A couple of days ago I wrote about how our Missouri Democrats need to emulate threatened Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold, who has come out fighting in the face of GOP efforts to smear him by misrepresenting the Affordable Care Act. However, when I assumed that all our Missouri Democratic pols were taking a hands-off response to the ACA, I spoke too quickly. As evidence I offer Russ Carnahan’s remarks at a recent St. Louis event concerned with business opportunities for veterans.
This video of the event (via the Turner Report) showing Carnahan standing up on his hind legs and acting like a member of species homo sapiens makes the case that he might have a healthy case of intestinal fortitude:
Not the slickest presentation, but doggedly honest – which makes it all the braver given the reams of misinformation and sound-bites that have seeped, via Fox News, into many Missourians’ consciousness. In the video Carnahan is doing just what a good leader is supposed to do – educating his constituents by giving them the facts. We need more of this – slicker might probably be better, but honest and outspoken is okay by me.
This election Carnahan is up against Ed Martin, a right-wing, back-slapping, bully boy who seems delighted to prance around in front of an audience and try to score a few zingers at the expense of the truth. We can only hope that there are enough voters out there who prize substance – and who can recognize it when they see it.
I wish Russ would tell his sister to run on the good things Dems have accomplished instead of just lobbing “Blunt is a crook” salvos. Everyone knows Blunt is a crook, so let’s get to the next point to make. Rachel Maddow has been begging Dem candidates to run on the accomplishments in Washington and has examples of where it is working. Dems are coming up in the polls precisely because they are making a solid case for their priorities over the Repugs. I’m telling everyone who will listen that the Repugs want to dismantle Social Security, Medicare and the VA system in order to give their cronies all that money to manage and profit from. Boy, that gets people’s attention.
Someone please tell Robin. Just calling Blunt a crook isn’t enough. Voters already think Congressmen are all crooks anyway, so it’s a waste of TV ad money.