Earl pushes back on his non-opponent
Carla Axtman
Most all candidates in a primary race play to their base: those ardent voters who tend to mark the ballot for the person who pushes the proper ideological buttons. Interestingly, GOP Congressional candidate Scott Bruun (who will likely be Kurt Schrader's opponent in District 5 after next week) has decided that one of the most important ideological issues for his base is...
(drumroll)
Nancy Pelosi? Really?
In the laundry list of problems we have to deal with (most of which are leftovers from the Republican's years of disastrous policy making), Bruun's team sees Pelosi as high enough on the list to warrant mention in the precious time of a 30 second ad? And they think his base does, too?
If they all really buy that, then the GOP is more off a cliff than I thought. We have some very serious problems to tackle and we need grownup people to come together and solve them--even when there's disagreement. The Republican Party has utterly failed to do this. Playground shots from the kiddie pool at Pelosi simply doesn't cut it.
Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D OR-3) isn't in Bruun's district, but has shot his own ad pushing back on the GOP's inability to bring substance to the table:
The GOP isn't just the party of saying "no". They're the party that has literally offered no real alternative solutions to the problems they created. The budget deficit, two wars, financial meltdowns and bailouts (yes--the financial bailout was a Bush plan) and spiraling unemployment. The GOP even managed to unveil a budget that contained almost nothing in the way of actual numbers.
The GOP has simply abdicated any role in serious discussions and solving problems. They've made an enormous mess--and are now standing back while House Minority Leader John Boehner pontificates and essentially brags about their obstructionism:
I have my own frustrations with the Democrats. Not the least of which is their lack of spine when it comes to dealing with these clowns. Props to Earl for at least calling BS: especially when it's not even his own race.
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9:31 a.m.
May 14, '10
Nancy Pelosi IS important to me in regards to EB's campaign. He's nothing like her! That should be something he's running on, not from.
(I got a "500" error when I posted this and refreshed the page and it wasn't there, and hit enter again, so I hope this doesn't get posted twice.)
10:23 a.m.
May 14, '10
Since I am in Dist 5, I was curious to see what Bruun had to say since I know nothing of him.
So it was with great anticipation that I viewed his ad on TV awhile back, hoping he would give me a reason to vote FOR him.
Then he mentions Pelosi and I changed the channel. Don't get me wrong, Pelosi is a disaster and needs to get the hook, but she has no bearing on the election in D5.
I WILL NOT be voting for Scott Bruun.
10:40 a.m.
May 14, '10
How exactly is Speaker Pelosi a "disaster"...?
12:18 p.m.
May 14, '10
For starters, if you could quantify the change in Senate bills, during the reconciliation process, she would have the lowest score in history. You can generally summarize the changes to them in one sentence.
1:42 p.m.
May 14, '10
Nonsense. The HCR fixes for one were passed via reconciliation driven from the House side.
This is what the entire back and forth to get the underlying Senate version of the HCR bill passed was about, and she held the caucus together and got the fixes passed.
5:59 p.m.
May 14, '10
What's nonsense is the notion that the HCR is fixed.
8:37 p.m.
May 15, '10
Not nonsense at all. Major fixes to the HCR bill were done by the House via reconciliation which is what you were claiming Speaker Pelosi has been a disaster at. Hell the removal of banks as middle men on student loans alone is a huge fix.
You are howling at the moon.
10:17 a.m.
May 16, '10
Mitchell, you fail to grasp that many voters actually are against the backroom politics engaged in to "fix" HCR. The mere inclusion of gutting the student loan program for private banks shows how broken the approach was.
Pelosi is that lightening road of dramatic proportions that symbolizes what is wrong to many.
4:31 a.m.
May 17, '10
I refuse to have a "debate" with someone that has to end every comment with puerile snark.
10:40 a.m.
May 14, '10
I believe Bruun is getting campaign help from NRCC; certainly at the national level they think Pelosi is a big bugaboo for GOP voters.
I doubt it will work. I will miss the phrase "then Scott Bruun!" however.
5:36 p.m.
May 14, '10
Whenever I watch the commercial I think of other comments that might lead to, "then Scott Bruun." "If you think that Obama wasn't born in America, then Scott Bruun."
10:49 a.m.
May 14, '10
I'm sure Scott appreciates Earl helping him win the Republican primary.
12:00 p.m.
May 14, '10
I sincerely doubt Bruun is a loss in this primary, with or without Earl. That said, this is pretty keystone cops type stuff on Bruun's part.
If this is indeed an NRCC-led message, I submit that they have very little understanding of this Congressional District, much less Oregon. If it's Bruun, he should know better.
3:28 p.m.
May 14, '10
So, have you seen any polling on Pelosi in the 5th congressional ditrict?
For what it's worth, I think it's a good ad, and a one line reference to Pelosi in a TV ad in a Republican primary cannot possibly hurt him in November.
3:38 p.m.
May 14, '10
Given the national GOP's recent history with this seat and in Oregon in general, I feel in pretty safe territory here, Jack.
If they've historically been relying on polling on out-of-state figures to decide what to do with their messaging-the losses they've been racking up over the last decade in this state are all of a sudden making a good deal more sense.
12:53 p.m.
May 14, '10
I am happy to see Earl putting his message on TV in a way that will support other Dems across the tv viewing audience that covers most of district 5. It may help Scott in the primary, but it starts the campaign against him for the Fall.
1:14 p.m.
May 14, '10
Well, I had noticed that employed middle class white people have had a really hard time being heard by Congress...
...but when did "Scott Bruun" become a verb?
2:17 p.m.
May 14, '10
Anyone notice in the Scott Bruun commercial when the line "had enough of not being heard" all it shows is White people?
Yeah, I am quite sure they have never been heard, live in a minority dominated, socialist America, get no respect because their White sons and daughters use affirmative action to get into elite schools, while the majority is privileged to legacy admissions, and have been marginalized their entire life due to the hue of their skin.
I guess life is hard being part of the "Real America," therefore we need these teabagger style campaigns to drop a few sacks in front of our faces to wake us up.
3:03 p.m.
May 14, '10
Ack! I Scott Bruuned my bagel!
1:16 p.m.
May 15, '10
Dammit, Andrew! I just Scott Bruuned my coffee all over my laptop!
9:21 a.m.
May 16, '10
On the other hand, perhaps the ads are brilliant. In our dumbed down, sound byte political arena (si, se puede). This is exactly the type of TV spot that will generate the votes Scott seeks.
Face it, dems will vote for the dems and republicans for republicans. That precious middle vote, the undecideds will settle elections across the country this November.
And many, many are hot for ousting incumbants. Pelosi is perhaps a great poster child for ousting incumbancy and for her back room deals and politics. WHy NOT run against Pelosi in a year when democrats in particular and incumbants in general are at risk of losing their seats?
6:46 a.m.
May 17, '10
Careful, Kurt. You're starting to make sense. Pretty soon you'll be saying campaigns are about geting the most votes, not about proving that your side is right and the other side is wrong.