Resident says survey raises concerns about mayoral candidate
To the editor:
I received a call from a pollster wanting me to answer questions about the upcoming election in Green. I’m interested in a discussion of who can continue the great leadership that Mayor Dan Croghan has provided, so of course I listened. The “poll” started out with the normal rating on candidates and then quickly progressed to a smear campaign on mayoral candidate Andy Padrutt. The “pollster” encouraged me to listen to the “description” of both candidates. There was a mild personal assault on Padrutt’s character followed by a carefully crafted advertisement for his opponent. At that point I could guess whose campaign paid for the poll and I continued to listen thinking that I might just learn about the real character of his opponent Dick Norton through this poll. And that is when I learned the most.
They asked me to rate a few positive things, like Padrutt’s plan for downtown, years of experience on city council, and his commitment to no tax increases. Then they proceeded with a longer list of rumors, half-truths and misrepresentations and asked me if any of these convinced me to vote against Padrutt.
Ugh! Can’t Dick Norton run on his own record without playing dirty politics and getting personal? My favorite was related to Padrutt’s personal finances. How’d they get that information? Now that is frightening. What would Dick Norton, a former banker, do with the personal financial information he gets access to as mayor? Perhaps he or his campaign handlers are looking for dirt because he can’t run an above-the-board campaign and win.
Here’s the real problem. This lengthy (and no doubt expensive) phone campaign was obviously financed by someone who has a very big agenda. We can be sure that whoever they are will jam their agenda through Dick Norton. We have seen it before. Green has been enticed into electing candidates who use us as a stepping stone for higher office or who are uninterested in the job but carry the water for the party bosses. Certainly, Andy Padrutt is not immune from the influence of his own party’s politics but he has also spent many years working on the issues that are important to the people of Green. If the poll was meant to convince me, it did. Padrutt is young and still has more experience than Norton in our city government.
How many times will Green fall for heavily financed candidates who serve someone else? Who’s your daddy Dick Norton?
Catherine Ivancic, Green
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