Saturday, August 19, 2006

Mail Call: Purple Line to Humble Beginnings...

... to smoke-filled rooms, an assortment of campaign literature has been tumbling out of my mailbox this past week. With just a few weeks to go before election day, I thought I'd share some of my junk mail with you (because you don't get enough of it yourself).

Janet Owens, candidate for Comptroller, was the first in the mail this week, with a two-toned orange brochure (which seemed to have been coordinated to match her hair in the cover photo). The tri-folded piece touted her record as Anne Arundel County Executive with regard to education, economy, environment, public service and seniors. It's the first mailpiece I've received from her, and it's not a bad introduction. She does lose points in my book for touting her dealings with Homeland Security officials. Do we really need to tie everything in to national security?

Owens' opponent, Peter Franchot, landed his latest letter this week as well. The wordy piece (points off for the whole letter thing, I doubt most people will bother to read a full-page of 10pt text) began asking for contributions, touted his credentials as a Delegate, thanked William Donald Schaefer for his 50 years of service, listed Franchot's endorsements and in the end called for change in the Comptroller's office. Naturally. The best line? "...We will put an end to the Schaefer era of mismanagement, intimidation, and insensitivity on September 12th. It is time to reject the Bob Ehrlich wing of the Democratic Party." Nice!

John McCarthy, hit my mailbox for the second time in a couple weeks with a pic of him standing with Martin O'Malley. Under their smiling mugs was the caption, "Working together we can ensure that Montgomery County's citizens remain safe...." Inside were brief blurbs on gang prevention, domestic violence, protecting seniors and children's safety. The whole thing is kind of an apple pie, motherhood fluff piece. No substance.

[Update: MoCo Progressive asks, has O'Malley endorsed McCarthy? Apparently not, though it's clear that the mailer's intent was to make voters think otherwise.]

Phil Andrews, running for reelection to the County Council's 3rd District seat, sent out a large mailer featuring rising curls of cigarette smoke. That's a scene you will no longer see in MoCo restaurants thanks to Andrews' work on the smoking ban, which of course was his point. The piece also rails against his primary opponent, Bob Dorsey, who opposed the smoke-free ordinance.

Steve Silverman mailed yet another piece of lit attempting to draw a distinction by stating "A purple line separates Ike Leggett and Steve Silverman." It basically continues the tact set by last terms "End Gridlock" slate, by claiming that Silverman will be better able to get a handle on the area's traffic congestion and cites a couple examples of Leggett's previous opposition to earlier versions of the Purple Line.

Ike Leggett also hit the streets with a piece that's largely biographical (with images of his "humble beginnings" and the candidate at various stages of his public service career). He includes a few short statements in support of better schools, slow growth, affordable housing, and "safer, less congested roads." It also features the Post and Gazette endorsements of his campaign.

So, what's arrived in your mailbox? Any comments on the lit you've seen?

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