Goodbye, and My Top Ten Candidates
I've found a new MoCoPolitics editor, and am very impressed with their ideas for the site. Sorry to those (few and proud) of you who did not meet my rather biased and completely unfair cut. However, the new editor intends to make the site very inclusive, so you might have the chance to participate anyway. I'll leave all remaining introductions up to the new editor.
But... since we're now less than a month away from the elections and one blogger that I know of (OnBackground) has posted his own endorsements, I've decided to leave you with my own judgement on who should and who should not be elected. I hope, in the process, not to piss off the new editor too much, so that this post doesn't get deleted. Instead of doing the endorsements by office, though, I've decided to take a different approach. Below is a list of my top ten candidates for the fall elections. These people, for a variety or reasons, are people that I think will help lead the state and Montgomery County in a new direction.
1. Martin O'Malley for Governor: Say what you will about Baltimore, but the guy took on one of the worst cases of urban blight in the entire country and dug in his heels. I don't think many people could have done better in the same situation. And we've gotta get rid of Bob Ehrlich. Bobby Haircut has done nothing positive for the state, and has stood in the way of too many good policies and proposals.
2. Kweisi Mfume for U.S. Senate: A lot of the attention on this race has focused on, well, race. But leave aside the racial dynamics, and here's what you have. One candidate is a dynamic, energetic progressive Democrat who pulled himself up by the bootstraps and fought for the community he grew up in. One candidate is a soft-spoken semi-liberal old school Maryland Democrat who can't really name much in the way of successes after decade sin congress. The third is a man who talks out of both sides of his mouth about the leader of his own party, thinks lifesaving stem cell research is akin to genocide, and doesn't seem to know what the words global and warming mean when put together. Which would you want as a Senator? If you chose door 1, then you've chosen Kweisi Mfume.
3. Jamie Raskin for State Senate: Ida Ruben has simply gone too far. First, beating up on high school kids who had the courage to participate in the political process. Then, beating up on community college kids for the same thing. Now, she's waging a divisive attack campaign against another Democrat. And Jamie Raskin... what can I say? The man is a hero. He not only believes strongly in progressive politics, but he fights hard for what he believes in. He will be a great voice for District 20, and one that finally matches the tenor of the district.
4. Rich Madaleno for State Senate: Great guy. Great politics. Great policy skills. 'Nuff said.
5. Doug Duncan for Comptroller: I say dump all the people actually running and write in. Not that I really like Doug or his politics. But given the Yeshiva story that the Post broke, we know the guy is good at counting money. Even if it's dirty campaign contributions.
6. Heather Mizeur for Delegate: Three words... up and comer. Check out the policy positions on her website. You'll find yourself nodding along, and not just with the music on the opening page. And she's more than proven her knowlege of important issues as an advisor to John Kerry. We need more raw policy talent in Annapolis, and she can help provide that.
7. Ike Leggett for County Executive: I hate it when I agree with the Washington Post editorial page, but there it is. I was on the fence until Silverman put up those insipid signs. Yes, I'm tired of traffic. No, I don't think more development will help. Sorry, Steve, but your track record doesn't really put you in the sensible growth camp.
8. Marc Elrich for County Council: The county is growing so fast that no one can keep up. Our schools are overcrowded. Our roads are jammed with cars. Our emergency services are barely keeping up. So this guy Marc says, why don't we slow down growth for a little while. Not stop it, you can't stop it. But slow it enough for the infrastructure to catch up, and put it where we can handle it. Where we have transit. Where we have space in the schools. Makes sense, right?
9. Duchy Trachtenberg for County Council: As it makes sense to put someone on the council with real experience in health care.
10. Shirley Brandman for Board of Education: Harvard educated, advocate for students with special needs. I'm a parent, and know a lot of parents. But I know that just being a parent doesn't give you the necessary skill set to do a good job running our county schools. Brandman has that skill set, plus she gave out candy on July 4, which was just plain nice.
Anyway, thanks again to all the readers. I encourage you to continue reading and responding to MoCoPolitics. Goodbye, and thanks for all the fishes.
But... since we're now less than a month away from the elections and one blogger that I know of (OnBackground) has posted his own endorsements, I've decided to leave you with my own judgement on who should and who should not be elected. I hope, in the process, not to piss off the new editor too much, so that this post doesn't get deleted. Instead of doing the endorsements by office, though, I've decided to take a different approach. Below is a list of my top ten candidates for the fall elections. These people, for a variety or reasons, are people that I think will help lead the state and Montgomery County in a new direction.
1. Martin O'Malley for Governor: Say what you will about Baltimore, but the guy took on one of the worst cases of urban blight in the entire country and dug in his heels. I don't think many people could have done better in the same situation. And we've gotta get rid of Bob Ehrlich. Bobby Haircut has done nothing positive for the state, and has stood in the way of too many good policies and proposals.
2. Kweisi Mfume for U.S. Senate: A lot of the attention on this race has focused on, well, race. But leave aside the racial dynamics, and here's what you have. One candidate is a dynamic, energetic progressive Democrat who pulled himself up by the bootstraps and fought for the community he grew up in. One candidate is a soft-spoken semi-liberal old school Maryland Democrat who can't really name much in the way of successes after decade sin congress. The third is a man who talks out of both sides of his mouth about the leader of his own party, thinks lifesaving stem cell research is akin to genocide, and doesn't seem to know what the words global and warming mean when put together. Which would you want as a Senator? If you chose door 1, then you've chosen Kweisi Mfume.
3. Jamie Raskin for State Senate: Ida Ruben has simply gone too far. First, beating up on high school kids who had the courage to participate in the political process. Then, beating up on community college kids for the same thing. Now, she's waging a divisive attack campaign against another Democrat. And Jamie Raskin... what can I say? The man is a hero. He not only believes strongly in progressive politics, but he fights hard for what he believes in. He will be a great voice for District 20, and one that finally matches the tenor of the district.
4. Rich Madaleno for State Senate: Great guy. Great politics. Great policy skills. 'Nuff said.
5. Doug Duncan for Comptroller: I say dump all the people actually running and write in. Not that I really like Doug or his politics. But given the Yeshiva story that the Post broke, we know the guy is good at counting money. Even if it's dirty campaign contributions.
6. Heather Mizeur for Delegate: Three words... up and comer. Check out the policy positions on her website. You'll find yourself nodding along, and not just with the music on the opening page. And she's more than proven her knowlege of important issues as an advisor to John Kerry. We need more raw policy talent in Annapolis, and she can help provide that.
7. Ike Leggett for County Executive: I hate it when I agree with the Washington Post editorial page, but there it is. I was on the fence until Silverman put up those insipid signs. Yes, I'm tired of traffic. No, I don't think more development will help. Sorry, Steve, but your track record doesn't really put you in the sensible growth camp.
8. Marc Elrich for County Council: The county is growing so fast that no one can keep up. Our schools are overcrowded. Our roads are jammed with cars. Our emergency services are barely keeping up. So this guy Marc says, why don't we slow down growth for a little while. Not stop it, you can't stop it. But slow it enough for the infrastructure to catch up, and put it where we can handle it. Where we have transit. Where we have space in the schools. Makes sense, right?
9. Duchy Trachtenberg for County Council: As it makes sense to put someone on the council with real experience in health care.
10. Shirley Brandman for Board of Education: Harvard educated, advocate for students with special needs. I'm a parent, and know a lot of parents. But I know that just being a parent doesn't give you the necessary skill set to do a good job running our county schools. Brandman has that skill set, plus she gave out candy on July 4, which was just plain nice.
Anyway, thanks again to all the readers. I encourage you to continue reading and responding to MoCoPolitics. Goodbye, and thanks for all the fishes.
posted by MoCoPolitics at 10:06 PM
1 Comments:
I agree with so many of these. Elrich, Mfume, and Raskin are great. I hear good things about Madaleno, Brandman, and Trachtenberg. Hope you're joking about Duncan.
But why Mizeur? She seems kinda superficial, like she's just ambitious. I mean, she's obviously liberalish, but when I've heard her speak or talk I don't really get the impression she cares or that she'll actually do anything. Here's my prediction. Heather Mizeur wins, does little as a state delegate except position herself for a move up the political food chain, and as soon as Chris Van Hollen runs for Senate, Mizeur will be running for Congress. Any takers?
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