My Opponent Might Die, So Vote For Me...

[Luke T.]

...or, A New Low In Negative Ad Campaigning

http://www.modbee.com/local/story/12194130p-12937329c.html

Bill Conrad questions the health of opponent Tom Berryhill in a campaign mailer, injecting instant controversy into the race for the Republican nomination to represent the 25th Assembly District.
Conrad, a former Modesto city councilman, produced the flier himself and mailed it to voters over the weekend. It says the heart transplant Berryhill received in 2000 raises serious questions about his fitness for office.

In bold red letters, the flier says: "Tom Berryhill Doesn't have the HEART for State Assembly."

Under the subheading "Heart Transplant Facts," it says:

"The Average Lifespan of a Heart Transplant recipient is 7 years.

"(Berryhill's heart transplant was 6 years ago)

"Heart Transplant patients take Anti-rejection medications for life.

"(These medications weaken the immune system making the recipient more susceptible to illness and death)

http://www.nbc11.com/politics/9246714/detail.html

"Republicans deserve a strong candidate who won't lose to a Democrat again."

I give this one three smilies:

 

[Cleon]

There's nothing new here. The same crap was brought up about Cheney, and before that Bob Dole. It's a bit on the sick side, but nothing new.

 

[BPSCG]

I give this one three smilies:

This is excellent. It goes beyond satire. It could easily be an Onion spoof.

 

[jj]

There's nothing new here. The same crap was brought up about Cheney, and before that Bob Dole. It's a bit on the sick side, but nothing new.

Yeah, like the hero's war record. Or the DWI issue, or Goldwater's "blow up Vietnam" (hint: he didn't say that), or, or...

All the examples are pathetic and disgusting. You know why they keep happening? Because they work. (*&(* it, but they work.

 

[Manny]

Very bad campaign strategy -- doesn't the dead guy normally win, a la Aschroft?

 

[geni]

However it does make logical sense to take the candidates health into account.

 

[Giz]

However it does make logical sense to take the candidates health into account.

Pity the add doesn't give enough info to make an informed judgement (i.e. an average life exp of 7 years at t=0 does not equal a life exp of 1 year at t=6. It all depends on the probability of dieing in each year - if the chance of death soon after the operation was high and he has now survived that high risk zone - then he may, on average, have a good few years left.)

 

[geni]

Pity the add doesn't give enough info to make an informed judgement

Posebly but if the population had enough information to make an informed judgement all those spin doctors and campain agents would be out of work.

 

[gnome]

It's unfortunate, but many of the most emotional voters I know will happily decry negative advertising, but seem to believe everything printed about the guy they don't want to vote for.

 

[Rob Lister]

I think it really is a factor on the presidental level, much less so below that.

 

[shemp]

This is a non-issue. If the guy dies, he can continue to run, and serve in office, as a zombie. And if anyone should tell me that there is a law preventing zombies from doing so, I say that the law is wrong! WE DEMAND ZOMBIE RIGHTS NOW!!!

 

[Charlie Monoxide]

I not surprised to see Republicans "swift-boating" their own ....

Charlie (we're all going die eventually) Monoxide

 

[Snide]

There's nothing new here. The same crap was brought up about Cheney, and before that Bob Dole. It's a bit on the sick side, but nothing new.

I don't recall any democrats campaigning against anyone about their age in a "he'll be dying soon" context, nor against Cheney's possible next heart attack. All I recall were jokes/comments from non-politicians. Do you have sources?