Hat tip to the best Ohio blog right now, the
Buckeye State Blog.
Today the Cleveland Plain Dealer had their endorsement interviews for the OH-14 race between Lew Katz (D) and Lyin' Steve LaTourette (R). Apparently the PD was none too impressed with LaTourette, because they decided to write about the interview on their political blog. It appears LaTourette admitted (a) the Republicans haven't been doing their jobs, and (b) Rumsfeld is a joke.
From the Plain Dealer
Openers:
While other GOP candidates step gingerly around President Bush's handling of the increasingly unpopular war in Iraq during their fall campaigns, U.S. Rep. Steve LaTourette holds nothing back.
"We had a great military plan in Iraq," the Lake County Republican said of the opening stages of invasion. But the work since the president's infamous "Mission Accomplished" address, he said, "has been an an abysmal failure.. . . The execution was horrible."
LaTourette, seeking a seventh consecutive term in the 14th district, barely challenged the assertion of his opponent, Democrat Lewis Katz, that he and has colleagues had failed to provide the proper checks and balances on the administration. "The question is, 'was there sufficient oversight?' " LaTourette said. "The answer is, no."
LaTourette argued that intelligence reports provided to the president and lawmakers before the war - since proven inaccurate - persuaded most of the necessity for action. Now that our forces are there, however, he believes the U.S. must succeed in establishing a credible democracy to thwart jihadists' momentum. But is the man responsible - Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld - the man to achieve that aim?
"Rumsfeld has been a disaster," LaTourette said.
The Plain Dealer does not make it a habit of commenting on the endorsement interviews on their polical blog before the formal endorsement happens, so it is significant they put this up. How can they possibly endorse LaTourette after this? Who knows. If they do decide to endorse him, it would show just how worthless these endorsements are.
One other note: I've just looked at the most recent FEC filings (September 30) for both LaTourette and Katz. Katz has raised $170,000, almost 90% from individual donors. LaTourette has raised 1.3 million, but only 38% from individual donors. How much of LaTourette's warchest is Abramoff money? No one knows yet. LaTourette still enjoys a 10-1 COH advantage. If you'd like to fix that imbalance in some small amount, here is a good place to start.
Folks, we're going to need 2 or 3 major upsets to take the House. Katz is running the kind of campaign that could do it. No one is paying attention to this race, but Katz and his campaign just keep plugging away. We had 15 people canvassing in Aurora yesterday -- a heavy Republican area -- mining for D's and I's to come out and vote.
Foley's escapades and LaTourette's PD interview don't hurt the cause either.