Coons for Senate’s Bad Start
I just got an email from the Coons campaign. The topic of the email was PayGo. Seriously?
Look, I like the idea of PayGo, but here’s how Coons puts it:
Every week, I’m watching Congress debate incredibly important issues that impact Delaware, even though they often don’t get much press attention. Last week, the House of Representatives voted to reinstate “pay-as-you-go” rules. It doesn’t sound exciting, but these rules make it much more difficult for Congress to increase spending or cut taxes unless they also vote for a way to pay for it. It’s an important tool to keep Congress from over-spending or enacting reckless tax cuts, and when George Bush and his congressional allies abolished these rules in 2003, it paved the way for the massive budget deficits that have troubled us for years.
As someone who has introduced tough budgets as New Castle County Executive, I’m troubled by these deficits; as Delaware’s Senator, I’d fight to keep “pay as you go” rules. Indeed, I was disappointed to see every Republican member of Congress vote against these common-sense rules.”We need leaders willing to make the tough calls, especially when taxpayer money is on the line.
How many times does Coons mention Mike Castle? Zero. He doesn’t mention that Mike Castle is a Republican member of the US House. I guess that we are supposed to infer that Castle is one of the useless Republicans that opposed PayGo. It’s looking like Coons isn’t serious about kicking Mike Castle’s ass to win this.
Look, Chris, if you want to win this, you have to point out that Mike Castle votes against the interest of Delawareans time and time again. You have to challenge Castle at every turn. You have to point out his hypocrisy every chance you get. Failure to do that, sends the message that you are just running to hold down the fort for Democrats, not trying to win the damn thing.
Tags: Chris Coons, Mike Castle, US Senate-DE
It’s looking like Coons isn’t serious about kicking Mike Castle’s ass to win this.
Either that or he needs some new writers.
That is disappointing. And PAYGO, really? That’s not a way to build grassroots excitement.
What a mess of words. Seriously, if he wants to make PAYGO an issue – and I don’t understand why he would – then he better sharpen up his language and his message. In other words… he didn’t have me at hello.
PAYGO is important, for those who are paying attention. but it is basically a done deal in this Congress. The only reason to bring it up is to kick Castle with it. By that standard – FAIL.
I think you could bring up PAYGO as a good example of Republican hypocrisy. Bringing it up without tying into Castle and other well-documented hypocrisies is a massive fail.
If Coons and Castle have some kind of ‘gentleman’s agreement’ then the debates will be a big snore. And more to the point, Coons will lose very badly.
Somebody show Coons and his people Rachel Maddow’s MTP appearance on Sunday, please.
Wonky is OK, but you still have to tell people why that wonky works to your advantage or shows Castle not just in his hypocrisy, BUT ALSO ONLY WORKING FOR HIS PARTY — not Delawareans.
And I can’t believe that the thing on the top of Delawareans’ lists is PAYGO.
Jeeeez.. I was just about to send some money. Thanks LG. I owe you.
Anyhoo… Yes. The Delaware Way respendent.
I agree that this marks Coons as a place holder. What does he gain from taint on that role? Why would he go through this to not try and win it?
Of course he was a placeholder! This was a throwaway race as soon an Beau didn’t run. That’s why I was trying to tell everyone that we needed to give up on running the candidate that might lose by the least, and instead take the opportunity to groom our bench on a statewide level. New Castle County circle-jerking aside, Coons isn’t the future of the party, not even in the short term. We should have taken this chance to get someone like a Pete Schwartzkopf more exposure. I believe Pete is a downstate asset that we could leverage, if done right, into a significant state-wide player.
Actually, PAYGO looks like a winning issue, since, as Coons said, Republicans in Congress voted against it.
I’d like to ask Castle how many votes he made that contributed to the deficit. I hope Coons does.
It’s not that I think Coons can’t use the issue effectively – because I think he can. The more I think about it, Coons can use PAYGO to highlight how as County Exec he’s had to balance budgets and how Mike Castle’s votes have hurt. In his message though he didn’t draw any contrast. He just said “every Republican voted against.” He should say “Mike Castle voted against.”
Since he didn’t even mention Castle this time, my hope that he will do so is on the wane.
The bottom line is that if Coons goes into this thinking that Cadtle is “popular” and therefor untouchable, then his campaign is DOA.
Umm, I don’t know much but I think it would be very stupid to attack Castle this early in the race and give him 9 months to play the poor-old-man-being-beat-up by the young-whipper-snapper. Republicans have raised whining and whinging to an art form and attacking now would be playing right into their hands. October is coming folks.
Rebecca, Coons missed an opportunity to call Castle out on his PAYGO vote. That’s not an “attack” (or wouldn’t have been, had he done it).
Castle would have been forced to respond with the GOP talking-point about PAYGO, which equates it with tax increases. Then Castle would have come out looking dumb in two consecutive news cycles, and Coons would then have the opportunity to deliver a lecture on fiscal responsibility.
But now Castle doesn’t even have to defend his PAYGO position. It should have been a slam dunk.
Unstable Isotope – County Exec he’s had to balance budgets
*
well, there is always the problem with that line –he’s been running a serious structural deficit (20 + million) since he took over. (I don’t have the details at the top of ny head but the people at SNCCA and STAYOUTOFMYPOCKET have it available.
When he didn’t raise taxes in the re-election year but all other years in astronomical numbers…meanwhile Sussex has a surplus of funds.
Coons needs badly to do something about revenue shortfalls and yet has refused to curtail spending or cut services (and yes, I know, his ‘listening tours’ audiences told him its ok to raise taxes, supposedly).
and yet has refused to curtail spending or cut services…
Hypocrisy Hall of Fame – Mike Castle is 2nd on the list.
And remember Coons got his entire workforce to giveback 5% this year of real money with no additional vacations or sweeteners like the state had to. If he didn’t raise taxes, it would have resulted in massive service cuts and layoffs including emergency personnel. Honestly, the repubs can play the “he raised taxes X%” till the cows come home but any educated resident should look at their county tax bill and be impressed with how low it still is for what we get-emergency services alone!
Rebecca, you know I love you, but I think you are wrong. Castle has been riding around in his bipartisan boat for a decade, despite it being utterly untrue. If you don’t start firing some shot across the bow now, you will be utterly unable to win, barring a physical failure of Castle.
If you don’t send out an email to your supporters that calls out Mike Castle for being one of the Republicans that voted against PayGo, then you aren’t doing your job. Mike Castle has an image that has not been seriously challenged in the past. Continuing the tradition of not calling him out will ensure that the tradition of Mike Castle winning continues.
I agree with LG. Yes this is early, but not too early to connect with people who are paying attention. Every 12 doors knocked on equals one vote. Who is going to knock on those doors?
Get your head out of your ass Chris Coons. We want to like you.
Elections seem to be as much about perceptions as about facts. If Coons can differentiate specific votes he would cast differently from Castle in a way that does not alienate the swing voters, the “Pepsi challenge” approach works. If he comes off as excessively partisan or if the claims are PERCEIVED as personal (no matter how factual they are), I think he loses enough swing voters who vote on perception to lose the election.
I think Coons will rely more on direct mail than volunteers knocking doors if his countywide races are any indication.
at his own peril. foot soldiers win elections. look at markell/carney, or obama/clinton. both of them beat heavy favorites because they used volunteers. If Coons thinks he can use mail to win this one, the Dems are in for a close shave in november.
Keep in mind that Coons needs to appeal both to Dems and independents (given that some of ‘our Dems’ are conservadems from downstate). Markell did this quite effectively (yes, with lots of help from foot soldiers).
Indeed, going for the jugular of senior citizen Castle on Day 1 would likely light up DL posters, but would most likely turn off independents.
Instead, the announcement starts to soften up the defenses. It puts Castle on notice that his obstructionist votes will be the battleground this year.
Don’t underestimate the level of concern that the under-informed voters have for federal deficits. Coons is positioning himself for the ‘kick the bums out’ sentiment, only with some skill he is working to accomplish this against a Republican in an off-year election with a Democratic President and a Democratic majority in both Houses.
It’s the economy, stupid. Many voters will vote based on their perception of the impact on their wallet. If Coons is able to effectively paint Castle as a fiscally irresponsible Congressman, that will be quite effective in November.
Also note that by naming Castle, he gives Castle press. By noting that he is running against irresponsible incumbency, he keeps his name in the readers’ minds.
In the early months Obama didn’t go around talking about Hillary at every turn. Instead he spoke of what he brings, including the difference he brings to DC. Hillary already had high name recognition. Don’t fault Coons for intentionally skipping naming his opponent on this opening day.
Keep in mind that Coons is playing for the Washington Generals.
A1. Now that shit was funny.
Coons should have mentioned Castle in his presser. Period. No one is going to accept the scattered apologist HIGH DEM loyalists here who excuse this misstep with lame platitudes. Independent voters absolutely do WANT a fighter and they need to know who and why Coons is a better man for the job. [Even hard core stupid like Protack have started to write about the mounting evidence of the fraud of Goldman Sachs et al. Will Coons with his ConservaDEM leanings even be any different than Carper/Castle?]
Paul, allow me to rephrase: If Coons DOESN’T paint Castle as a fiscally irresponsible Congressman then he’ll be the irresponsible one.
Castle has sat on the Finance Committee and received some of the highest amounts of cash from the finance industry. He has sat quietly by while the (in many quarters-predicted) economy crashed and allowed the markets to bubble and froth in their unregulated stew.
Most importantly, if the groundwork isn’t laid soon, it won’t have any traction when he tries to use it in August. He doesn’t necessarily need to kick Castle in the nuts yet (although that day is coming) but he does need to start deconstructing the Castle myth.
Instead, the announcement starts to soften up the defenses. It puts Castle on notice that his obstructionist votes will be the battleground this year.
Oooohhhh, it puts him on notice… yeah that’ll work.
Coons needs to follow the advice of that great American philosopher Mike Tyson:
“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.”
Stop pulling your punches, Chris Coons.
Castle has a glass jaw, and here is what that means: You don’t actually have to attack aggressively; in fact as many point out that would be counterproductive. All you have to do is politely and persistently go after his record. Call him out on specific votes, and call him out for his party line record. And make sure you ask follow up questions and don’t let him get away with his usual pablum answers.
The thing is, the only answers Castle has for these types of questions are the usual list of debunked GOP talking points. Whenever he recites one of these you have to call him out on that too. To take this approach you have to be consistent, and you have to know your stuff, and you have to get your message out.
If you play this game long enough there will be a video/audio archive of Castle reciting stupid talking points and being smacked down for them, that will make him appear to be the fool he is. He will crack under that strain. That is why it is important to start NOW.
And add a little dose of “Out of touch, been in Washington too long.”
Castle would love nothing better than to put off all serious campaigning until October. I expect his strategy is to put out a lot of feelgood ads and try to avoid any serious exchange until debates happen, preferably as late as possible.
That is why right now, it will be a war of press releases. All Coons’s the questions and follow-ups have to be done via press release, blogs, and YouTube. Make Castle divert his time and money to defending himself against specific charges.
The pressure is on Coons and his writers to perform in the press release department.
PAYGO may be a place to start to show Mike Castle as the hypocrite he is. After all, Castle has voted for any number of budget-busting Republican proposals like the Bush tax cuts, the Medicare Part D, the Iraq War, etc. However, you can’t do it without naming names.
Like anon said above, pointing out Castle’s voting is not partisan it is just truth. Castle is vulnerable because there’s a difference between what he says and what he does.
I do find it inexplicable that Coons is not striking more while the iron is hot. Just last week Castle was on the defensive about being a hypocrite. Don’t give Castle a break, heap more wood on the fire.