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Last week, I wrote about Creigh Deeds' negative campaign to become the next Governor of Virginia. In that piece, I linked to a Politico.com article that was headlined "Dems beg Deeds for a positive message." However, when compared to incumbent Governor Jon Corzine's recent campaign tactics in New Jersey, Deeds' negative campaign tactics look respectable and Corzine's fellow Democrats should be begging him to run a positive campaign that focuses on the issues rather than a negative campaign that focuses on negative attacks.
In New Jersey, incumbent Governor Jon Corzine is trying to win a tough battle for reelection. Corzine has faced tough poll numbers throughout this year but the Real Clear Politics average (taken between 9/28-10/7) has his opponent Chris Christie up by a mere 1.2%. Corzine has been gaining some momentum lately but his latest campaign tactic is definitely creating some questions about his focus on his opponent.
Corzine is going on the offensive not against his opponent's record but against his opponent's weight. Politico.com described a recent Corzine ad by noting the following: The ad by the campaign of Democratic incumbent Jon Corzine charges Christie with using his office to get off the hook after a traffic accident and again when he was caught speeding in an unregistered vehicle. 'In both cases, Christie threw his weight around as U.S. attorney and got off easy,' the announcer says, as the screen shows Christie's large head. The ad then closes with an unflattering slow-motion shot of Christie in full profile getting out of a SUV, his rotund stomach moving side to side, as the announcer says 'Chris Christie, one set of rules for himself, another for everyone else.' This ad about Christie's driving record, which can be seen here, comes several weeks after a spokesperson from the Corzine campaign called Christie "'a complete menace to society on the highways of New Jersey'", according to a CNN.com article. That article noted that Christie had over a dozen moving violations over the past twenty-five years. However, Corzine does not have a great record on the roads of New Jersey. He was in a massive accident several years ago where legitimate questions were raised about his own responsibility on the road. As CBSNews.com reported in early 2007, "The 60-year-old governor's SUV was being driven by a state trooper at 91 mph when it was clipped by a truck and lost control... Corzine wasn't wearing his seat belt, though doing so was required by state law." So Corzine's campaign denounced Christie's driving record when the governor's own record has some major flaws in it? And now, Governor Corzine believes that voters in the state of New Jersey should focus more on Christie's weight rather than his record? These are the campaign tactics of a politician who is faltering and who is trying anxiously to get across the finish line. These negative tactics, especially the weight commerical, are turning off a lot of people including David Broder. As Broder's article from the Washington Post noted yesterday, "I very much fear that if Corzine pulls out a victory next month after trailing Christie for months in the polls, the precedent will be set for a really distasteful tactic -- the 'fat boy' ploy." Broder later noted that "This is not an issue that Barack Obama can afford to ignore. As the leader of the Democratic Party, he is accountable for the Corzine campaign." I agree with much of Broder's assessment of this situation. Corzine went too far in criticizing Christie's weight and I hope that the voters of New Jersey reject the type of politics that Corzine is endorsing in his extremely negative and personal campaign against Christie. Corzine may be gaining momentum in the race but after such personal attacks, I would hope that the people of New Jersey reject this type of attack and the politician who is supporting it.
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