|
Parsons Sun
www.parsonssun.com
Thursday's editorial
Running scared
A funny thing is happening on the way to the polls this year. Nancy Boyda, the feisty pharmaceutical chemist, who wasn't supposed to be able to knock off the former Olympic runner, is giving Jim Ryun the race of his life. And if people of the 2nd District are really paying attention, Ryun will be handed a second-place finish at the polls.
The most recent sign this is a real race is that President George W. Bush is coming to Topeka on Sunday, and he doesn't dole out his personal time to candidates unless the odds say they might lose. The Republican Party is also asking all Republican office holders to be on the stage with him to create the desired image of solid backing behind Ryun. Most Kansans are only too aware that support for Ryun is not unanimous, whether the group turns out or not.
Of course, this year there's a real risk of having the president, suffering from low approval ratings, stand up on a candidate's behalf. With barely 30 percent of the population thinking he's doing a good job, and less than 60 percent of his own party supporting him, Bush's support could be risky for Ryun when he can't afford risk.
But where is a candidate to turn for a boost when he can't sway voters on his own? The appearance of Vice President Dick Cheney brought campaign money to Ryun's coffers, but it was the prestige of the office that garnered the attention, not the scandal-plagued man.
Running scared, Ryun decided to attack Boyda with a pre-recorded message this week saying that she is lying about his voting record on veteran pay raises. The call proves he fails to understand what he's doing in Washington. First of all, the criticized ad was paid for by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, not by Boyda, and she had no input. Secondly, Ryun did vote against two amendments to military spending bills in October 2003.
And if Ryun is truly the committed-to-our-troops congressman that he says he is, why is he the only representative in Kansas who the VFW did not endorse? Veterans have long stated that Ryun is no friend to them, in spite of him sitting on the House Veteran Affairs Committee, but for him to be the only congressman omitted from endorsements says more than any assurance that will come from Ryun's mouth.
A funny thing is happening on the way to the polls this year. Kansans in the 2nd District are deciding to buck the political odds and support the intelligent candidate, who has little money, over the big-moneyed incumbent who isn't doing his job. Way to go!
- Ann Charles
Editor and publisher
11/02/2006; 1:34:48 PM
Please recommend
|
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(55 posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
