Till now I haven't had much to say about Ford, Jr.'s church ad (view it here); in fact a friend (after church) recently commented on how offensive he thought it was and I just changed the subject. For the record, I think it is an effective ad (whether or not it is "fair" or "accurate"), and I think that issues of morality and character are certainly relevant in an election. But . . .
The ad (and Ford, Jr.'s standard stump speech) states that Ford, Jr. was forced to go to church as a kid, and I believe the viewer/listener is expected to draw two conclusions from that assertion: first, Ford, Jr. learned good ol' traditional values from his family; and second, Ford, Jr.'s attendance at church made an impact on him.
Well, anyone who knows anything about Ford, Jr.'s family can conclude that the fact that someone goes to church, or even forces their child to go to church, doesn't necessarily mean squat. And that's the irony of Ford, Jr. taking this step. Of course, Ford, Jr. as "church lady" isn't the way this whole story has been covered, but Ford, Jr. is certainly trying to contrast his own piety with Corker's, and I think he has invited attention to his family, his "values," and issues of morality. I believe that his campaign craves the perception that he is someone fully conversant in the language of morality and wholly comfortable in a church; however, I think the literal "holier than thou" posturing of that ad is probably over the line. I also suspect that Ford, Jr. and Democrats generally would cry "foul" if considerations of morality went any further than "misleading" or "lying" in political ads.
2 comments:
The real question in all of this is where are the Hillary and Bryant supporters.
I'm not from TN so I don't know what the feel is, but we really need to get those two groups on board with Corker or the country is going to go down the toilet.
You're correct in saying that Corker needs the votes of those who supported his primary opponents, and I perceive that Corker has earnestly and humbly "pursued" them--consistent with his views on things, of course.
I believe that the GOP base (consisting of Conservatives or so-called "social conservatives"), is likely to "come home" to the more conservative of the parties/candidates and vote for Corker. It is just taking a while to round 'em up given Democrats' faux-Conservatism this election cycle.
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