Another Steele story....and Ehrlich, too
GOP Fliers Apparently Were Part Of Strategy -- Md. Tactics Similar To Ones in 2002, Washington Post, Nov. 13, 2006:
Quote:
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The glossy fliers bore photos of black Democratic leaders on the front. Under the headline "Democratic Sample Ballot" were boxes checked in red for Ehrlich and Senate candidate Michael S. Steele, who were not identified as Republicans. Their names were followed by a long list of local Democratic candidates.
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On the way in to vote (Virginia), I was handed a "sample ballot", on nice blue paper, that had check marks next to all the Republican candidates. Once instead, I filed it in the trash can that was already filling up with other sample ballots.
Efforts by the Republican Party to fool black voters of Maryland aren't new.
Quote:
It also was not the first time Ehrlich and Steele had used fliers that some considered deceptive. U.S. Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D) still recalls arriving at a polling place in his Baltimore district during the 2002 governor's race and being handed a glossy flier.
"They handed me this big, beautiful piece of literature. It was better than any of the literature I have ever produced," Cummings recalled. "I said, 'Boy this is a wonderful photo.' There's my pastor, and [then-Housing and Urban Development Secretary] Mel Martinez, and [former Baltimore delegate] Tony Fulton and myself. Then I saw Ehrlich in the picture, and I saw the words and I said, 'Uh oh.' "
The words read, "Democrats for Ehrlich." Cummings was livid. He had been one of the most vocal supporters of Ehrlich's opponent, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend (D). He immediately went on talk radio to denounce it, recorded a message to voters and went on television.
But the incident was largely ignored, washed away by the bigger news that day: Ehrlich had won the election.
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Some say deceptive; I'd call it something else but I think there's a forum rule about using the word that means saying something that isn't true.
Quote:
On the eve of this month's election, the mailers began landing in Prince George's mailboxes. One was a glossy red, black and green flier -- the colors that represent African American power -- sporting pictures of County Executive Jack B. Johnson, his predecessor, Wayne K. Curry and past NAACP president and former U.S. Senate candidate Kweisi Mfume.
Above the pictures of the three Democrats the flier read, "Ehrlich-Steele Democrats," and underneath it announced: "These are OUR Choices."
None of the three candidates had endorsed the governor, and only Curry had declared his support for Steele.
There were other fliers, too. A similar "Democratic" guide with Ehrlich's and Steele's photo on the front appeared in Baltimore. Another distributed in Baltimore County identified the Republican candidate for county executive as a Democrat.
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Yes, voters should know better - they should be informed about the candidates well in advance of actually voting. But the voters are the victims here, and I'm not about to put any of the blame on them.
If this is "politics as usual", let's change it.
11-13-2006
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