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Dems’ attack put them
on the defensive

For a state party that has always happily enjoyed the last days of October waiting for the Republicans to shoot themselves in the foot, Hawaii's Democrats this year should probably be looking up the number of their favorite podiatrist.

Democratic candidates are going into the critical closing days of the race on the defensive. They have to explain that their mass mailings sent out by their state party were incorrect. As that doctor says on TV "They are wrong, wrong, wrong."

The first mailing mislabeled Rep. Mark Jernigan (R, Keauhou-Honokohau) as someone who voted against a wonderful list of construction projects and then rarely showed up for work. When it turned out that the Democrats counted an early vote on the budget and not the final vote Democrats called it "a typo."

Then the Democrats alerted voters in four GOP districts that the Republicans had voted against $14.7 million for ice enforcement, treatment and education. The four Republicans actually voted for the bill, which was favored by the Democrats.

Republicans are now flagging the Democratic mis- statements an attempt to "maliciously mislead and deceive the public." The argument gains currency this year because Democrats did the same thing two years ago. In the 2002 election, Democrats sent out attack mailers charging that the GOP was in bed with "Big Oil" and that's why Republicans voted against a cap on oil prices.

That's an appealing argument, except several of the GOP candidates attacked actually voted for the price cap and others mentioned were not even in the Legislature and hadn't voted for or against anything.

So now Democratic candidates showing up for rallies and meetings will have to start their stump speech by saying how much they regret the misinformation being spread by their own party, how much they respect honest campaigning and how they are not telling falsehoods about their opponents.

Democrats have responded by criticizing a GOP attack piece featuring a fellow trying to break into a house with a headline claiming that the Democratic incumbent "wants you to meet your new neighbor." The GOP ad goes on to recount how the Democrat didn't vote for the GOP anti-drug bill.

But the ads correctly list how the Democratic opponent voted, and the GOP argues that the supposition that the incumbent wants you to meet a scary crook is legitimate political debate.

If you see politics in terms of a sporting event, it is similar to a football team running a play against an injured or limping defensive back. Tough, but not illegal. But if the offense lines up offside and gets away with it, that's wrong, say Republicans.

In this race, the Democrats probably would have been better off sticking to the plays they know how to run. For decades Democrats have won by recounting how much they care for the little guy, how much they want to help and how much they can deliver. Promises of new libraries and assurances that more teachers are on the way have worked for Democrats in the past.

Running a tricky negative play that they never practiced or researched won't work.

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