Unfortunately, dirty politicking is a trend in this country that gets worse every year and probably will get much worse before it gets better.
In Tennessee, Bob Corker "” former mayor of Chattanooga "” is trying to replace Bill Frist in the Senate and is running against Rep. Harold Ford, Jr. of Memphis. Ford is popular among his constituents but his family is ultra-corrupt and rotten to the core. He's also a black candidate in a state and a region that doesn't elect blacks to the Senate. Not to mention he's a Democrat in a state that hasn't elected a Democrat to the Senate since Al Gore, a state that twice voted for Bush (including when Bush ran against homeboy Gore).
Corker was up by double-digits in the polls in July. Even in August, when he defeated former U.S. Reps Van Hilleary and Ed Bryant in the primary, he was up by a sizeable margin over Ford.
Now, two weeks before the election, the polls most favorable for Corker show the former mayor in a race too close to call. Less favorable polls show Ford ahead. Unless the momentum shifts before November 7, it appears that a decidedly red state will receive a blue tint after the final ballots are counted.
How did we get here? Negative campaigning. Corker hasn't taken a stand on any issue, except for an oft-repeated need for securing the U.S./Mexican border. Other than that, he's touted a 50% decrease in violent crime during his tenure as mayor in the state's fourth-largest city (a false claim that nearly doubles verifiable figures from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation), and his position as a self-made businessman (a rags-to-riches story, Corker has gone from hauling trash for a living to a wealthy multimillionaire owner of a construction firm that covers several states). Aside from that, his only strategy has been to criticize Ford, often repeating that Ford is Tennessee's "most liberal member of Congress" (a claim that is questionable at best). Ask him about gun control? "My opponent is the most liberal member of Congress." Ask him about healthcare? "My opponent is the most liberal member of Congress." When he was ahead by 12%, he was attacking Ford as if he were behind. His inability to take a stand, and his refusal to state his position on the issues, has cost him dearly in momentum and "locked-in" votes, and now he's in a fight for his political life.
Ford isn't exactly immune to below-the-belt campaigning. He's simply let the Democratic National Senatorial Committee run his dirty ads for him. The Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee has run its fair share of dirty ads against Ford, but Corker hasn't hesitated about jumping into the fray with its own negative campaign ads, even questioning Ford religious morals by depicting him in a church (from one of Ford's own ads) and pointing out that Ford attended a Playboy Super Bowl party.
The RSCC's latest ad, about that Playboy party, has caused quite a stir, and has even been cancelled by RSCC officials in light of the firestorm it created. Corker himself called for the ad to be called, calling it "tacky" and saying, "We've taken the high road in this campaign." Uh . . . Right, Bob.
The Republicans have run a despicable race in Tennessee this year, perhaps the most despicable race I've ever seen. Many voters who are traditional conservatives, including myself, cannot and will not vote for Corker. Many of them will vote for Ford. I won't, because I fear what will happen when a Democratic majority in Congress gives power to the Kennedys and Clintons and Feinsteins and Schumers. But this is a very important race for the Democrats and the Republicans. The polls indicate that the Democrats can feel reasonably safe about picking up five Senate seats throughout the midwest and northeast, seats that they desparately need to reclaim control. Then they have to take two more out of three that are up for grabs: Missouri, Tennessee and Virginia. I feel that the Republicans will maintain control of Virginia. But things aren't going so well in Missouri. And that leaves Tennessee. If Tennessee falls to the left, it isn't because the Democrats claimed it, but because the Republicans threw it away. Thanks for nothing, GOP leadership. [:@]
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excellent discussion of that race Ben. i've been trying to follow it for some time, and your analysis is right on.
negative campaigning has become to politics what the west coast offense is to football. to many people use it who don't understand it, and then wonder why it doesn't function as expected.
voters aren't stupid (most of the time). before going negative, you HAVE to give the voters a reason to vote for you, not just against your opponent. after that, negative campaigning should be used as a scalpel, not a sledgehammer. finally, to be effective, allowing for normal political hyperbole, it must have a solid basis in fact. Corker seemed to violate most, if not all, of these principals.
Not really surprising I guess . Here is another one to take a look at . Follow the link , this one is definitely low blows . http://www.gopusa.com/theloft/?p=369
Dirty politicking
