All Politics is STILL Local

Well, the election season is truly underway, and with the midterm elections approaching, the Democrats and Republicans are going into their usual brand of open warfare. All pretense of running non-negative campaigns has been thrown out the window pretty much, as both parties' campaign committees are playing the role of "attack dogs" on behalf of their candidates. And then of course, there are the 527's. As a postscript to last week's 9-11 column, MoveOn.org is running TV ads accusing the Republicans of exploiting 9-11 for political purposes. As you would expect from this bunch, they don't have time or ability to give factual examples, so none are given. They are basically taking what the Democrats said after the president's speech and running with it... even though it's wrong, and even though the people who made the events of September 11, 2006 into a political issue have been DEMOCRATS.

This is a typical tactic that the Democrats have taken for years, and that is to Monday morning quarterback everything the Bush administration does. While the Democrats have made few attempts of their own to offer remedies or alternatives, they have done a good job of stopping useful legislation. Not all of the things Republicans have tried to push (I too didn't see a point to voting on a gay marriage ban or an amendment against flag-burning), the useful things, such as a minimum-wage increase. Now they have come out with an election strategy that you would expect from a party that has no concrete agenda to speak of... running against Bush.

They are attempting to nationalize the election by making all 435 House races and all the Senate races into a referendum on the president. Their message to the voters is simple: all Republican incumbents (and Joe Lieberman) march in lockstep with Bush. In any race where they think they have a chance, they're going full-tilt with their attack ads and their letter writers, going nothing but negative. To some extent, this seems to be working, as a recent Zogby poll showed that 71 percent of voters said their vote would be swayed more by national issues than local issues.

We have a perfect example right here in Central New York. Jim Walsh is our Congressman, he has been for 18 years. In that time, he's done a lot of good for the area, bringing in money and the Army Corps of Engineers to clean up Onondaga Lake, creating the Syracuse Neighborhood Initiative, working on getting green bonds for the Destiny project. He has done much on the national scale as well, but as the saying goes, "All politics is local."

Walsh's opponent, Dan Maffei, and the Democratic Party would like you to forget that saying. Maffei has done nothing but criticize Walsh for the entire campaign, making it about the fact that Walsh has "voted with the president 9 out of 10 times." I don't know how these numbers are calculated, and the fact that Bush has only vetoed one bill in his presidency may have something to do with that. When Walsh broke with the president over the issue of detainee rights under the Geneva Conventions, Maffei's campaign suggested it was a ploy to look independent. So they want it both ways... can't vote with the president, can't vote against the president. The voting record has been the theme of the campaign, with some supporters even suggesting that all the good things Walsh has done in this area with federal money amounts to nothing more than a diversion, "hush money" if you will, to take your mind off his voting record.

Walsh's initial campaign ads talked about the good things he's done for the area; Maffei's initial ads (and the opening salvos from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee) were all about the voting record and fit the Dems' attempt to make it a national election. Even the slogan on Maffei's signs: "Send them a message," points to a focus on the Dems winning the House and ONLY that. Not until recently has Maffei even said ONE thing he would do for us Central New Yorkers. He's tried with his most recent ad, throwing in a line about promoting local businesses that create jobs, but he promptly went right back on message and declared that it was all about changing the Congress.

Unfortunately, to some extent, Walsh has played into their hands. His latest ad defends his commitment to local issues, which is exactly what he should be doing, but he then calls Maffei a "Washington insider". Immediately, Walsh has been tarred and feathered by Maffei supporters on the letters page for going negative. Well, Maffei IS a Washington insider for the most part, but that's not for Walsh to say himself. He needs to stay focused on what he does for us. He needs to remind people that he talks with the people and listens to the people and does things for the people. That must be his campaign; he MUST keep it local, because in the end, people need to realize that this IS a local election. The simple fact is this: there is a very real possibility that the Democrats will not win the House in November. If Maffei wins and is a minority congressman... bye-bye Syracuse Neighborhood Initiative, bye-bye Army Corps of Engineers, and bye-bye to needed federal programs impacting us here in Central New York.

Of course, I'm sure Dan Maffei doesn't care about that; he's too busy telling people the same message parroted by all Democrat challengers and their willing followers: Your congressman does nothing to stop the president from ruining this country. Elect us and we'll fix it. Well no... all you'll do is prevent anything from getting passed for the next two years. Actually, I'm wrong... what I fear you'll do is walk into session on January 4th and present Item #1 (and the only item) on your agenda: impeaching Bush. But that's another column...