This Is What They've Got Left

The Ehrlich-Steele Republicans in Maryland are at it again, trying to win through voter suppression, manipulation and just plain confusion.

Back in 2002, Republicans circulated this flyer in black neighborhoods in Baltimore, telling voters that they must pay off any outstanding parking tickets, traffic tickets, back rent and outstanding warrants before voting. Oh, and it also put the wrong date (November 6, 2002) for election day, which was November 5, 2002. Voter suppression, plain and simple.

The result: Ehrlich and Steele won, the first Republican governor in Maryland since Spiro Agnew.

Fast forward to 2006, and they're at it again. Steele has been shameless -- this time focusing on voter confusion. He's created a bumper sticker that says "STEELE DEMOCRAT," implying, of course, that he is the Democratic candidate in the race. He claims that it is similar to people saying that they are "a Reagan Democrat." But, of course, it doesn't say, "I'm a Steele Democrat." Equally damning is the fact that Steele has NO bumper stickers that identify him as a Republican.

Bamboozlement #2 came after Michael J. Fox did an ad for Cardin, stating that Steele was opposed to the "most promising type of stem cell research," which, as everyone knows, is embroyonic stem cell research.

So, Steele got his sister, Monica Turner (Mike Tyson's ex-wife), to put out an ad stating that the Fox ad was not accurate because "Michael Steele does support stem cell research." She never states that Steele supports ONLY non-embroyonic stem cell research, which, as far as I can tell, is useless in terms of medical promise.

The kicker of the Turner ad is that she begins by stating the Cardin's ad with Fox is a "deceptive, tasteless ad" and that Cardin is "using the victim of terrible disease to frighten people." As if Cardin forced Fox to make the ad with a gun to his head, a la some terrorist victim videos. Then, after criticizing Cardin for using a disabled person in an ad, Turner concludes the ad by stating, "I have MS."

But, as we should have known, Ehrlich and Steele saved the best for election day. Apparently, they've bused in homeless people from Philadelphia to pass out incredibly deceptive flyers to urban voters suggesting that Ehrlich and Steele are part of the Democratic ticket and endorsed by the Democratic leadership.

Some Republicans might say, "Oh, well, maybe this is just done by some rogue operative." Uh, no. Governor Ehrlich's wife, Kendel, greeted the workers when their buses arrived in Maryland!

After a two-hour bus ride to Maryland, Markle said the workers were greeted
early this morning by first lady Kendel Ehrlich, who thanked them as they were
outfitted in T-shirts and hats with the logo for Ehrlich's reelection campaign.
Nearly all of those recruited, Markle said, are poor and black. Workers traveled
to Maryland in at least seven large buses.

But the most outrageous is Ehrlich's response:

"If folks are here from out of town that's fine with me. That's what the
Democrats have always done. It's legal and it's what the Democrats have done
forever. This is a story?"

"If we've finally caught up with the Democrats that's fine," he added.
"People asked me about ballots and other stuff. That's not my job. I've got
other things to do."

Stunning. These folks do not deserve to win.
- posted by Joshua @ 5:06 PM