I've talked to a lot of people about the Cindy vs Rollie race here. I've had a lot of people tell me that they don't know much about either. I've had a lot of people tell me they find them comparable with the big difference being their approach to the job. I've had a lot of people tell me that they support Cindy and they then talk about what she has done, how hard she fights, and what she wants to do.
I've also had people tell me they support Rollie. But in this case the reasons fall in to 2 categories. The most common is they really respect Josie (Rollie's wife) as a person and for what she did in office. And Josie Heath did do a good job and is worthy of our thanks. So send her flowers or write her a thank you note. But voting for a relative because of the job another did is a statement that you are voting for family & clan rather than for the most competent person. That approach does not serve communities well as it builds an entrenched political class defined by family.
The second reason I hear is Rollie deserves our thanks for running against Bill Owens when Owens was going to beat whoever we Dems put up. Rollie ran a good campaign up to the end and that reflected well on our party and we do owe him a thank you. But just as we did not turn around and run Walter Mondale a second time (and when he was tapped in Minnesota to replace Paul Wellstone, he lost), this is not a reason to vote for someone.
We are electing a Senator to represent us at the state capitol. This is an incredibly important job and this person must be an effective energetic advocate for solving the gigantic problems we have facing the state. We must fix TABOR. We must drastically improve education here, both K-12 and higher-ed. We may find the states largely responsible for solving the health-care crisis.
If this was a ceremonial position then by all means, voting for Rollie to thank both Josie and Rollie for their work would be well considered. But for 1 of 35 Senate seats, and for the most liberal district in the state, we need the person who can make the most effective use of that seat.
And by any measure, Cindy Carlisle will be the more effective legislator.
