Remember Oscar Schindler at the end of Schindler?s List? He had made this heroic effort, but all he could think about is how he could have saved just one more person if he had done just one more thing. That?s a little bit of how we Democrats in the second district of Ohio are feeling today. There was MAJOR momentum for Hackett in the last few days and I truly beleive he would have won with just a little more money or a few more days of campaigning or a few more volunteers.Billy correctly identifies many of the plusses for Hackett and the minusses for Schmidt that were particular to this race, though I beleive he overstates their magnitude. For example, to say Hackett was ?hugeley popular in his district? when he had nearly no name recognitiion outside of the village in which he was a former councilmember is a stretch. Unfortunately, ?every level? of the Democratic Party did NOT focus on him until very late in the game. I would also argue with the depiction of him as ?centrist? on any other issue than the Second Ammendment. The Republican Party and PACs, along with Schmidt herself, certainly used the word ?liberal? as a constant epithet. Also, while Schmidt did emerge from a bruising primary, it was not she doing or getting the bruising?it was the two frontrunners that knocked each other around. However forced their smiles may have been, they all endorsed Jean and if you think Ohio Republicans stay home and let Democrats win, becuase their guy didn?t get the nomination, you don?t know our district!
Meanwhile, Jean Schmidt, a veteran pol with high name recognition, spent three times as much money, had nearly three times the number of registered voters in her party and had a Right to Life organization she headed, as well as a national Repuplican orgnization which promised to ?bury? Hackett, working dilligently for months, yet she lost four of the seven ?yellow dog? Republican counties in the second district,(which, despite his statewide unpopularity is Governor Tafts?s home base as well, BTW).
Don?t kid yourselves?this was a major statement of dissatisfaction by heartland voters with the war and with the economy. I would encourage Virginian Democrats to learn the lessons we learned here and not accept a moral victory in November. If you?re thnking about volunteering next week, do it today; if you might give $50, make it $60; if you?re willing to talk to two or three people about your candidate, go for four or five. Good luck!