FeedsNovick and the Dude
I am, as a general rule pretty open-minded when it comes to candidates. I'm more than willing to accept someone who hasn't held an elected position before. Hell, most elected officials have no business in politics at all. So I've watched the Oregon Senate primary race between Novick and Merkley, not entirely sure who would be best. That is, until today. Novick showed his complete incompetence as a politician and his status as a tool with this blog post about Dodd's insistance that telecom amnest by left out of legislation:
As an opponent of warrantless wiretapping and a fan of The Big Lebowski, all I can say is that Dodd's the Dude! I appreciate his hard work to protect our civil liberties and stand up to the Bush Administration and I look forward to working with him, either as a colleague in the Senate or as our next president.
He sounds like a stoned gen-xer or a stupid teenager or a stiff tool, trying to win over stoned gen-xers and teenagers. Anyway you take it, the one thing he definitely does not sound like is a US Senator. State Senator, maybe...
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Comments from site editors have a darker background than comments from everybody else.I'm surprised you remained undecided as long as you did with all the blatant Merkley support on this blog.
I'm also kind of surprised there was nothing there about Wyden.
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I also live in California, so the race isn't overly important to me, aside from the whole taking a seat from Republicans issue.
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zomg more outsiders telling us how to think!
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How pompous. Has it ever occurred to you that perhaps Novick isn't "trying" to appeal to anyone specifically, but simply expressing his authentic views in language that is equally authentic to him?
If you're old enough to vote (it's hard to tell from the tone of your posts), by all means vote for Merkley, but don't pretend that it has anything to do with Steve Novick's choice of vocabulary in saluting Chris Dodd's courage.
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Wow. How vitriolic.
Time to punch a few kittens. Way to go.
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I won't be goaded into ad-hominem attacks. The point is, his comment was not Senatorial. I don't care if its authentic. In fact, I'd be more worried if I sincerely believed it was authentic. I don't want someone who so lacks the ability to speak artfully and in a voice characteristic of the Senate's high position and importance speaking in debates on the Senate floor. Is he going to persuade anyone with such ridiculous, hackneyed cultural references?
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I find it sad that a candidate can be judged by his jokes. Is this really how some make an educated decision about choosing a candidate? Humor is a great way to reach people who aren't as politically minded as others. The stuffiness of some will permanently turn away the people in this same arena and beyond. Steve Novick is a great candidate to stand up to Gordon Smith because of his platform and who he is as an activist.
I liked his "Dude" joke and don't smoke "the maryjane" or whatever the gen-Xers and teenagers are calling it these days. Even if Steve's jokes were as bad as my grandpa's, I will still vote for him because he has the values and energy that I find many elected officials are lacking.
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Jokes are one thing and I by no means advocate stuffy politicians. However, this is Novick's principle response to the issue and is featured at the top of his website. I frankly want a more articulate person to debate on Oregon's behalf.
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Hi folks,
I think the post stand for itself, but I do have to jump in here and add one point that has been missed here.
James,
You say "However, this is Novick's principle response to the issue..."
Not exactly true. We specifically condemned the August legislation in a web video available here and put out a very clear position statement when the issue started moving again two weeks ago.
But I'm glad that when we made a Lebowski reference we got your attention. But, then again, I guess that also kinda proves the point.
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English me speak good.
"I think the post standS for itself, but I do have to jump in here and add one point that has been missed."
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Having spent a decent amount of time studying how people make decisions about which candidate to vote for, I would be happy if the discourse rose to the level of choosing them based on jokes. There was just a very depressing article on decision making after just a glance at a photo.
(Nice argument for Steve, by the way)
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I actually once knew an elderly woman who chose presidential candidates based on the attractiveness of the prospective First Ladies. In her words, "The first lady is an ambassador to the world. She needs to be an attractive woman."
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"Dude" jokes or not, I'm happy that we've got a candidate for the Senate who is willing to go on record condemning the "compromise" FISA bill that amounts to Democratic capitulation to the Bush Administration.
Steve Novick in the Senate means change in the Senate. He'd be another voice (and vote) who is willing to buck the "party leadership" on important issues. These days, Democratic "leadership," seems to amount to mostly Republican "followership." Someone should remind them that they DO have the majority...
And Michael, please lay off the kitties. ;) It's not their fault...
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Amen. You're absolutely right. Though, I've been able to keep my back a little straighter as an Oregonian lately due to Wyden standing up.
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And, you're right, it's not the fault of the kittens, it's the fault of more cake in our society. But punching kittens gets more attention.
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Good grief, when did Democrats of all people become stick-in-the-muds? First it was Steve putting out a press release in pirate lingo on 'Talk Like a Pirate Day' that some Dems cried about now it's a movie reference? My my - maybe he should go around saying Smith "looks French" (a 'senatorial' thing Gordo did in '04). I sure hope the Merkley people have a better plan on going after Smith than being humorless, stuffy and fearful of making waves or being human: announcing "I'd like to congratulate Senator Smith on his victory." isn't going to be very 'senatorial' either.
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Now, James please correct me if I misconstrue your remarks: I don't think he was going for the "we need stuffy pols" idea. I believe he was after the idea that he envisions U.S. Senators having a certain statesman-like quality that doesn't see in Novick when he presents himself in this manner, as a pirate or in the context of The Dude.
Sure, there's always room for humor and laughter in a Senate campaign (especially when we laugh at Gordon Smith and those who would prop up his record or call him a "moderate"). I think he's saying this sort of "humor" that the Novick campaign has been putting out there isn't quite befitting of a U.S. Senate race. Well, "think" is perhaps not quite right, since it seems to be exactly what he's saying.
But, you're right. I don't want a stick-in-the-mud either. And I know for sure that neither Merkley nor Novick will provide that. But I also place myself in the group that thinks that Jeff gives us the best shot at sending Gordo packing. So, what're you gonna do...
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Your ability to say what I mean so much better than I could is clearly why you are more involved in politics than I :)
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"his comment was not Senatorial. "
WTF does that even mean? What's more believably un-Senatorial is not knowing yourself well enough to make clear your issue positions, 3 months after gettting into the race. This is a silly post, one that seems to miss the salient point that Novick seems to know what's going ON in the Senate; Merkley either doesn't or won't let on that he's paying attention by, y'know, explaining what he might do if he got there.
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I don't know about you guys, but senators with "statesman-like" qualities haven't always stuck out in my mind when I think of changing a government that is funding the deaths of many around the world. At this point I'm so tired of this establishment of stiffs and am looking for someone who is an individual.
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I think that we might have different ideas of what makes a "statesman" or "statesperson." I'm certainly not looking for someone to tow a disastrous line, but I think "statesman" and "establishment stiff" are not bound so tightly. The same goes for "individual" and "statesman," which are not mutually exclusive.
But I think that would just be arguing semantics on both of our parts and taking our eyes off of Gordo, the real stiff in the game.
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I think you know very well what I'm talking about without going into a routine semantics debate. Thanks for not going there. Time for us to focus on the real issues at hand.
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I'm all for getting rid of the establishment, but that most decidedly does not mean abandoning the maturity required of the position. To illustrate, I support Obama for president in large part because he is more of an outsider in the race and goes against the establishment, particularly when compared to Hillary. However, he acts and speaks at all times as if he were the president. He is also not a stiff and not boring. There is a good way to do it and a not so good way to do it.
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Well put.
I support Obama, and as I mentioned last night while talking with friends, despite all the criticism he takes for his (lack of a) record, I still find myself supporting him, and it portion of it is because he's not just charismatic, but also how he carries himself with a seemingly presidential demeanor, which goes beyond just seeming like a good public speaker.
There's a lot to be said for that can sway voters.
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my response to this is exactly my response to the whole pirate-gate silliness. emma goldman speaks for me - if i can't dance, i don't want to be part of your revolution.
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James, I call bullshit. This post is a reactionary jab at Steve for speaking (or blogging) candidly and knowing enough about the issues to explain his position with a bit of humor (and a Lebowski reference).
I haven't made a decision in this race yet, but I have a hard time believing this was what made up your mind. So what's the angle? Support Merkley silently until you can make your big endorsement after Novick does something un-Senatorial?
But if not, then I'd like to hear what your candidate (Merkley) has to say about this issue. Or most issues, as many of the Stevers have pointed out. I feel like he's running his campaign based around how much money he can raise and how much institutional support he has. I'm going to need to hear some positions on issues before I can decide.
The bottom line is that no matter what his tone, Steve addressed this issue. Multiple times. That shows that he is already versed in what is happening in the Senate. It makes me wonder if Speaker Merkley has any real political knowledge outside of the State Legislature. Obviously, Steve is focused and committed enough on this race to already have a grasp of legislation in the Senate. Sounds pretty damn Senatorial to me, James.
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Bottom line is, I haven't heard anything to significantly distinguish Novick and Merkley on the issues and seriously had not made a decision either way before now. Learning about the whole pirate thing certainly hasn't helped either. Further, I don't know what about my post you see as a reactionary jab. I, in fact agree with the content of Novick's post. However, I want someone to win the nomination who has the ability to represent Oregon with maturity, something Merkley has well demonstrated in his tenure as a legislator. I also want someone to win who can best challenge Gordon Smith. As much as we like to think that we can win against Smith on issues, there is a strong preference for incumbents that is best won over by personality and character.
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"WTF does that even mean? What's more believably un-Senatorial is not knowing yourself well enough to make clear your issue positions, 3 months after gettting into the race."
You know, I've been trying not to get involved in these silly debates over nothing that seem to be all the rage these days, because I'm just going to get flamed one way or the other. And no, just because I'm about to defend Jeff doesn't mean I'm against Novick, I'm lucky enough to host him at my college later today. But I do get tired of all of the crap that Merkley gets about his website and I think that saying he doesn't know himself is especially out of line.
You are drastically underestimating the amount of work that goes into formulating just one position paper or even a position statement. There are weeks of research and writing and revising just to put out one paper, because it needs to be perfect. Just one little mistake and you can get hammered by the other side. Even for smaller policy statements, there is little room for error. Caution isn't always a bad thing when you're preparing for what will certainly be a close race against an incumbent. So to say that Jeff doesn't know how he feels on the issues is complete bull, for one I've seen him answer random policy questions confidently and passionately, but even more importantly, I think his record in the state legislature demonstrates his deeply held convictions.
I think both Jeff and Steve have both demonstrated their beliefs and values throughout their respective careers. Attacking Jeff based on his website doesn't do justice to the hard work that he has done for YOU and other Oregonians in the state legislature, especially in this last session.
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Nick,
Position papers are not the doctoral dissertation you're making them out to be. From my experience volunteering with campaigns (mostly before I came to this wonderful state), one of the most integral strategies for a winning candidate is to get positions out EARLY. You underestimate the average NAV or apathetic voter. They generally do have opinions on the issues and are usually just disillusioned by politicians.
Personally, I think even Novick's Issues page is severely lacking. He doesn't have very much on foreign policy topics such as trade/exports, Darfur, China, etc. However, he has the basics up there. And since they went up as soon as the site did, I'm assuming (and one of the Stevers can confirm or deny this) he wrote them himself as soon as he decided to run.
I'm sorry, Nick, but that's damned impressive. As I said, I still haven't made a decision in this race, but at least Novick has proven that he knows the issues that face a U.S. Senator on any given day, and that he has specific plans to address them. I haven't gotten the chance to see either candidate live yet, so I'm sort of relying on the Internets to get their respective messages. Obviously position papers require extensive revisions and proof-reads. However, they are what many voters base their decisions on, because they allow voters to see which candidate's ideology (or practical application) they agree with most.
As of now, I have very little idea where Jeff Merkley stands on a number of issues, and while the dominant use of "grassroots" and "progressive" on his site would make you think he's a regular Paul Wellstone, I wish his campaign would put up his goals for the Senate and his issues so I can determine for myself just how "progressive" he is, and just how "grassroots" his campaign is. [On a nit-picky sidenote, I'd like to point out exactly how "grassroots" a campaign RV with Washington license plates is.]
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