Quick, can you name the Erie County Democrat Party Chairperson? Don’t feel bad I couldn’t do it!
While yesterday’s primary election results should be a screaming lesson for local Democrats, in all likelihood today it’s back to business as usual, which means underachieving and no real clear leadership.
The dearth of leadership was highlighted by the race for the Democrat nomination for the 3rd Congressional district and the right to challenge Congressman Phil English this fall. You had four challengers of varying skills, experience, and name recognition raise and spend well over $500,000 in campaign cash all to pick a challenger for one of the Dems top targets.
If there had been a real leader for the Democrat party then the viability conversation would have taken place and some of this group would have been thinned out.
While I’m sure Mike Waltner is an earnest guy who really bought into the blah, blah, blah, change message he was pushing, he raised and spent over $100,000 and got less than 10,000 votes! He would have done more to help the people he wanted to serve in Congress if he’d slipped them each a ten spot.
Attorney Tom Myers also piled up the campaign cash and ran what amounted to a non-existent campaign. The only time I ever saw this guy was during the WICU debate, where he did a really good job of saying nothing! Wonder where he spent the cash? You have to wonder why an Erie Attorney that no one ever heard of decided to jump into the public spotlight.
Erie County Councilman Kyle Foust certainly had the highest profile going into the race, at least in the Erie segment of the district. He’s a second termer on Council and some locals fondly remember his dad’s elective service. Even with the name recognition and experience on his side, Foust struggled to raise money, lagging behind the rest. Whenever you saw the guy at a public event or on TV he looked as if he a bad case of gas and like he wanted to be anywhere but in the race for Congress. I think in old school political circles they would say he lacked fire in the belly.
The evening’s winner was political neophyte and recent Republican, Kathy Dahlkemper. Mrs. Dahlkemper deserved the win. Not only did she raise the most campaign cash, but she also assembled the strongest campaign team and ran by far the best campaign of the bunch. She could present a formidable challenge to English, if she can raise the money and get a foothold in the Butler/Corry/Sharon portion of the district, which is no easy task.
With over $500,000 already sucked out of the coffers of local Dems it’s going to take big time help from the national party to take down English and his $1 million plus and growing campaign war chest. Dahlkemper’s former Republican, conservative/modified Pro Life stances may not sit well with some in the national party, but was the very conservative Democrat strategy that worked so well in shifting the balance of power 2006. The lack of viable local party leadership may hurt here with out a person to champion her.
Dahlkemper will have to resist the urge to play up to the liberal side of the party on issues like the environment and universal healthcare to make up for perceived abortion shortcomings. Let’s hope her handlers will learn a lesson from past campaigns and drop the silly English term limits non-issue, this thing has been asked and answered and never works!
It will be interesting to see English’s campaign strategy unfolds. Lack of experience will certainly be an issue for Dahlkemper, his seniority will be a positive, but because she’s a women he won’t be able to hit he too hard and she’s not a whack-a-mole like independent challenger Dr. Steve Porter.
I’d say I’m looking forward to an interesting debate season, but who would host it locally and make it worth watching or listening (!) to?
While yesterday’s primary election results should be a screaming lesson for local Democrats, in all likelihood today it’s back to business as usual, which means underachieving and no real clear leadership.
The dearth of leadership was highlighted by the race for the Democrat nomination for the 3rd Congressional district and the right to challenge Congressman Phil English this fall. You had four challengers of varying skills, experience, and name recognition raise and spend well over $500,000 in campaign cash all to pick a challenger for one of the Dems top targets.
If there had been a real leader for the Democrat party then the viability conversation would have taken place and some of this group would have been thinned out.
While I’m sure Mike Waltner is an earnest guy who really bought into the blah, blah, blah, change message he was pushing, he raised and spent over $100,000 and got less than 10,000 votes! He would have done more to help the people he wanted to serve in Congress if he’d slipped them each a ten spot.
Attorney Tom Myers also piled up the campaign cash and ran what amounted to a non-existent campaign. The only time I ever saw this guy was during the WICU debate, where he did a really good job of saying nothing! Wonder where he spent the cash? You have to wonder why an Erie Attorney that no one ever heard of decided to jump into the public spotlight.
Erie County Councilman Kyle Foust certainly had the highest profile going into the race, at least in the Erie segment of the district. He’s a second termer on Council and some locals fondly remember his dad’s elective service. Even with the name recognition and experience on his side, Foust struggled to raise money, lagging behind the rest. Whenever you saw the guy at a public event or on TV he looked as if he a bad case of gas and like he wanted to be anywhere but in the race for Congress. I think in old school political circles they would say he lacked fire in the belly.
The evening’s winner was political neophyte and recent Republican, Kathy Dahlkemper. Mrs. Dahlkemper deserved the win. Not only did she raise the most campaign cash, but she also assembled the strongest campaign team and ran by far the best campaign of the bunch. She could present a formidable challenge to English, if she can raise the money and get a foothold in the Butler/Corry/Sharon portion of the district, which is no easy task.
With over $500,000 already sucked out of the coffers of local Dems it’s going to take big time help from the national party to take down English and his $1 million plus and growing campaign war chest. Dahlkemper’s former Republican, conservative/modified Pro Life stances may not sit well with some in the national party, but was the very conservative Democrat strategy that worked so well in shifting the balance of power 2006. The lack of viable local party leadership may hurt here with out a person to champion her.
Dahlkemper will have to resist the urge to play up to the liberal side of the party on issues like the environment and universal healthcare to make up for perceived abortion shortcomings. Let’s hope her handlers will learn a lesson from past campaigns and drop the silly English term limits non-issue, this thing has been asked and answered and never works!
It will be interesting to see English’s campaign strategy unfolds. Lack of experience will certainly be an issue for Dahlkemper, his seniority will be a positive, but because she’s a women he won’t be able to hit he too hard and she’s not a whack-a-mole like independent challenger Dr. Steve Porter.
I’d say I’m looking forward to an interesting debate season, but who would host it locally and make it worth watching or listening (!) to?
3 comments:
good stuff! I linked this to "The People Demand It!" on GlobalErie.com
Ian-
Thanks for the vine.
And to the Democrat who gets horked off and makes rude comments I reject every time I call it the Democrat Party, you got to ask yourself...why do you think I do it? Here's a hint, borrow a quarter and buy a clue! Swearing at me only makes me smile!
FFL, another GlobalErie blogger here. Excellent viewpoint on the congressional race between English and Dahlkemper. I believe many Republicans who are tired of Phil English and his stuffed-shirt demeanor will vote for Kathy in the general election. While most of her ideas follow the Dem. line, her pro-life stance has become a selling point. I also think her poise in the face of harassment by Foust and Co. in the debate have made her a very viable force for the Democratic party in this race.
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