Welcome to the Bigs, Tom

The negative portion of the mayoral campagin has begun. Thank God.

by Anonymous

	print	email	reply	rss feed

Published: May 2, 2007

At last! It has finally started and, for that, we should all be glad. By "it," I mean the negative or "comparative" portion of the mayoral campaign. And thank God for it.

You may be wondering why I am so happy that candidates have started to attack each other. Well, because it's the only way for voters to get a real read on which candidates are actually qualified to lead this city.

I know lots of people say they want candidates to remain focused only on their qualities and qualifications for the job � taking the so-called "high road." But every candidate is not a perfect fit for every elected office, and there is no way a candidate is going to point out his own flaws.

The media will try to do what it can, but relying on it to draw sharp distinctions is not a good idea.Reporters, especially these days, are too often stretched too thin to do any real investigative work and, as such, rely on information that is already part of the public record. Even when they are able to get to an issue, they tend to do a single story that is little more than a little bit of research, followed up by asking the candidate why he did whatever it is he supposedly did.Moreover, absent any new news qualifying as an update, a newspaper is not going to repeat the story ad nauseam.

So, it is up to candidates to draw the real contrasts between themselves and their rivals � and that means being negative.

To date, most of the attacks have been directed at the front-runner, Tom Knox. During the past week, Knox has come under attack from Bob Brady, Dwight Evans, a couple of supposedly independent committees and someone named "Tommy" dressed in a shark costume. That Knox would come under attack is to be expected since he's leading in the polls with only a few weeks remaining. After all, the only way to get to the top is by climbing over others, and he is standing in the way of everyone else.

Now, I'm going to ignore the idiocy of the supposedly independent groups that have popped up to attack Knox � not because having an independent committee launch an attack is the wrong idea, but because they are doing it so poorly.Seriously, Alex Talmadge has served as a Brady surrogate as recently as the last three weeks, but now he is leading an "independent" effort to attack the party boss's main competitor? And now revelations that a Brady adviser counseled Talmadge about how to set up an independent committee?

That's transparent, stupid and counterproductive.

But as hard as candidates try to stay away from directly criticizing each other � as soon as you fire at someone, people fire right back at you � they must have realized that the only way to get these facts into the public debate is to launch the attacks themselves. It's working.

With at least two candidates attacking Knox directly, the newspapers are now able to rehash stories they have already written about his business dealings.And Knox's response so far has been underwhelming. All he has done is try to stay above the fray and criticize the attacks without actually addressing or defusing them. We will know in the next few days whether it is the right decision on his part.

What gives these attacks against Knox legitimate traction is not that they are coming from other candidates, but that they are true. Knox did run a payday loan operation that charged people up to 400 percent interest, one of the lowest things someone can do to a person in need. And when he ran an insurance company in Maryland, it was repeatedly fined for breaches such as telling people that they had to get permission from their primary care provider before going to the emergency room. How does he sleep at night?

Knox also clearly believes in situational ethics.He rails against pay-to-play and corruption, but he is playing politics like a champ, cutting deals with ward leaders and political machines � the heart of the pay-to-play machine � and spending money everywhere to gain support. His campaign relationship with Michael Youngblood, an ex-con who John Street forced off the city's payroll, deserves more scrutiny since no one can figure out who is paying him.

At the end of the day, though, Knox is under direct attack because he has presented an image of himself that does not square with reality � that of someone who cares about others and will bring needed change.

And that is how politics is played in the big leagues.

(editorial@citypaper.net)

Having toiled inside the belly of the local political beast for years, The Insider offered a weekly perspective on the looming primaries.

 

Michael Nutter for Mayor
The candidates' stances on ... everything
Can Philly Fix Itself?
Better Know an At-Large City Council Candidate
On the Undercard
"Not Fuckin' Nutter!"
Bob Brady
What About Bob?