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Dirty politics becomes clean campaigning
So, let’s get this cleared up, straight away. Brian K. Hill is not a Muslim. I think he’s a Presbeterian. He’s certainly Christian.
But the unfortunate and sad tale of journalistic woe that led to me writing that first paragraph seems to have a happy ending: A cleaner election.
But the unfortunate and sad tale of journalistic woe that led to me writing that first paragraph seems to have a happy ending: A cleaner election.
Maybe.
The blogger known only as “The King” started it all. In his blog, The King’s View, the unnamed and obvious Tea Party supporter wrote the following. I hesitate to include the graph, but will, in the interest of completeness:
That graph was republished (and tweeted) several times and, at the behest of the McMahon campaign, removed from Courant blogger Rick Green’s site (the mobile version is still available). I went ahead and asked Hill about it, and he laughed.
Then, Hill sent an email, saying that he received a call from McMahon, with whom he is battling for the GOP Senate nom, and the McMahon had “expressed concern” over the incident.
“She assured me that no such event happened and further went on to say that she would not campaign in that fashion. I take Mrs. McMahon at her word, and appreciate her calling me,” Hill wrote. “We have agreed to run a positive, spirited, issues-oriented debate in the primary, and I look forward to that debate.”
And just so you know, dear reader, McMahon’s campaign staff has confirmed the above. Yes, Linda did call Hill, yes she assured him that no member of her staff would have said such a thing and, yes, they have agreed to run a clean campaign.
Of course, we’ll see on that last one. But it’s nice to know that what appeared to be the dirtiest of politics has turned into what appears to be the best of intentions.
The blogger known only as “The King” started it all. In his blog, The King’s View, the unnamed and obvious Tea Party supporter wrote the following. I hesitate to include the graph, but will, in the interest of completeness:
“I attended a political event a few days ago, and one of Linda McMahon's campaign staffers (no, I'm not going to print her name here) was asked what she thought of Brian K. Hill's entry into the U.S. Senate Race. The McMahon staffer went on a sarcastic tirade about this and that (mostly making comments about Hill's "inexperience" - go figure on that one), and then in the end made the trite comment... "and he's [Hill] a Muslim anyway." My jaw dropped to the floor. The other people standing around just sort of went silent.”
That graph was republished (and tweeted) several times and, at the behest of the McMahon campaign, removed from Courant blogger Rick Green’s site (the mobile version is still available). I went ahead and asked Hill about it, and he laughed.
Then, Hill sent an email, saying that he received a call from McMahon, with whom he is battling for the GOP Senate nom, and the McMahon had “expressed concern” over the incident.
“She assured me that no such event happened and further went on to say that she would not campaign in that fashion. I take Mrs. McMahon at her word, and appreciate her calling me,” Hill wrote. “We have agreed to run a positive, spirited, issues-oriented debate in the primary, and I look forward to that debate.”
And just so you know, dear reader, McMahon’s campaign staff has confirmed the above. Yes, Linda did call Hill, yes she assured him that no member of her staff would have said such a thing and, yes, they have agreed to run a clean campaign.
Of course, we’ll see on that last one. But it’s nice to know that what appeared to be the dirtiest of politics has turned into what appears to be the best of intentions.
Labels: Brian K. Hill. Linda McMahon
posted by Jordan Fenster at
12:59 PM
2 Comments:
I know Brian K. Hill personally and I find him to be a man of unquestionable class and incredible dignity.
What so many fail to understand about the seriousness of this next several months leading up to November is that Linda McMahon CANNOT win against Chris Murphy. Folks, she lost by what 11% to Richard Blumenthal and this came even after it was revealed that he'd been lying about his military service.
While I have spoken to Mrs. McMahon several times, and even campaigned with her the last go round, she is a VERY nice woman. However, the people of Connecticut have spoken and they don't want what she is selling. She has a level of celebrity and plenty of money, but in tough economic times, we cannot afford to give the left another voice from CT.
Brian Hill is a conservative, but not repressively so. He has phenomenal experience and he will do well in Bridgeport as well as in New Haven, Waterbury, Norwalk, Hartford. But if she were to get the nomination she would need to overcome a tremendous negative vibe meanwhile, Brian Hill would not. We need to give up the things that are dividing us and focus on the good. Brian Hill does that.
As voters endure the "circular firing squad" known as the GOP Presidential Primary, it's quite refreshing to see a US Senate candidate who is willing to call one of his rivals and get her take on an issue that had the potential to seriously damage her campaign. Many politicians would have used the opportunity to write a scathing press release and grab a few headlines, but Brian Hill is NOT a politician...he's an honorable man who wants to focus on solutions rather than sound bytes. I applaud him on his restraint and I applaud both campaigns for putting this matter to bed. I'd also like to thank the New Haven Register for publishing this article--many news outlets would not have bothered because there appears to be no scandalous (or "gotcha") element to the story.
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