Mail Call: Real Solutions, Living Our Dream...

A week has gone by since my last mail call, so without further ado, here's a look at the campaign literature that arrived in my mailbox this week.

Ike Leggett (County Executive) sent a large mailer that seems to be taking direct aim at some of Silverman's recent pieces. The tag: "Ike Leggett has real solutions to our transportation and growth challenges." The piece goes on to state that "Ike will fight every day" to slow growth, fund public transportation and protect open space. And, of course, the Post and Gazette endorsements are highlighted. Nicely done.

Saqib Ali (Delegate - Dist 39) hit the mailstream with a large, full-color, biographical piece proclaiming he and his wife are "living our dream." It's laden with pics and short vignettes about his background, family (he and his wife just had a baby) and hits on a few legislative priorities (traffic/mass transit, "world-class" education, "smarter" development, and getting the "special interest money out of politics" (Ali doesn't accept any PAC or corporate campaign contributions - major props in my book).

[Disclosure: Ali is a friend of mine (we worked together on the Howard Dean campaign) and I have been a volunteer and longtime supporter of his candidacy.]

Joan Stern (Delegate - Dist 39) mailed out what is essentially a trimmed down version of her doorhanger. One side lists her committee assignments and various recognitions from previous years. The other a bulleted list of her legislative accomplishments It's very similar to her campaign lit from the last election, though I think she added the tag "Experience is the Difference" (undoubtedly a reaction to Ali's insurgent campaign). Points off for a typo and just the, well, plainness (two-color, grayscale pics, etc) of the piece.

Also, though I'm not sure this counts as a campaign piece, the Audubon Naturalist Society joined the fray with a piece noting that the Intercounty Connector (ICC) is "not a done deal." It quotes the Maryland state study that found the ICC would not relieve traffic congestion on I-270 or the beltway. They also highlight the $7/roundtrip toll ($1500 a year) the state plans to levy on ICC drivers and urge residents to contact their state officials and sign the No ICC petition. IMO, a very well done piece.

[Disclosure: I'm not a big fan of the ICC.]

Well, there you have it, until next week. Feel free to share your own thoughts and let us know what showed up in your mailbox.

Tags: campaign literature; Ike Leggett; Saqib Ali; Joan Stern; Audubon Naturalist Society; ICC