David Aas, Minot
The latest TV ad by Heidi Heitkamp's surrogates featuring Jaci Edison talking about mammograms takes the cake. In the ad, Edison insinuates that Rick is against providing cancer screenings for women. This is such an outrageous distortion of Berg's position that it hardly needs to be dignified with a response.
This is symptomatic of a larger issue in this campaign. Look at the ads that Heidi and her supporters have run. Largely the TV ads on Heidi's side have attempted to cut down Rick Berg and apply the card from the old Democrat playbook about class envy. Sure Rick was a successful businessman. What is wrong with achieving financial success in life? Heidi's crowd seems to think that Rick's success should be used to tear him down. They have been painting Berg as an uncaring millionaire who lights his cigars with $100 bills. There have been a few rare ads by the Heitkamp side that talk about what she wants to do, but most of her media has been talking about how "independent" she is, or tearing down Rick for being an out-of-touch plutocrat.
What about Berg? If you look at the ads put out by Berg, you will see that they are for the most part talking about ideas. Berg's campaign has been about the difficulties that our country finds itself in, and what he wants to do to fix those problems. When he has talked about his opponent, he has not attempted to tear her down, but to talk about issues. If Heidi is such an independent, why is Harry Reid spending so much money to help get her elected? Who are her supporters? What has Heidi said in the past about Obama and Harry Reid? Those are important issues that voters need to consider.
President Obama said the following at the 2008 Democratic Convention: "If you don't have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from. You make a big election about small things." This is exactly what Heidi and her supporters have done in this election. Instead of talking about the good things she wants to do, she has attempted to tear down Berg. Heidi is attempting to make a big election about small things.
Part of the problem for Heidi is that there is not much that is positive for her to talk about. President Obama has shown that he does not know how to lead us out of this national recession. Heidi supports Harry Reid, who mindlessly supports the liberal agenda of the Democratic Party. Heidi is attempting to run as fast as she can from the Democratic Party during this election, because of the unpopularity of the positions of their party with average North Dakotans. In the meantime, she is soliciting and accepting huge political donations from anti-fracking and anti-military groups. Who in their right mind has any doubt that Heidi will turn around and embrace these folks that she has been running away from after the election?
Sure Rick Berg has had a successful business career. We should celebrate his success. Rick has also had a long career serving his district in the North Dakota Legislature. The mere fact that he was able to serve in the Legislature while also building his business is not an easy achievement. I would much rather have a successful business person represent me in Congress than a career bureaucrat any day. That is why I am supporting Rick Berg for Congress in this election.