U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., is trying to raise enough money in the second quarter of 2007 to keep the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee away from his 2008 re-election bid.
He sent a letter to potential donors earlier this month asking for contributions before the June 30 deadline for second-quarter fundraising. His goal is to prove that he has strong support and keep the DCCC, the official fundraising arm of House Democrats, from taking an interest in his seat.
“They have the funds and power to make a real impact in any race they choose and we need to keep them out of the Second District,” Pearce wrote in the May 9 letter. “They are guaranteed to target us unless we make the hurdle too tall to climb.”
You can read Page 1 of the letter by clicking here and Page 2 here.
Pearce’s letter began by expressing concern that two Democrats have already entered the race – Al Kissling, who Pearce defeated last year, and Doña Ana County Commissioner Bill McCamley.
“After last fall’s hotly contested election cycle, I expected tough opposition in 2008,” he wrote. “I just didn’t expect it in the spring of 2007 – and from two liberal opponents, no less!”
Then Pearce went negative, almost 18 months before Election Day.
“We have one opponent who has a left-wing record including a history of voting for tax increases and fighting against prayer at county commission meetings,” he wrote about McCamley. “And another opponent who favors the death tax and has said he’s ‘more scared of our own American National Guard than Islamic terrorists.’ Unreal!”
Pearce is spinning the facts
In the letter, Pearce hammered Kissling on the same issues he did during last year’s campaign in a radio advertisement calling the Democrat “bizarre.”
Kissling, who spent a tenth of the money of Pearce and received 40 percent of the vote last year, said he “can’t believe that Mr. Pearce can’t come up with better ideas than what he’s expressed in that statement. It just reveals the shallowness of his position.”
Kissling did say during last year’s campaign that he supports a death tax, and the quote Pearce attributed to him is accurate, but it’s taken out of context. Kissling was speaking specifically about his belief that National Guard soldiers should not have been policing American airports after 9/11.
Pearce’s statements about McCamley are also spin.
McCamley did vote for one tax increase, to raise salaries for sheriff’s deputies and create paid firefighter positions, but so did all commissioners, including two Republicans, and the action had widespread bipartisan support in the community, including the endorsement of Republican District Attorney and Pearce supporter Susana Martinez. McCamley also voted to allow voters to decide whether to raise taxes to help fund Spaceport America, but that’s not the same as voting for a tax increase.
“In calling out this policy,” McCamley said about Pearce questioning the public-safety tax increase, “I would ask if Mr. Pearce dislikes either our brave police forces or the men and women who put themselves at risk as the first health care responders on the scene.”
On the topic of prayer, the commission used to allow anyone to sign up to pray before meetings, but a Christian prayer group monopolized the schedule and frequently prayed in the name of Jesus. McCamley proposed and the commission adopted a policy modeled after that in the U.S. House of Representatives, which requires non-sectarian prayer
McCamley, in cooperation with an interfaith group at
“If he wants to continually bring this up during the campaign, then I fully expect him to ask the House chaplain to change the way they do business as well,” McCamley said.
Kissling said Pearce’s attack on him “doesn’t deal with any issues of the campaign.” McCamley said it’s “kind of sad when a politician, especially an incumbent, feels that he has to go negative this early in the campaign. But when you have no accomplishments after four years of service, I guess it’s the only thing you can do.”
‘Proud to be a commonsense conservative voice’
Pearce wrote in his letter that “it could be worse. Another liberal – or two, or three – could jump into the race. Or worse, the (DCCC) could get involved in our race.”
“I’m proud to be a commonsense conservative voice in
McCamley took issue with that statement.
“He has voted with Bush and DeLay over 90 percent of the time, so maybe it’s not possible for him to believe that you can be an independent voice in the House,” the commissioner said. “I, however, plan on doing what is best for the people that voted for me, even if I have to vote against the speaker sometimes. Unlike Mr. Pearce, I won’t be a rubber stamp.”
It’s time to raise a lot of money
Pearce’s letter is likely also geared at keeping state Rep. Joseph Cervantes of
Kissling also met recently with officials from the DCCC. He said the meeting was “very cordial,” but the group won’t get involved in the Democratic primary.
Pearce raised $1.4 million for the 2006 election, but the oilman from
Kissling, on the other hand, raised very little in the first three months of the year and still had a debt to himself from his 2006 campaign. McCamley didn’t enter the race until April, and didn’t raise any money in the first quarter.
Taking on Pearce is a daunting task for a well-funded candidate, but one who doesn’t have money doesn’t have much of a chance. To get the attention of the DCCC, which can provide funding and attention to make this a competitive race, either Democrat will have to raise a significant amount of money by June 30.
McCamley has been working hard to raise cash since jumping into the race, but isn’t releasing any fundraising totals. Kissling is currently traveling on the East Coast.