Republicans in the general with the big money advertising!”
Dem 1: “Brilliant!”
Dem 3: “Fantastic!”
John Kerry: “Touché! I’ll call my Band of Brothers!”
Dem 3: “Who the hell let him in here?”
Mr. Kerry’s involvement just adds to the smarminess of the entire affair. I will confess that two years ago I did not care to hear what either candidate did during the Vietnam War, nor did I care in the three previous elections when service or the lack thereof during Vietnam was an issue. I want to know what they plan to do today. Mr. Kerry’s use of Vietnam as one of his strongest campaign issues was ill advised in light of his post-war actions. As a member of the Naval Reserves, John Kerry went to Paris in order to attempt to negotiate some kind of “peace”. Not only does that show incredible pompousness but it was likely treasonous. Citizens can not negotiate for our country, unless of course, their name is Jesse Jackson.
Dr. Sanity, although far more fair-minded than your humble correspondent, wrote today that those Democratic military veterans should refuse the donations raised by John Kerry. Plus she has written a song for Mr. Kerry, ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred Kerry” that ends with these two memorable lines:“In the room Teresa comes and goesBuying Michaelangelos”Thank you, Dr. Sanity.
posted by El Rider at 5:45 AM
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