Watchdogs Give Money?

Watchdogs Give Money?

[This letter was published in the Cambridge Chronicle on Thursday November 1, 2007.]

It is business as usual in Cambridge as in other elections. And they wonder
why few people vote. Not only do campaign contributors get access to the public
officials they also get their names in the newspapers. (Matt Dunning, "As war
chests swell, City Council candidates fight for a seat," Cambridge Chronicle,
Oct 25, 2007) At the national level the lame-stream media reports how much much
money each candidate raised. Does that help to distinguish between the
candidates to
find out what they think and what kind of human being they are? The more money
the better person?
The Cambridge Chronicle celebrates Robert Winters as a "political
watchdog." But Winters is a contributor of money to some candidates. Does the
Chronicle believe that Winters is objective while giving money to some
candidates? Is it usual for watchdogs to make campaign contributions? Also
quoted is John Moot,
another contributor of money to politicians. Do campaign contributions bring
access to the media as well as to politicians?
Winters openly expresses his animosity toward persons with disabilities and
persons with disabilities who run for office. He ridicules vulnerable persons
while revealing that incumbents have an advantage. Well Duh! I never thought of
that! Does ignoring Winters' bigotry indicate that the Chronicle writers share
the negative bias toward person with disabilities? It is not as if the issue was
not brought to attention of the editors. I wrote to them and spoke with them
several times. (Matt Dunning the author of the article did not respond to my
email.) Still they condone denying persons with disabilities access to their
basic rights and privileges enjoyed by others.
Drew Faust is celebrated as the First Woman President of Harvard; Nikki
Tsongas as the only woman member of the Mass Congressional delegation; Deval
Patrick as the First Person of Color Governor of MA. But the Chronicle only
knows that they unable to find any campaign information about the First Person
With a disability to run for City Council Kathy Podgers. Does this indicate that
the Chronicle writers have bigoted attitudes toward persons with disabilities?

Roy Bercaw, Editor ENOUGH ROOM

As war chests swell, City Council candidates fight for a seat
By Matt Dunning/Chronicle Staff
Thu Oct 25, 2007, 11:52 AM EDT
Cambridge - As the weeks leading up to the City Council election wind down,
evidence of the impending showdown between the 15 candidates is beginning to
pile up.

In pockets of the city, placards and signs adorn laws, fences and building
facades. Residents have started receiving automated phone calls from candidates
trying to gather all the potential votes time will allow. Hanging pamphlets
dangle from doorknobs, while leaflets begin to crowd mailboxes.

Piles of a different sort have been expanding in the candidates� war chests.
Since Jan. 1, the 15 active candidates � excluding state Senator and City
Councilor Anthony Galluccio � have raised a combined $238,064 in the race for
City Council. Galluccio, who is still technically on the ballot for the Council
election Nov. 6, raised about half of that amount on his own � about $115,721 �
but has said he would not continue to serve on the Council past his current
term.

Of the 15 candidates actively pursuing a seat on the Council, incumbent
Henrietta Davis raised the most money for her campaign, raking in $38,575,
including contributions from Cambridge Neighborhoods Association Chairman John
Moot, Central Square Business Association President Carl Barron and even her own
research assistant, Penny Peters.

Tim Toomey wasn�t far behind Davis in money raised. Toomey collected $35,886 in
10 months of fundraising, including sizeable donations from the ABCC
Investigators Association, a Boston Police patrolmen�s association and Boston
Fire Fighters Local 718.

Among the challengers, Edward Sullivan topped the pack at $24,730 raised since
January, with contributions coming from former City Councilor Bill Walsh � who
spent time in jail for bank fraud in the 1990s � as well as Fire Chief John
Gelinas and erstwhile state Senate candidate Timothy Flaherty. Sam Seidel, an
urban planner, collected donations from former state Sen. Jarrett Barrios and
political watchdog Robert Winters, among others, and found himself nipping at
Sullivan�s heals in the challengers� pool with $21,296.

Perhaps the most famous name to appear on anyone�s donor list was that of former
Cantabrigian and New York Knicks player Patrick Ewing, who gave $500 to the
campaign efforts of Kevin Moore.

No campaign finance information could be found for candidates Kathy Podgers and
Gregg Moree.

Seidel, who was defeated in the 2005 election, said he felt as though his
experience in his first election might give him an edge this year.

�Each election season has its own dynamic,� Seidel said. �In 2005, I was brand
new to the voters of Cambridge, so there was a lot of learning all the way
around.�

Seidel also noted that there were no vacant seats on the Council prior to the
2005 election. This year, with Galluccio promising to leave the Council behind,
Seidel said 2007 may be the best opportunity he�ll have to make run at the
Council.

�That makes this effort feel different than the last,� Seidel said. �I never
want to count anything before it hatches, but somebody is going to fill that
vacancy, and we have a very clear goal in front of us.�

Though the final two weeks before the election are sure to be tense for the 15
candidates, Winters said he was hard-pressed to recall a quieter buildup to
Election Day in recent memory.

�This is a very quiet election season,� Winters said. �I�m kind of bewildered by
it. Barring any major crisis that sends everybody into a panic, this will be a
very sleepy election.�

Sleepy elections, Winters said, are usually good news for incumbent candidates.

�Incumbency is huge,� Winters said. �It�s a very hard thing to get past. The
people I consider to be really safe are Tim Toomey and David Maher.�

�Of course, that�s the last thing either one of those guys want to hear,� he
added.

Indeed, the philosophy in Cambridge when running for City Council is �run
scared,� which is to say candidates would be loathe to tell voters they feel the
least bit confident they�ll pull enough number-one votes to win.

�No candidate wants voters to think he or she is safe,� Winters said. �That way,
they don�t assume their first choice for the Council will get elected, and they
don�t wander off to support another candidate.�

Running scared is exactly what Councilor incumbent Marjorie Decker said she�s
doing this election year. With other progressive candidates such as Craig
Kelley, Jonathan Janik and Sam Seidel in the mix, Decker said she makes it clear
to each voter she meets that she�ll need every one of their votes to win her
fifth consecutive term on the Council.

�I tell each and everyone of my constituents, �Don�t assume that I have the
voter base to get elected,�� Decker said. �The only way I get re-elected is with
the [requisite] 10 percent of No. 1 votes.�

Another incumbent Winters said might need to adapt the �running scared� mantra
is Brian Murphy. Murphy has a long history of service to the city, but may lack
the flash to win out over a challenger like Seidel, Winters said.

�Brian Murphy is as competent as they come, but he�s not a screamer, and he�s
not trying to make headlines,� Winters said. �He�s a person who�s potentially
vulnerable because of that.�

Murphy�s campaign treasurer, Daniel Schlozman, said he agreed that running
scared was a good idea for any candidate, particularly incumbents.

�It�s unlikely [Cambridge] will see a high voter turnout this year,� Schlozman
said. �I wouldn�t be shocked if an incumbent or two loses.�

One candidate hoping to be the beneficiary of some of those wandering votes is
Mid-Cambridge resident Larry Ward. Without the advantage of much name
recognition in the political arena, Ward said he felt good about his prospects
heading into the final weeks before the election.

�I love my chances,� Ward said. �Any time you have a vacancy, it creates hope.
Incumbency is a tough thing to overcome, but I think people in Cambridge are
really ready for a change.�