One of the most compelling aspects of Bern Ewert‘s candidacy for the Democratic nomination for the Fifth District has been his long history in the Roanoke area. He’s sold that angle hard in promoting his viability. So it follows that his best support should come in the caucuses in the surrounding municipalities—Bedford County, Bedford City, and Franklin County.
Thus far opponent Al Weed has picked up both delegates in Bedford City and two more in Bedford County. (Does anybody know if Bern picked up any delegates in the county?) Franklin County’s delegates will be selected at a caucus on Saturday. It will be interesting to see then how real that Bern’s Roanoke-area support turns out to be.
I would not be suprised if the ‘Roanoke support’ is all vapor. I lived in Roanoke during Bern’s tenure as City Manager and I remember him as divisive, difficult and basically ineffective.
A textbook empty suit with an agenda.
Can anybody tell me when the phrase “with an agenda” came to be used as a pejorative? Doesn’t that mean “A list or program of things to be done or considered”? Wouldn’t that be a positive attribute? Otherwise, wouldn’t we be describing “a textbook empty suit with no plans, floating aimlessly”?
And don’t get me started on the “gay agenda”…
As far as Waldo’s question, all I know is that in Martinsville (another satellite of Roanoke) the delegates where split in half: 2 to 2
I can find out, though.
Harry, you are mostly right . . . gay agenda, antihuman agenda, east coast liberal agenda, the jewish agenda these are equally . . . well, you know.
I suppose the point of creating some monolithic (shady) group and saying that it has an agenda, is a populist method old has the hills. So, it mainly implies that there is this group of “others” out there scheming to take away from you and your family all that is godgivinen and good.
But I also think that you can say someone has an agenda and mean it pejoratively. Sometimes I see agenda driven people as inflexible with blinders affixed their heads and willing to run over all in their path.
Waldo
I spend a great deal of time down in Bedford and the Smith Mountain Lake area. You should not assume that either Bedford, or Bedford County, is any indicator of Roanoke support. Each of these communities is unique and has little resemblance of Roanoke.
Good care less about the delegate counts or who the nominee is – I think you know I am with Goode. Just didn’t want you to look to Bedford to determine Roanoke.
And…glad you are recovered enough to get back to things.
That’s not my assumption—that’s Bern Ewert’s angle on his candidacy.
Duh, Bedford is conservative, and the city is pretty much 50/50. Roanoke City is decidedly liberal.
You shouldn’t of had to have lived there to know that they are communities differnt from one another.
As Waldo says, Bern’s “angle” was that he had more exposure in that TV market, and would be a better know commodity.
The question is that, all things being equal, that thesis should be proven or disprove by the delegate counts from that area.
“So it follows that his best support should come in the caucuses in the surrounding municipalities—Bedford County, Bedford City, and Franklin County.”
It does not follow that he would have support in this area simply bc he has a Roanoke background. If the logic that is faulty belongs to Ewert, my apologies.
Ask anyone in Albemarle County whether a Charlottesville politician should automatically expect to win there…
One problem with Bern’s argument that “I’ve been on TV 3,000 times in Roanoke” is that most of the electorate — and certainly most of the Democratic electorate — wasn’t around 20 years ago. Anyone who has come into the area in the past 20 years, or who 20 years ago was not yet of an age to be paying attention to politics, would have no knowledge of Bern from that prior exposure.
So Bern has some exposure with people who meet the following criteria:
1. Are over about 35 years old;
2. Have lived in the area for the last 20 years;
Those demographic criteria sound like prime Virgil supporters to me — like the kinds of folks who wouldn’t vote for either Bern or Al on a dare.
I always thought that the “I was on TV 3,000 times” argument was not Bern’s strongest argument. Besides, as a friend of mine asked a couple of days ago, “What kind of person counts such things?”
“Ask anyone in Albemarle County whether a Charlottesville politician should automatically expect to win there…”
Hahahaha…that made my morning! What was the Greene County trends discussion all about a few days ago here?