Just last Thursday, the Charlie Dent campaign launched its "Bethlehem Deserves a Break" offensive, which included 10,000 robocalls asking Christmas City residents to demand the tax cut that Bethlehem Mayor and Congressional candidate John Callahan promised in 2007. Now, the NRCC is quickly following up with a Callahan Christmas radio campaign, pointing to Hizzoner's penchant for tax hikes.
Although the NRCC declines to say just how much time it has bought for this radio ad (see the video above), its willingness to come out so strong and so early indicates Republicans have no intention of giving up this seat. It also reflects Dent's campaign maxim - run hard or unopposed.
CQ Politics currently rates the general election contest in Pennsylvania's 15th district as Leans Republican.
40 comments:
What a dishonest pile of crap. Or the usual Ohater work for a mancrush. I hope you get a better computer outof this.
The one Angle and Stoffa bought you s already getting old.
Charlie apparently is running from his record.
Supports no regulations on drilling for oil,,,please what a pile of nonesense. Charlie knows darn well that this is all about making big oil wealthier. CEO of big oil companies on prime time TV and even Dents party spokesperson Palin cannot look the American People straight in the face and commit that all oil produced in places like Anwar will stay in US Interests. Not even for the nations strategic reserve.
Once again it appears Charlie Dent supports Big Oil and bonuses for the Banking fat cats who created this recesssion.
Wait a second, are you sure? I thought it was BIG INSURANCE. Don't tell Big Oil and Big Banking. They'll get mad.
This ad is a bunch of crap. It is totally taken out of context and does not indicate that Bethlehem's tax base was the smallest it ever was during those years.
Bethlehem steel was not paying. Lehigh Univ. acquired lots of land during that time and took it off the tax rolls.
The Steel land was 25 percent of the City's taxable land.
Bethlehem begs for what they need and spend on what they want.
A hard rain is going to fall on the Democrats.
Scott Armstrong
Bernie,
How about you stop nose picking in public, at meetings and such? You want some credibility don't you? You have a reputation as being kinda gross. Eloquent, but scummy.
We cannot think of anything Charlie Dent could do that is worse than robo calling. It drives voters anywhere else. Charlie, stop it. You are losing fans.
the campaign is about what is happening in Washington. If Dent has to run a campaign aimed at every fault of Callahan and the city of Bethlehem, it demonstrates a lack of understanding of the real issues. He only cements votes for Callahan by these useless tactics and inflames Bethlehem residents.
The Republicans must be running scared if they're pulling this crap...They should be. All they do is vote as a big block against everything Obama puts forward. I don't agree with him on all issues but the obstructionism of the Republicans is a sick joke. They are an incredibly pathetic party who believes in nothing but corporate interests and foreign wars. Let's spend trillions for two wars then talk about how voted unanimously agaist health care for working americans because it's too expensive. Gotta agree with the tar and feather guy.
The spelling ( and typing) was so bad in that last paragraph I don't even understand what I meant. Actually the poiont is "how can anyone, Obama included , vote to spend trillions on foreign wars then rant about how expensive it is to support health care for working Americans...
And yes, I can spell point , I just can't type for shit!
Charlie Dent has effectively driven me from ever supporting him again. It tells such a narrow part of the Bethlehem resurgance that it can hardly be called truthful. I expected more from Charlie. He has a history of thoughtful political campaigns. Now, he's basically trying to convince us that Bethlehem is a terrible place and that it is John Callahan's fault. I didn't always agree with Charlie, but I could vote for him in the past b/c he was truthful and offered a realistic sense of what gov't could do. His campaign is so far removed from the reality of what Bethlehem has had to endure since Steel closed. John has to earn my vote, but Charlie effectively lost it.
Geoff
"How about you stop nose picking in public, at meetings and such? You want some credibility don't you? You have a reputation as being kinda gross. Eloquent, but scummy."
Eloquent, scummy O'Hare. I like that.
"We cannot think of anything Charlie Dent could do that is worse than robo calling."
I'm inclined to agree. I have no problem with a positive, get out the vote, call in the waning days of a campaign. But there is research showing that, despite their cheap cost, robo calls are largely ineffective.
"If Dent has to run a campaign aimed at every fault of Callahan and the city of Bethlehem, it demonstrates a lack of understanding of the real issues."
Nice try, but Dent is not ragging on Bethlehem. He is criticizing Callahan, his Congressional opponent. Callahan promised a tax cut while delivering tax increases. It is more than fair to point that out. Also, since Callahan is so unwilling to discuss national issues, Dent picked something out on which Callahan should have some knowledge.
"Now, he's basically trying to convince us that Bethlehem is a terrible place and that it is John Callahan's fault."
Geoff, You were a Dem committeeman. You may have supported Dent over Bennett, but I doubt Dent has a shot with you against a Democrat with just a little more gravitas. But let's be clear. Where in Dent's ad or his phone call campaign has Dent stated Bethlehem is a terrible place? He does not. He rightly criticizes a congressional candidate who promised his constituents a tax break while increasing them. This person should deliever on his promise before seeking another office. This criticism would be equally valid in A-town, Easton or anywhere else.
bernie
how could defend robo calls..........come on now,. i supported dent in the past.......but dipping into the sludge of robo calling so early in this race is going the way of scissorshand.
The only time a robo call does not bother me is in the last week of a campaig, and then it has to be a positive reminder to vote. Other than that, I hate them, no matter who they're from.
"Although the NRCC declines to say just how much time it has bought for this radio ad (see the video above), its willingness to come out so strong and so early indicates Republicans have no intention of giving up this seat."
That certainly is a generous interpretation of why Dent wants to start a negative campaign so early. Surely the fact that this is the DCCC's number one targeted seat in 2010 couldn't have anything to do with the panic. The reason the NRCC declines to say how much time they bought is that, and this is true of both parties' use of web ads, they likely bought a nominal amount of air time as cover for the real strategy - trying to get other media to cover the ad. That's why the the NRCC is routing it through loyal flacks like Bernie who can be counted on to serve it up to his readers uncritically. It's good strategy for the NRCC, but reflects poorly on Bernie. All other issues he writes about are handled with a salty skepticism, but when he's writing about Dent, he's just copying and pasting press releases. Bernie's not an idiot - he knows this ad is ham-handed and rests on a fundamentally narrow and misleading premise that inaccurately describes Bethlehem's recent economic history. That is, it's a political attack ad. But he's not interested in fleshing out what Dent's talking about for his readers to enhance their understanding of the issues, because that would get in the way of his larger objective of seeing that Dent is reelected without a serious debate about whether Republican economic ideas are even correct or relevant. That's Bernie's right - he's a blogger, not a newspaper reporter. But Democratic readers of this blog should be aware that Lehigh Valley Ramblings will cease to be a helpful resource for understanding Bethlehem's economic situation through the 2010 elections.. Until that point it will be Charlie Dent and Shawn Millan's Ramblings, starring Bernie O'Hare as loyal stenographer - an operational campaign arm of the Dent campaign. And that is a shame, since this blog is normally an excellent resource for making sense of municipal politics. Perhaps it will be so again after the election is over.
Jonathan,
I think what you mean to say is that you don't like what I'm writing. When I criticized Dertinger and Bennett, I was served up with the same baloney sandwiches. Callahan's record as Bethlehem mayor and council member is certainly fair game.
The truth is that this is one Democrat who happens to respect and admire Charlie Dent. I am no lever puller and judge the man before I look at his party. A lot of LV Dems are just like me, too. This is not an A-town race.
Now if Callahan had anything, and I mean anything, to say, I'd post that, too. But his Washington handlers prefer to keep him under wraps.
Only a moronic repub automaton would think NOW is a good time for a tax cut.
Nice try, but Dent is not ragging on Bethlehem. He is criticizing Callahan, his Congressional opponent. Callahan promised a tax cut while delivering tax increases. It is more than fair to point that out. Also, since Callahan is so unwilling to discuss national issues, Dent picked something out on which Callahan should have some knowledge.
And if dad promises son a new bike for Christmas and then loses his job, no new bike. I thought most people could understand this logic.
No, what I mean to say is exactly what I said. You are electing not to explain to your readers anything about Bethlehem's recent economic history, in favor of passing along Dent's simplistic narrative about these cherry-picked tax increases without criticism. It is common for you to pick apart the claims of all other politicians, so why do these plainly distorted claims by Dent deserve to get a pass? As is your wont, I expect you to dodge this question just as you dodged the substance of my first comment. But your readers should know that there is scrutiny due here, and you are electing not to apply it.
Jonathan, What I am elected to do is write about an NRCC radio campaign, not the economic vitality of the Lehigh Valley or Bethlehem. And if I were to do so, I'd point out that the crisis hit during Cunningham's stewardship of the city, not during the Callahan reign. Cunningham set the city on the road to recovery. In many respects, Callahan has followed through. But he did promise a tax cut in 2007 as a result of the casino, and owes it to the people of bethlhem to stick around until he can keep that promise.
"Only a moronic repub automaton would think NOW is a good time for a tax cut."
Now is a good time for a tax cut. In fact, anytime is a good time for a tax cut. You don't end recessions by raising taxes.
This ad is brilliant. While the taxpayers struggle to pay bills and buy Xmas gifts, the City and JC raise taxes.
Bernie,
Why don't you march in lock step like the rest of us?
Allentown Democrat Voter
Now is a good time for a tax cut. In fact, anytime is a good time for a tax cut. You don't end recessions by raising taxes.
Are you kidding? Cities, municipalities, and school districts are hit just as hard by these times. They provide services to you and your community. They are already operating on paper thin budgets. How can they give up revenue when they barely have enough to function as it is?
This ad is brilliant. While the taxpayers struggle to pay bills and buy Xmas gifts, the City and JC raise taxes.
And the city isn't "struggling to pay bills?"
And that is the difference between a good blogger and a good shill. A good blogger would want his readers to understand the context of the tax increases, and then explain why he's against them. By all means, take Dent's side, but explain to your readers how you arrived at your position. Apparently I have to do your job: the first set of increases came at a time when the city lost its largest taxpayer, and was forced to make up the difference through property tax increases. There are only so many revenue streams a city has. Sales taxes take a bigger bite out of poor peoples' income. And while not all property owners are wealthy, it's a more progressive solution to raise their taxes than the alternative. The tax increases on Callahan's watch as mayor came during a period of prosperity for property owners (which of course was driven by speculation at the national level), but nonetheless came at time when home prices were growing, and everyone was happy to spend on economic development. It was the right thing to do, and everyone still thinks so except for ridiculous anti-tax zealots like Dent and Grover Norquist who have made a religion around the insane idea that taxes must always be cut and never raised. Your contention that now, in the middle of a recession, is a good time for municipal government, who cannot run up a deficit, to cut taxes betrays either a deep cynicism or a deep ignorance of economics. You choose. The cuts to school, police, and other critical services everyone is freaking out about are already brutal. Take even more of that money out of the economy for tax cuts (which empirical evidence shows people save, not spend under these conditions), and you worsen the deflationary spiral, ripping open the wound of the nascent fragile recovery. Tax cuts are terrible fiscal policy right now. How would we pay for them? That's why Dent's ad is dishonest. It's not possible to cut taxes right now and he knows it. It's a political proposal, not a viable policy proposal.
Well... the ad is true. Johnny "Casino" is his name. He raises or taxes and gambles with the money!! JC is a taxing type of guy that would fit right in with Obama. As a life long Democrat, I will not vote for JC and will...yelp....vote for Dent. Sorry, the left wing has taken over the Democratic Party and it needs to be stopped at the polls.
I have deleted two comments who were posted by the same person who earlier today made some disgusting remarks on my blog about kids' basketball. I have decided that nothing posted by that troll will be allowed to stand. He can start his own blog.
8:24 PM - Sure you're a lifelong Democrat. Yep.
John Callahan's budget for 2010 does NOT include any tax increase. Bethlehem taxes have been stable for at least three years and budgets are balanced.
True, there is no tax cut, but duh? How can a city continue providing services and paying its employees in this economy AND give away its revenue in such an economically challenging time? Get real, people. Stable taxes while costs go up is a blessing, especially when you consider all the amenities Bethlehem provides.
In 2007, Callahan promised voters a tax cut. I can understand why he cannot keep his word just yet, but think he has an obligation to keep his word, don't you?
Tax cut as part of an overall fiscal plan. Nice of you to take it out of context O'hare....
Dear Charlie,
The defence of our country must not come at the expense of the liberty for which it stands. The enemy does not evaluate victory by the number of planes brought down, but by self-imposed sociatal limitations brought on by the purpetuation of fear. Victory can only be achieved through the bravery of citizens determined to maintain their liberty despite the risks to their self-preservation. This is the craddle in which our democracy was born. This is the priciple upon which our revolution was won. Brave Americans have no need for invasive metal detectors or shepparding dogs. No one wakes up safe from the day, but Americans should wake up with the freedom for which they stand. Liberty must be first... even at the cost of our very tenative safety.
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