Notes From The Campaign Trail

Yesterday morning I had the opportunity to attend a breakfast meeting at which Diana Irey's campaign manager, Jason Davidek, had many interesting things to say about the race, about Diana, and about you-know-who. Much of what he had to say is well-known to anyone who has been following the 12 District Congressional campaign, so pardon me if you have heard all of this before:

• Diana Irey has the endorsement of several groups, including the State Troopers Association, Vietnam and Gulf War veteran's groups, and FOAC, a Pennsylvania-based Second Amendment rights group that is even stricter about who it supports than the NRA.
• In a recent appearance on the Mark Levin radio show, brought up the "Diana vs. Goliath" theme that has been so prominent in this race. Levin told her that it was more like "The Patriot and the Jackass". I like it.
• Longtime political observer Robert Novak, who has been following all races closely, has the 12th District in play as one of the top ten Democrat seats that could go Republican this year.
• Murtha has been wishy-washy on Second Amendment rights, despite what his supporters would have you believe.
• When the Irey campaign first entered Johnstown, there was some concern about how the locals would take to the hometown boy's challenger. They were pleased to find that Johnstown is very friendly to Diana, as Murtha does not represent the area's core beliefs and values.
• Johnstown, far from being the economic miracle being kept alive by Murtha's pork that the media would have us believe, is a distressed city. The region's fake "good" economy is an illusion, as it is being supported through government welfare. And, about those companies that Murtha has helped bring to Johnstown to provide jobs and boost the economy...well, it seems that they are laying off workers these days.
• Murtha has so much money left over from earlier campaigns that he doesn't need to do any fundraising, hence, his appearances for Dems all over the country.
• Early in the campaign, there was a suggestion for a Diana Irey billboard with a cute slogan: "The Boys Have Made a Mess In Washington. Send a Mom To Clean It Up!"
• Murtha runs his office like a gangster. After Diana appeared in a parade in a town in Somerset County this summer, a Murtha staffer called the mayor and told him, "The Big Man's not happy that you let that woman be in your parade". (Is that mayor going to end up wearing cement shoes at the bottom of a river?)

Let's make the Big Man even unhappier. Election Day is coming up. Don't give him cause to celebrate. Elect Diana Irey to Congress!