Why is Ethan running for the U.S. House seat rather than the Senate?

[Ken Burch]

Ethan would have had a lock on the Senate race. He's now turned the House primary into a three-way battle.

Why choose the harder primary?

And who does he hurt more by switching to the Congressional race, Diane or the Jakester?

[PublicCommentAK]

1. Because he can win.

He's got a lock in the House race too. Jake doesn't have a shot, and neither does Diane now that there is a real candidate.

He said on KUDO, or maybe on Fagan last week that he picked the house because he feels more comfortable there with his experience. Maybe he figures Young will be easier to beat than Uncle Ted.

Now I wonder who is gonna jump in for Ted's seat.

[Ken Burch]

2. There was no reason to bash Diane Benson like that.

Diane PROVED she's a real candidate LAST time, winning over 40% with no money and no real backing from the party.

Ethan would be a good nominee, and I'd gladly work for him if he won the primary, but Ethan is enough of a stand-up guy that he'd never put up with "I'm backing the REAL candidate and you're not" shit.

Don't lower yourself to trash talk. Diane never did anything to you to deserve that comment.

[Blue_In_AK]

4. Agreed, Ken.

I don't know why people come in here and bash Diane. It makes me wonder if they've ever spent any time actually listening to her or what she stands for.

I, too, would be happy to vote for Ethan if he wins the primary, but I really wish he had declared for the Senate. Oh, well.....

[Ken Burch]

5. Blue, check your pm's.

n/t.

[PublicCommentAK]

6. Trash Talking?

I didn't think I was talking trash. I like Diane. Of course I voted for her last time (and was very happy after being forced to vote for Thomas Higgins the cycle before that, can I bash him as not a real candidate?), but the fact is that she really only got something like 7% of of the vote, maybe less. The other 33% was the anti-Young vote, which is and has been constantly growing. I mean Higgins, got 22% in 04 and his campaign was a fucking joke. Again I am not trying to bash anyone, just saying what we all know is true. I would be happy if she went to Washington and think that she would represent me and the state very well.

But I think that main stream Dems (or at least the kind that give the kind of money it takes to win a race) don't really feel the same way about her. They will get behind Ethan though. And I think that the voters will too, I think the Anti-Young vote will increase, but Ethan can get a higher percentage to vote FOR him than Diane will realistically ever be able to, again not bashing her just saying what I think is true.

It wasn't trash talk, just honesty. But if that type of talk somehow motivates someone to go work harder for Diane to prove the naysayers and she ends up in Washington I'll be happy, probably happier than if Ethan was there, and definitely happy than if it was Jake.

[Blue_In_AK]

7. I think Ken and I were a little sensitive

because we had a big argument here a while back with someone who really WAS trashing Diane. You may be right about Ethan, although I stand by my opinion that Diane may have more appeal with some of the independents. I volunteer with her campaign here in Anchorage and know several independents (and even some Republicans last year) who do, as well. I think Diane is maybe seen as less partisan than either Jake or Ethan.

I would have no problem with Ethan being our representative in Washington -- he was my state representative -- but Jake? No way.

[Ken Burch]

8. I'd like to know how you deduce that Diane was only responsible for 7 percentage points out of the

40 she received.

If you like Ethan, fine. Ethan is a good guy. I'd have no problem voting for the guy. But if you're going to say that Diane doesn't have proven statewide support, than it's fair for me to point out that Ethan has only managed to win elections in the safest Democratic legislative district in the state(he was basically the beneficiary of the Tuckerman Babcock gerrymander that dumped almost ALL the Dem voters in Anchorage into two districts in the Nineties).

And what I object to most strongly is this notion that Diane simply hasn't earned renomination, or that she isn't a "REAL" candidate.

And "just saying what we all know is true"? Excuse me, but say WHAT?

Who are you to simply pronounce that Diane is inherently unworthy of "mainstream Dems" support?

Are you one of those people who STILL can't let it go that Diane was once a Green? Christ on a shingle, why is that any worse than all of those former REPUBLICANS Rahm Emmanuel has forced on us(you know, the former Republicans who mostly failed to win in 2006?) Democrats NEED the backing of former Greens if they're to win. We also need the backing of other progressives who left our party or were never in it. Diane can get those votes.

And Les Gara used to be a Green too. If you can forgive him for that, why not Diane?

And Diane and Les were Greens when progressives and people who disagreed with Bush were totally unwelcome in the Democratic Party. Putting a stigma on people like that is McCarthyism and unacceptable in a modern political party. And it is also unacceptable to say that the only REAL candidate is a white man while a woman of color is some how inherently unworthy.

The reality is, Diane still has an excellent chance of winning the primary(in fact Ethan's entry may actually increase her chances since his most likely initial source of support will be from Dems who were leaning Jake but are less than impressed by his presentation as a candidate so far). But the kind of phrasing you were using was really vicious, whether you realized it or not.

And the kind of slams you presented in that post and also in the post I'm now responding to are likely to get picked up by GOP propagandists if Diane does get renominated.

If you like Ethan, it's enough to campaign for him on the merits. It's not your place to try to "win ugly". Diane doesn't need to be "reminded of her place" for Dems to put Don Young to the political boneyard.

You don't need to use these kind of tactics. And I think in my heart your a better person than this.

[PublicCommentAK]

9. Let me just go through and respond point by point.

I'll just put your stuff in italics so it's easier to keep track of.


I'd like to know how you deduce that Diane was only responsible for 7 percentage points out of the 40 she received.
I obviously have no idea what percentage were votes for her and what percentage were votes against Young. But I would bet anything I have that the vast majority were Anti-Young votes.

If you like Ethan, fine. Ethan is a good guy. I'd have no problem voting for the guy.
I have very mixed feelings about Ethan actually. I have met him a few times and he seems like a nice enough guy, in general I respect his politics. But I actually would have a problem voting for him. Chances are I will if he is the nominee, but won't before that for sure.

And what I object to most strongly is this notion that Diane simply hasn't earned renomination, or that she isn't a "REAL" candidate.
I didn't say that that was my opinion. But now that you bring it up, she hasn't "earned" anything. She will have to work for it just like anyone else. Just because she ran last time and had a pretty good showing (although we can disagree on why) doesn't mean that we automatically have to support her again. John Kerry doesn't have some sort of "earned renomination" for president since he got 50 percent of the vote.

Who are you to simply pronounce that Diane is inherently unworthy of "mainstream Dems" support?
I didn't say she was unworthy, I just said that she won't get it, there is a very large difference there. The national party isn't going to get behind her, just like they didn't last time around. But they will get behind Ethan, along with some of the bigger money in the state.

Are you one of those people who STILL can't let it go that Diane was once a Green? Christ on a shingle, why is that any worse than all of those former REPUBLICANS Rahm Emmanuel has forced on us(you know, the former Republicans who mostly failed to win in 2006?) Democrats NEED the backing of former Greens if they're to win. We also need the backing of other progressives who left our party or were never in it. Diane can get those votes.
I'm not one of those people at all. But there are a lot of people out there who are and this is one of the reasons that I think she probably isn't the strongest candidate in a general election. To win we need a candidate who can garner support from more middle of the road independents, or even conservative independents and a recent Green Party member might not be the best.

And it is also unacceptable to say that the only REAL candidate is a white man while a woman of color is some how inherently unworthy.
That is fucking ridiculous. Why would you jump to that conclusion about what I said? I also included another white man in my non-real candidate characterization. And isn't Berkowitz a Jewish name? If this was some sort of racial thing I should probably hate him too. Saying crap like that is not going to help Diane gain any support. Her race or sex has nothing to do with anything I have said on here or anywhere else.

The reality is, Diane still has an excellent chance of winning the primary(in fact Ethan's entry may actually increase her chances since his most likely initial source of support will be from Dems who were leaning Jake but are less than impressed by his presentation as a candidate so far). But the kind of phrasing you were using was really vicious, whether you realized it or not.
I hope that she does, and I will be voting for her in it, but I really don't think that it is true. Ethan will get support from Dems (including 99% of anyone who thought Jake was a good candidate, again this is a made up number just based on my opinion and talking to a lot of people about this stuff) and I think he can pull a lot of support from the "anti-oil populist" crowd on the right as one right wing blowhard puts it.

And the kind of slams you presented in that post and also in the post I'm now responding to are likely to get picked up by GOP propagandists if Diane does get renominated.
I haven's said anything here that hasn't been said 100 times before. I doubt any republican strategists are going to read my reply and steal material to defeat Diane.

If you like Ethan, it's enough to campaign for him on the merits. It's not your place to try to "win ugly". Diane doesn't need to be "reminded of her place" for Dems to put Don Young to the political boneyard.
Again, I don't really like Ethan. I wasn't trying to remind anyone of their place, or trying to win anything. I am just saying what I believe to be true, from talking to lots of people about these issues. I am not saying it is right that she isn't going to get the support that Ethan will, but I really think it is the truth. I hope I am wrong though.

[Lucky 13]

10. Simple-minded and outrageous.

Outrageous. Let's be reasonable people. We are all Democrats here and, ostensibly fair-minded, tolerant, diversity promoting individuals. When someone says something you disagree with, automatically jumping right to racism or sexism is plain asinine. Especially when there are stone cold facts to support why someone might make the argument.

And the comment, "And the kind of slams you presented in that post and also in the post I'm now responding to are likely to get picked up by GOP propagandists if Diane does get renominated." Are you freaking serious? You think anything said here hasn't been thought of by Republicans in the LAST election? And I suppose criticizing Bush just gives ammunition to the terrorists? Discouraging the free exchange of ideas on any topic from anyone at any time makes you just as bad as they are.

I believe that Ethan is not only more electable, but is genuinely a better candidate. As a liberal feminist woman, I am basing that on facts and logic, not some imagined desire to put the woman candidate in her place. Let's review facts.

Ethan
- Law Degree.
- Experienced. Former prosecutor. Former Democratic Leader in the Alaska State House. He's proven he can an effective job as an elected official and under some pretty difficult circumstances.
- He has the backing from long standing Alaska democrats - publicly and financially.
- He knows how to run a campaign. He knows how to raise some bucks - imperative for anyone going against Don Young's vast war chest. Most importantly, he knows how to WIN. He's run campaigns and won them. Neither Diane nor Jake can say that.

Jake
- Law Degree.
- Decent experience. Served as a state prosecutor and IBEW Council. Served on city councils and school boards and I believe he held the title of Chairman of the Alaska Democrats.
- He has the backing of long standing Alaska democrats - but I don't think to the level of Ethan.
- He's won some elections for school board or city council and served as leadership in the Alaska Democrats, but this is obviously a bigger ball of wax.

Diane
- Masters in Fine Arts.
- Diane has no leadership experience. Read her bio yourself, but I believe the only leadership experience she has was as the international cultural coordinator of Arctic Games that came up here some years ago.
- She summarizes HERSELF as: "An Alaskan politician, inspirational speaker, video production consultant, published writer and dramatist." I'm not slamming what she's done, but it just pales in comparison to a state prosecutor and Minority Leader in the Alaska State House.
- Diane does not have the backing of long standing Alaska democrats. The democratic party barely supported her last run for Congress and she had a walk through primary.
- Diane has run a number of times for various offices, but has never WON an election.
- Something else to consider. Her campaign fundraising efforts were ABYSMAL for a congressional candidate. Yet she received 40+% of the vote. This indicates to me that indeed, most of her votes came from people voting AGAINST Don, not firmly supporting HER.

(On a side note, I never understood why Diane didn't run for State House or Assembly, prove she could win, prove she could serve in a leadership role, prove she could do the job of an elected official, gain some relevant experience and THEN aim for a higher position. She insists on running for congress and governor with no relevant experience and loses each time. If she could set her ego aside and try to establish a career as a true public servant before trying for these high-profile sexier positions, she'd do much better the next time around. Just my opinion.)

So based on the FACTS, how can you argue that Diane is a better candidate than Ethan? I just don't see it, but I'd love to hear your argument and promise not to call you anti-semitic or a male-basher. And feel free to critique Ethan's chances... I'm pretty sure the GOP has already thought of those arguements too.

Peace.

[Blue_In_AK]

3. I was wondering that myself.

I think it hurts Jake most because it seems to me Diane has more cross-over appeal to the independents and some of the Libertarian/Palin republicans. I was certainly hoping Ethan would go after Ted's seat. I think he could have won it easily. I'm wondering just who is going to get in that race. Eric Croft? Mark?

[wizelf]

11. Most of them are waiting for Mark Begich for go after Ted

I think that it made sense that most of them would wait for Mark Begich to go after Ted. Ethan Berkowitz actually hinted that he would run against either Ted or Don Young, before Jake announced. I like Diane, she's a neat person, but I think Ethan can win the race against Don Young. She got a lot of votes the last time, but she didn't win. I think that he has a better shot.

[Blue_In_AK]

12. Of course, remember that Diane got all those votes

BEFORE the FBI investigations of Don Young was common knowledge and without much financial backing. I'm sticking with Diane, but I would be more than happy to vote for Ethan if he's the nominee. I never had any complaints when he was my district's Representative.