I've got one really good reason to vote for Teddy Kulongoski: He can hold the line.
Hasn't anybody learned anything from the past 6 years? Republicans try to make it seem like there is very little difference between them and the Democrat -- like Bush did to Gore in 2000 -- in order to get their foot in the door and get elected. Then, once they're in office, they demonstrate exactly how much difference there really is (do I really need to make a list here?).
I see Saxton following the same playbook. He tries to portray Teddy K as a do-nothing Dem who doesn't offer proposals, get anything done or really even vary too greatly from Saxton himself. This is just his strategy to weasel into office. DON'T BUY IT.
Teddy K., as the Governor of Oregon, really just needs to do his best to hold the line. He needs to protect the land use system, protect the environment, keep the schools open, keep the police force staffed, and balance the budget. Anything else is gravy.
Sure, we would all love to see a progressive reformer in the statehouse, one with real vision, charisma, and the ability to make Oregon into an even better state. Don't be fooled, however -- this man is most definitely NOT Ron Saxton. At least with Kulongoski, if such a character were to come along and dominate the legislature such that it were to produce some good bills, he would sign them.
So, why will I be voting for Kulongoski, even if he's not my dream candidate?
Because he'll hold the line. He'll keep the state from sliding backwards. He'll at least carry the torch for all the accomplishments which have been made thus far.
And who's to say that he won't, like Clinton in his second term, manage to pull off some rather impressive accomplishments that just can't be predicted yet? I'm willing to take the gamble that he might.
Kulongoski -- good enough for me.
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3 comments:
Another blogger has called Teddy K a hero, which is a much more ringing endorsement than my own. Here's what I said to this endorsement:
"You know, I just blogged my own endorsement for Kulongoski for very different reasons here.
However, my endorsement, like that of WW, was rather lukewarm, simply because on the rather wonky issues that I care about (bicycles, transit, the environment, oregon's land use system, education, etc.), it seems like Teddy is more the type to simply hold the line, rather than innovate and make further progressive changes. Fine by me.
But you bring up a very, very good point: Teddy has a very big heart, and his character (as evidenced by your post and his attention to real people, especially the soldiers from Oregon who have gone off to fight this needless war) is his real redeeming, re-electable quality.
So, hurrah for pointing that out.
Kulongoski is a hero."
garlynn: thanks for your comments on my post. I appreciate your sensitivity. Your openness to new information is a great asset. I also appreciate the opportunity to learn about who you are on your blog. You are one of the people who make Portland and Oregon such a good place to live. Sean Cruz
Finally, on election day, I find this neat snippet from Storm Large. It's a phone call from her voters, a Get Out The Vote (GOTV) call, endorsing Kulongoski.
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