Posted by
Steve on Thursday, October 19, 2006 6:09:31 PM
As the election season gets into the home stretch, it has to be noted the difference in approach by the two parties. The Republicans appeal to the thinking person. They try to get you to think about the issues and make a decision for the office based on positions on the issues.
Democrats do not put any emphasis on the issues. They are concerned with destroying the person they are running against. If that starts to be effective, the campaign turns ugly. In Arizona, there are two examples. In the Hayworth/Mitchell race, things are starting to tighten up. Mitchell has been throwing mud at Hayworth for the past two months. Some of it must be sticking as the polls are showing the two candidates closing. As a result, JD Hayworth has started responding to Mitchell's ads with dirt of his own. Mitchell has had to embellish his dirt. JD Hayworth only has to tell the truth to get true dirt. As a result, the campaign is slugging it out in the deepest trenches. It will not mattter which candidate wins, they will both be tarnished by the mud. That is a shame. JD Hayworth is a good stand-up guy. He deserves better than to have mud slung his way by Harry Mitchell. Mitchell will not discuss the issues at all.
In the Senate race, Jim Pederson is slinging mud much faster than Harry Mitchell ever thought. Pederson's problem is that he is going up against one of, if not the, most honorable men in the US Senate. Nothing is sticking to Jon Kyl. Every charge by Jim Pederson makes him look more and more like the fool he is. As a result, Jon Kyl has spent the entire campaign talking about the issues. He will be well positioned on the issues after the election. The polls show that Jim Pederson losing ground to Jon Kyl the more dirt he throws.
The difference between the two is that JD Hayworth took some money from Jack Abramoff prior to 1999. Harry Mitchell has been playing this up for all it is worth. People know about the Jack Abramoff scandal and think that JD might be involved. There is no chance that JD Hayworth is involved in any Abramoff scandal. Harry Mitchell was convicted of influence peddling while Mayor of Tempe. People seem to have forgotten that. JD is hitting that button very hard. Mitchell has been convicted of corruption. JD Hayworth has not been convicted or even accused of any wrong doing, except by Harry Mitchell.
Races like the one that Harrry Mitchell is running make me sick. I am so tired of the politics of personal destruction. Democrats always say they are against the politics of personal destruction. Who are the first ones to play politics of personal destruction? The Democrats. It just shows you that when a Democrat accuses you of something, you know he/she has already done it to you.
It reminds me of a time when I was in a position in North Dakota. I had to work with someone who was jealous of my position. He would push me into a corner until I had two options, stand my ground or resign. I would stand my ground. Then he would go to my supervisor and complain that I was being difficult to work with. I was obstructing his ability to work with me. My supervisor, who was never present, would always sit on me hard. Later, after I moved to another position. They put a "golden boy" into the position. Well, guess what happened next? The same thing happened to him that happened to me. It made me feel vindicated. But it took way too long for my supervisor to find out and clear my name.