Posted on 09/09/2002 9:48:41 AM PDT by Behind Liberal Lines
Tuesday's primary in the 24th Congressional District, under normal circumstances, would be of interest only to Republicans because it is, after all, their ballot line that's in contention. Sherwood Boehlert of New Hartford, who represents the 23rd Congressional District now, had his lines re-drawn and is running in the new district against Dr. David Walrath of Sennett. Both are GOP members.
But there is no Democrat running in the 24th. The Right-to-Life candidate in the race, Kathleen Peters, has already thrown her support to Walrath. The Green Party candidate, Mark Dunau, is an organic farmer from Delaware County, which isn't even part of the new district.
On his fairly impressive Web site, www.ruralparty.com, he says he's running here to "democratically address the outrages of the gerrymandering process that has corrupted New York politics."
He is active in New York Farm Bureau and a multitude of organic farming organizations. In 2000, he was the Green Party's candidate for U.S. Senate, losing to Hillary Rodham Clinton, but finishing ahead of four other minor-party candidates.
He's also run for Congress before, in 1998, garnering plenty of attention for his positions, if not many votes.
Apart from his presence on the Internet, Dunau has done no campaigning in this congressional race, and realistically, he can't expect to win in November. It's not hard to conclude he's on the ballot simply to further the Green Party's platform.
Dunau's presence, however, doesn't offer the voting public a deep enough voice in choosing who will represent this congressional district.
All voters in the 24th Congressional District, and not just Republicans, should get the chance to participate in the process of electing the person who goes to Washington, D.C. The Democratic committees in the district's several counties have already done the voters a disservice by failing to find a candidate to run on their line.
Maybe that's a backward way of endorsing Boehlert, who characterizes himself a moderate, pro-choice Republican environmentalist. But if that's what the intent is, it could backfire.
Walrath, who makes no bones about his far right positions, will be on the Conservative Party line, so no matter what happens on Tuesday, he'll be around in November. But if Boehlert loses the primary, he's off the ballot, and without a massive write-in campaign, out of the race.
This newspaper has already endorsed Boehlert, but having him remain in the race is important for more reasons than simply his political views. Without him, there is no real contest, and only enrolled Republican voters will decide who will be the new 24th Congressional District representative.
They characterize the conservative republican as "far right" and the liberal RINO as "moderate." They also spend several paragraphs talking up a candidate from the Green party, who doesn't even reside in the Congressional district at issue.
Finally, according to this editorial, even though the democrats don't field a candidate, it's somehow the eeevile republicans' fault that there may be no "choice" in the November election.
Not they'd understand it, but sending a message to the media is almost enough of a reason to support Walrath.
http://www.walrathforcongress.com
I had the same reaction. I've heard Walrath on a number of occasions. His views fit comfortably within the Republican mainstream. If he is "far right", then so are about 90% of Republicans. Then again, I suppose that's how liberal newspapers see the world!
Every year I see these fellows, Mark Dunau and his Green Party ilk, at concerts and festivals, all with their clipboards trying to garner petition signatures for some lefty cause or another (could it be to get Mark Dunau on the ballot in my county, or could it be to mandate all school cafeterias must use organic foods? who knows and who cares)
These folks eventually wander over to where I'm enjoying a beer and some sunshine, attracted by the NORML button on my backpack. But before they can start blathering about FREE MUMIA or EAT FREE RANGE CHICKEN or SAVE THE ENVIORNMENT I have to tell them:
I'm a libertarian conservative. I'm diametrically opposed to every single issue in your entire political platform, I am armed with a copy of the United States Constitution on hand, and backed up with reason, common sense, and historical precident. I am willing and able to shoot down any "arguement" you present to me, and quickly. Furthermore, my enjoyment of marijuana does not make me a liberal, and my reasoning for advocating it's decriminalization goes beyond "free the weed, man". I don't want to sign your petition, please leave me alone.
"But, didn't I see you at the rally for Ralph Nader's inclusion in the debates?"
"yes", I tell them, "I want to see Ralph Nader included in future televised political debate so he can be outed on national television as the socialist bafoon that he is. That, and if enough people ask me why I'm wearing a PROUD CONSERVATIVE button at a Green Party rally I might plant a few seeds in the brains of your weak-minded flock of socialist sheep"
that's usually enough for them to leave me alone
In journalistspeak, "objectivity" is anticonservatism.
Thus, journalists will go to any length to prevent a conservative from being positioned as being objective--most of all, to prevent a conservative from being considered a journalist.This is not a conspiracy, at least not entirely. You can't make money in journalism unless you are good at writing reports of bad news on short deadline. So generally conservatives don't even apply to be journalists. This explains why journalists get the impression that everyone is anticonservative except a few kooks.
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