The approach that worked so brilliantly for Christine O'Donnell in confronting critics who latched onto her "dabbling in witchcraft" comment might work equally well for Meg Whitman. She's trailing Jerry Brown in the polls in California, and the true message in that errant voice mail left by the Brown campaign has been lost in the suggestion by someone on the tape to call her a "whore." But the basis for that was that she allegedly was promising to treat certain public-employee unions in California better than most of the unions in exchange for their endorsement.
Anyway, here's how I think a 30 second commercial should be scripted for Ms. Whitman:
[close up of candidate]:
I'm not a whore.
I'm nothing like what you've heard. In dealing with the hired help at home, I don't channel my inner Saudi princess dealing with a Sri Lankan maid. I don't hoard my billions while refusing to pay my nanny gas money to run errands.
The fact is, I'm you. Well, I'm you if you have $1.3 billion dollars and are willing to spend $100 million to buy the governor's office. I'm you if you were known as "Evil Meg" by underlings because of your volcanic temper. I'm you if you employed an undocumented alien for close to a decade but now want to be seen as a hardliner cracking down on illegal immigration. I'm you if you raised a pair of sons who have been thrown out of some of the finest schools, clubs, and dormitories (including the "Whitman dorm" at Princeton built with my $30 million donation) in the country and have real problems with minorities and women. And I'm you if you'd agree to protect police pensions in exchange for their endorsement.
I'm not a whore. I'm you.
(fade)
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