Heath Haussamen
I want to clarify a couple of things after thinking some more about two commentaries I wrote last week on the problems both gubernatorial candidates face.
Democrat Diane Denish isn’t Bill Richardson. Republican Susana Martinez isn’t Sarah Palin.
That is to say that Denish isn’t a bully. She doesn’t try to force her ideas on others. She operates in a more collaborative way. And, perhaps most importantly for purposes of the election, she’s not been dogged by ethical scandals and rumors of pay-to-play corruption. There’s been no evidence presented publicly that she knew about anything nefarious going on during the Richardson years.
It’s also to say that Martinez is intelligent. She works hard and doesn’t quit something in the middle. She cares little about flashiness, snappy quotes and posing for the cameras (she’s only recently starting to look more comfortable on TV). Having been an elected Republican in a Democratic county for so long, she knows how to think outside the box of her own beliefs, though she also stands firm by her beliefs.
What I wrote last week was that Denish’s big problem is Richardson. He’s become the face of corruption in New Mexico and she needs to bluntly distance herself from him, especially because the GOP and Martinez are trying so hard to tie Denish to Richardson.
And I wrote that Martinez’s plans and policy proposals need more substance. As the Democrats and Denish try to convince voters that Martinez is “all sizzle, no steak,” she must show that she’s not Palin – that she’s not an ideologue and that her ideas have depth and substance.
Both candidates face these problems because, right now, the other side is doing an effective job of characterizing them.
Denish hasn’t done nearly enough to distance herself from Richardson during the campaign. For the most part, she’s sat back and taken it as Republicans have repeatedly called it the “Richardson/Denish” administration and tried to tie her to corruption.
Frankly, the GOP is doing a more effective job than Denish right now of defining Denish. She needs to confront the situation head-on. She needs to bluntly tell voters she isn’t Bill Richardson – in a TV ad, during a news conference. She needs to say that the way he did things isn’t how she’ll do things, that she’s not angling to be president and won’t toe (or cross) legal and ethical lines to make rich friends happy.
Martinez invited the Palin comparison by accepting her endorsement during the primary. It gave Martinez a big boost that helped her win. At the time, I’m sure the thinking was that the endorsement would help her in the primary, and she would worry about the damage it would do to her image with moderate general election voters later.
Well, that time has arrived. The Palin endorsement, coupled with the massive funding from the founder of the swift boaters, gives Democrats all they need to hammer Martinez as the sizzle while calling Denish the steak.
Martinez has been showing more steak lately, traveling around the state to talk about economic policy. She needs to do more of that. And she needs to use new media to get detailed plans on various issues out to voters. Put the plans on the campaign Web site – with details. Tweet them. Put them on Facebook. Though many voters don’t care about the details, those who do need a central place to find the specifics of the candidates’ plans.
Neither candidate is what the other side is making her out to be. Both need to be more intentional about showing the reality to voters.