The DA Race: Fun With Numbers
Or, how to try to get ahead in a race where you don’t have a lot to go on. Or how about,
First, get a “he said, she said” controversy into the news:
RNews had a piece about the DA race, with challenger Cara Briggs saying incumbent Mike Green has a crappy 35% conviction rate, instead of the 90% number he’s using. (I actually looked it up– the state reports a 86% number, compared to 64% for Buffalo, and 68% for Syracuse.)
Local news is reporting this largely as a “he said, she said” piece, advancing Minarik’s desire to “fuzzy up the numbers”. (That’s an actual term used by an analyst to describe George W. Bush’s “strength” in his debates against Gore in 2000.)
Destroy your opponent’s credibility:
Regardless of whether or not Cara Briggs is correct, the goal is to cast doubt on Mike Green. This is a key tactic of national GOP strategist Frank Luntz: Destroy your opponent’s credibility at all costs. (Comedy Central’s Colbert Report had a funny bit with him where there’s two daughters trying to convince their mom they should get some treat. Luntz helps craft a commercial to cast the one daughter in a bad light, showing an evil glow in her eyes, etc.)
Rev up the noise machine. Cue cheerleaders:
Check out some of the comments in the D&C article (which did a better job on the story):
The District Attorney’s office is in need of change, Cara Briggs is will bring with her experience, perspective, new ideas and an aggressive approach!
and
GO CARA, I SUPPORT YOU ALL THE WAY!!!
and
How old is Cara Briggs and what does shoe look like? Does she have a myspace page? If shes decent looking shes got my vote.
I guess if I saw a bazillion Mike Green lawn signs up all over the place, I’d be desperate too.
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