Love the commercials

although the sock puppet might be a little much.

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by: Craig @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 01:24:57 AM UTC

yeah

very over the top.

"Keep the Faith"

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by: blue south @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 01:32:02 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

A "little"?

This commercial is indicative of some of the most bizarre judgment I've ever seen in a Senate candidate.

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by: James L. @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 02:05:32 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

You know,

for someone who locked himself in his room to study, there appears to be an awful lot of blogging going on, young man! >:-O

"They tried to make you civilized. They just don't seem to realize that what they touch, they bastardize."

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by: Larissa @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 03:47:45 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Judgment

It sort of fits with her obsession with referring to her primary opponent Gene Kelly as "the dead dancer", even writing a book about it. I somehow got onto Radnofsky's e-mail list, and unfortunately I didn't get a very good impression of her campaign from it. Like the sock puppet, a lot of the messages seemed a little off.

Now admittedly I'm judging her almost entirely by her e-mail messages, so I'm happy to defer to those who followed the campaign closely. Maybe she has strengths I'm missing.

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by: KCinDC @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 13:57:35 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Poor judgment indeed

If you're going to do a sock puppet commercial, at least get an endorsement from Lambchop.

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by: Borat Obama @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 14:45:52 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

It's also annoying

I found it very distracting while I was watching the commercial.

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by: Craig @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 19:01:06 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I attribute these commercials

to a low budget, to expensive Texas media markets, to a frustration with the electorate and with Kay Bailey Hutchison's popularity and to a bright candidate who lost patience with the campaign and with the lack of media coverage she should have received.  Barbara Ann is a very bright woman with great ideas.  Unfortunately, she resides in the wrong state.  Sometimes great candidates are in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

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by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 15:10:52 PM UTC

I can identify

with Barbara Ann.  Can you imagine if you were a bright woman who is eminently qualified for office running against Kay Bailey Hutchison?  Just imagine how frustrating and demoralizing it would be to have to accept that someone who is dense will win an election not on her merits but on her ability to raise millions of dollars in Washington, DC.  As I say in my previous comment, Barbara Ann and her team just lost patience and launched a go for broke campaign at the last minute with whatever funds they could cobble together.  It was a valient effort that failed, but at least the effort was made.  Barbara is too bright to run against the likes of Hutchison and Cornyn, and the inability to have an open and honest discussion on policy, which is obviously Radnofsky's strength, must have been very frustrating.  Here is a woman who wanted a real debate, and she was denied it.  The Texas League of Women's Voters debate with its rigid format that denied exchanges between candidates did not give Radnofsky a chance to articulate her message or challenge Hutchison.  I too would have lost it and spent my money on whatever ad I could afford to stick it to Hutchison.  Give Barbara some credit for trying to breathe life into a state party that has been on life support for over a decade.

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by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 15:22:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I just want to say

that these are 2 of 6.

And yeah, Randofsky was smart, but this is why I can not support her again, she has a lack of discipline. One of my friends got upset at her for sending a staffer to a lot of local events she could not attend and I got a little frustrated with how inoperable her website was. Thorough, but very complicated and not conviincing to Joe Schmo.

Ok, I got a comparative politics test in 15 minutes, thanks for the h/t guys!

26, Male, Democrat, TX-26

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by: trowaman @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 15:50:50 PM UTC

Although I don't really want her running for Senate

I do hope she runs in TX-07 against John Culberson. He's a complete wingnut loon, and one of the most conservative and out of touch members of even the Texas Delegation (and thats saying a lot). Unfortunately, he hasn't recieved a serious challenge in this trending-blue suburban Houston district, not to mention how the DeLaymandering brought in the most Liberal, counter-culture area of Houston into this district (Montrose). This district will likely go dem in the next 20 years, so how about we recruit a good candidate in Barbara Ann Radnofsky?

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by: KainIIIC @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 16:14:29 PM UTC

Culberson

I definitely agree with you, Radnofsky should seriously consider going after Culberson.  Not sure if any candidates have announced, but that would be a far better race for her than going after Cornyn.  If not, maybe running for AG or a seat on the Texas Bench in 2010.

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by: Anesthetic @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 16:23:52 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Now that is an interesting idea.

She can raise a respectable amount of money for that race, and she can force him into debates that will be more intimate and more substantive.  and for those who think she is damanged goods, i am willing to allow her to learn from her first campaign.  she is obviously someone who can flourish in any field she enters, and perhaps a smaller campaign will be one she finds much more managable and much more fun.  less stress over fundraising, more focus on policy and voter outreach and the ability to mediate between broader policy questions and local concerns.  if a base already exists in that area of houston you discuss, then she already has a demographic who will be more than happy to mobilize around her.
i cannot judge her campaign, as texas is difficult territory without lavish funding.  she tried, she failed, she learned a few lessons, and now she is all the better for it.  and so are we, because she kept hutchison distracted in texas, thereby giving us the opportunity to win elsewhere. 
the house can use some intellect, and i say barbara should go after culberson.  and perhaps her upset victory will give her the momentum to either take on hutchison again or claim hutchison's open seat in 2010.

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by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Wed Apr 25, 2007 at 00:47:54 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

what's to be gained by trashing BAR?

The netroots wants to contest every race Barbara Ann Radnofsky stepped up in Texas.

Was she a great candidate? Apparently she was the best of the candidates who were willing to do it.

I find it odd and troubling that there's so much enthusiasm for trashing her now.

What's the point of trashing BAR? To show you know what a slick campaign looks like? Give BAR $15 million and she can probably show you a slick campaign. So what?

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by: Carl Nyberg @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 18:53:50 PM UTC

In short...

...because there are some scattered souls who want her to run again.

Look, sure she's a smart lady, and yeah, she was better than no one.  But there's no excuse for commercials this bad, even without the money for a slick campaign.  The sock puppet is inexcusable!  And the special effects??  It's so bad that it's surreal.

It's also an acknowledgment that almost any halfway well-run campaign would be a step up.

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by: James L. @ Tue Apr 24, 2007 at 19:04:50 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

She is a first time

candidate, and she was in over her head.  And maybe her staff did not give her the best advice.  TX-07 may be a good idea for BAR.  She is tough as nails, and I am sure suburban Houston voters would enjoy the sideshow of BAR slaughtering the local incarnation of Bush at the close of his Presidency.  Barbara can probably tap her fundraising base to raise the requisite funds without much intervention from the DCCC, and she could stage an upset that will be one of the big stories of 2008.  Running statewide as a novice in a state such as Texas must have been overwhelmng.  But now that she has stared that straight in the eye, I imagine she would be more than prepared to tackle a House race.  And despite her commercials, she seems quite personable.  A door to door suburban street fight might just be the type of race she would enjoy and win. 

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by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Wed Apr 25, 2007 at 01:04:06 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

TX-07...

I think you make some very valid points.  This always seemed like a case where the candidate was better than those adivising her and she might be able to flourish and reach her potential with an entirely new team that is much more seasoned and knowledgeable.  A smaller, intimate Congressional campaign would suit her better, at this point in her political career.  Wonder if she's said anything that might signal her interest or disinterest in the race, anyone know?

But yeah, I would much rather she leave the Senate race alone and let Noriega/Gallego/whoever go after what can very seriously turn into a race with Cornyn.

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by: Anesthetic @ Wed Apr 25, 2007 at 03:27:27 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I should have been clear.

I would entirely agree that a House race with a narrower focus could do wonders for Radnofsky.  In fact, I would encourage her to consider such a campaign.

My comment was directed to those who want her to run for Senate again, which I think would be a big mistake in 2008.

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by: James L. @ Wed Apr 25, 2007 at 03:39:47 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

As the guy who kept linking to these videos . . .

I agree with James. Statewide at the top of the ticket is too much for BAR.

COngressional race sounds good for her and Culberson needs a good challenge, however the problem with him lies with constituency goods that he provides. The issue of light rail on Richmond (keeping it out of there) has made him a hero to his constituents, despite the fact this is the bluer part of the district (well close to Montrose which is blue).

She needs a needle focus and a cleaner message and most importantly (this is for all candidates) a clear medium to translate their message, her website needs to be redone completely.

So again, she;s worth a try in TX-7.

26, Male, Democrat, TX-26

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by: trowaman @ Wed Apr 25, 2007 at 06:55:36 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I really wouldn't say

Culberson is a 'hero' to TX-07 at all... I'd say Culberson is one of the most unknown reps to his district in the state, maybe the country.

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by: KainIIIC @ Wed Apr 25, 2007 at 16:18:23 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

All I know . . .

is that there are signs up and down Richmond that say "thank god for Rep. Culberson" along with  other signs about lightrail.

26, Male, Democrat, TX-26

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by: trowaman @ Thu Apr 26, 2007 at 14:33:59 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

hey trowaman...

Do you still think that Lampson runs for re-election, or are you hearing otherwise nowadays?  I remember in SSP's Senate recruitment threads you mentioned he was definitely staying put and was curious if that's still the case.  I figured we might as well predict the field, since this is a TX-Sen diary.

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by: Anesthetic @ Wed Apr 25, 2007 at 14:01:00 PM UTC

Did he not

recently have surgery?  And I do not believe he voted yesterday?  Lampson is quite ill, or that is what I hear. 

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by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Thu Apr 26, 2007 at 13:13:18 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Yeah

I believe he had a quadruple bypass, but there is still a lot of speculation that he's seriously thinking of not running for re-election and instead going for the Senate seat.

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by: Anesthetic @ Thu Apr 26, 2007 at 13:47:49 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

well . . .

I used to think he was staying put but recruitment efforts seemed to have ramped up and he seems to be pressured into running pretty good now.

I mentioned to a party higher up last ngiht about how Lampson had trouble controlling the message in 2006, where almost any article or news story in the district in 2006 was about Sekula-Gibbs and very little ink was about him. She seemed shocked by my statements and was caught unaware of that.

I hope he does House re-election, I just don't see the discipline for a Senate campaign, sadly.

BTW, I love Rep. Lampson, he is my representative and is almost in perfect sync with me and my views. While I would want him in the senate, I jsut don't see the campaign paying off for him in all realistic means.

26, Male, Democrat, TX-26

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by: trowaman @ Thu Apr 26, 2007 at 14:38:15 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

...

Yeah, I pretty much agree with you on all points, lol.

Who would you rather make the run for Cornyn, or who (whether you like them, or not) besides Lampson do you see getting in?

If Lampson doesn't go for re-election, is there any way in hell we stay competitive in the 22nd?  I guess Wallace and/or Bettencourt will probably make the run this time for the GOP, but I no clue about our bench in there...Morrison?

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by: Anesthetic @ Thu Apr 26, 2007 at 15:08:39 PM UTC

[ Parent ]