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August 28, 2005
Curtis Adams Doesn't Get It
Even if I were supporting Curtis Adams -- my current County Commissioner -- for re-election, I would stand by this post's title. In today's Chattanooga Times-Free Press (page B5), Kathleen Baydala writes that Adams will "let his record and reputation speak for him" in the upcoming election, as opposed to, say, formulating a message that will address current constituent concerns in a post-millennial context. According to the paper, Curtis Adams has been on the Commission for 18 years.
Eighteen years ago, Ronald Reagan was President (and Curtis Adams was elected as a member of the opposition party, in which he remained until just this year), and I was a sophomore in college. Now I am a professional, I have a family, and there is a whole new crop of college entrants, most of whom were just being born when Adams joined the County Commission. Just about all of them will be eligible to vote in next year's election. What is his message to them?
At the very least, Adams could develop a new message for campaigning that would be based on his recent political-party switch. That would give voters something to consider. It appears, though, that he thinks he is entrenched enough that he doesn't need a current message. He seems content to rest on his [laurels? for what?] and assumes that the octogenarian vote will smile on him and be enough to assure his victory.
"Either (voters) like me or they don't," he is quoted as saying in the paper. Dude -- first of all, it's not about whether or not I like you. I probably do, even though I've never met you. It's about whether you are positioned to be the most effective elected representative for District 8 in the years 2006-2010. What have you to say? Secondly, there is a host of voters -- the aforementioned younger set, people who are becoming more civic-minded, and any newcomers to the district, whether from across town or across the country -- who really don't know if they "like you" or not, nor what your positions are on anything.
Mr. Adams' opponent, John Bailes, has realized from the beginning that a winning candidate needs to craft and promote a message to District 8 voters. That alone deserves your attention, and I feel that once you have heard his message, you will clearly recognize that he is the best choice for this office in the next term.
Elections | By joe lance | 08:58 AM