No doubt the majority of the blogosphere will fault Michael Skelly for telling MoveOn.org to get lost rather than blaming MoveOn.org for failing to do their freaking homework…again.
Businessman Michael Skelly (D) is a well-funded long shot against Rep. John Culberson (R-Texas) in the incumbent’s Houston-area district. The district voted 64 percent for President Bush in 2004, and the ads could do more harm than good by linking the challenger to the liberal group.
MoveOn bought ads in Culberson’s and five other districts. The spots focus on opposition to offshore drilling for oil.
Skelly, who has called for lifting the ban on offshore drilling, says in the release that it is “time for MoveOn to move out of Texas.”
“MoveOn’s opposition to drilling is 100 percent wrong, and so is John Culberson’s opposition to investment in renewable energy,” Skelly said. “We need a balanced solution to our energy challenges that includes both drilling for domestic oil and investment in renewables. We have to do it all.”
A spokesman for MoveOn did not immediately comment.
Here’s a shocker. A Democratic candidate for Congress from Texas is in favor of offshore drilling and wants nothing to do with an organization that is best known for suggesting the commanding general in Iraq is a traitor. But did MoveOn.org do any basic research into Mr. Skelly’s position on offshore drilling or his opinion of their organization before spending their members’ money on advertisements in his district? No.
Whoever is making the executive decisions at MoveOn.org…they are rank amateurs that are diminishing the brand and making too many embarrassing and costly mistakes. But I’m just supposed to shut up and cheer for the home team.
Actually, I agree with you on this one.
The leadership at MoveOn, which is completely closed from members so far as i can tell, needs to get with the program a bit. they’re making themselves obsolete.
they’re making themselves radioactive. All these members and this is what they do for them?
It’s true that MoveOn has made a few screw-ups recently, but they represent my views better than the Democratic party, so in my opinion they’ve got a lot of leeway in what they do. If I could I would change my party affiliation from “Democratic” to “MoveOn” because I really don’t have any use for most Democrats, other than they’re opposing republicans in their respective elections…but even that isn’t good enough in some cases.
Kansas voter alos makes a point.
which reminds me:
ACCOUNTABILITY NOW
Absolutely. It’s beyond me how anybody who cheers for Dems can accuse MoveOn or pretty much anybody else of incompetence or amateurism. It isn’t MoveOn that’s creating a neck-and-neck race against an incoherent demented old fool.
I winced at the unfunny and out-of-touch “I’ve got hope” ad to air on MTV & Comedy Central (it preaches to the choir and reenforces the notion that Obama’s all hope talk and no real substance)… but this Texas mistake is just over the top. Are there any more reasonable orgs out there doing progressive ads?
It reminds me of a comment about a congressman that I once worked for: “He doesn’t listen to anyone – he talks to himself, he answers himself, and sometimes he gives himself bad advice.” Sounds like the good folks at MoveOn have the same issue.
Um, MoveOn didn’t accuse Petraeus of being a traitor. It asked if he would betray us. And he did. Boo, I hope we’ll see an equally contemptuous editorial about your beloved blogosphere’s achievement in electing a whole new generation of DINOs. Little bad judgement there, mebby?
As to the TX thing, gotta admit I don’t much care. As far as I’m concerned it’s time for Texas to move out of America.
and so much to dislike in a single post.
“As far as I’m concerned it’s time for Texas to move out of America.”
I hate this crap.
and I RSVP’d for the MoveOn event yesterday at Culberson’s office, to deliver petitions and speak with staff about how ‘drill now’ doesn’t solve anything (but was unable to attend due to a late work conflict).
I also spoke with a Skelly campaign representative earlier today (whom I will not identify) who expressed regret over the “MoveOn should move out of Texas” crack.
As a reminder, Michael Skelly is a wind energy company executive who supports drilling in the OCS and ANWR as part of a comprehensive energy policy that includes everything on the table to solve our country’s foreign oil dependence.
When I pointed out that I understood the political calculation — that a Democrat in a R+13 district had to make some efforts to distance himself from liberal freaks and DFHs like me in order to try to convince some Republicans and Republican-leaning voters in a district heavily populated with oil company employees, some of whom have donated heavily to Skelly’s campaign in addition to Culberson’s — I was told that political calculations were never part of the discussion.
I found that statement not to be very credible.
I was planning on doing some grassroots work in this campaign, but I’m rethinking that now.