A loyal reader sent in this comment below, noting a mass email that went out on Monday attacking Asheville City Council candidate Kelly Miller. The e-mail, and the corresponding Web site named paveitall.com, is coming for a political action committee calling itself the Progressive Research Group.
Lots of folks in town want to know who is really behind the Progressive Research Group. The public face of the organization is former Asheville City Council candidate Elaine Lite. But folks are wondering what other forces are at work.
Meantime, the negative campaigning is triggering some backlash. I’m hearing some rumblings from some supporters of the “progressive” candidates running for Asheville City Council saying they don’t like the tactics.
My loyal reader’s comment:
These people (“Progressive Research Group”) sent me an email today attempting to trash Kelly Miller. Their filing at Buncombe County Board of Elections at lists only Elaine Lite and Charlie Thomas (Charlie Thomas at 60 Haywood St) as organizers.
Cecil Bothwell’s campaign report (treasurer, Jake Quinn) lists a Charlie Thomas at the same address giving $500 to Cecil. It appears that Charlie Thomas is earnest in his stated belief in the influence of money on elections. My question is, is anyone else involved in this “Progressive Research Group” besides a failed City Council candidate from two years ago and a large contributor to a current candidate?
A reminder: It is not “Progressive” to stop all development in Asheville. If you freeze supply (residential or commercial), demand will continue to drive up costs and drive the working folks and small business out of Asheville. Admittedly demand is low now, but so is new supply, new development.
So why, this year, when hundreds or thousands of construction jobs have been lost and few are building anything at all in Asheville or Buncombe County, does this group think that overdevelopment is the issue of the day. Open your eyes and look around, “Progressive Research Group.”
Jobs is the main issue, not your viewshed.
10 Comments
"Progressives" using tactics right out of the Karl Rove playbook. Congratulations. If your guy gets in, I guess we can expect similar tactics when he wants to get his way on council business. You’re poisoning the well of Asheville politics and I am ashamed for you.
I agree with "An Interested Reader".
Take that, Charlie! If that is what your real name is!
There are facts, and then there are misleading statements and implications. Let me point out two. The first bullet states that Miler is VP of the Asheville Chamber of Commerce. It then notes certain issues the US Chamber of Commerce opposes. Finally the question is asked "whether you want a City Councilman whose salary is paid by folks who hold those positions." Miller’s salary is not paid by the US Chamber. He is not their employee. The views of the US Chamber are not necessarily the view of the local Chamber or Miller. I would claim that this is misleading to say the least.
The email later notes that Miller voted in favor of Asheville giving the Grove Park Inn an option to buy part of the new Pack Square park, but does not state that this vote was taken several years ago as a member of a board of directors and not as a council member. You can argue that the facts are correct, but by omission of certain information, the writer is asking the reader to draw a false assumption.
Without clarity, there is no truth.
Why not put the names of staff/board/contributors on the website and in the e-mail? "People need to know that" too.
You’d get a less skeptical response and lead the way toward greater transparency and honesty in politics. You’d also reflect more positively on the candidate(s) you appear to be supporting.
You are technically correct when you state, "Listing the facts and getting them out to voters is not the same thing as an attack." But context matters and you’re playing semantics here. You obviously put this info up to discredit Miller and Manheimer in the eyes of progressives, and attack their credibility.
Please note that I have no beef with the info you present or your right to spread it. I just think you could show leadership in evelating the level of politics and increase your effectiveness by proudly placing the names of people researching, crafting and financing your site and e-mails in a place everyone could see.
In an age of swiftboating, with many corporate front groups masquerading as consumer and political advocates, we need sunlight, not anonymous attacks by progressive advocates as an effecitve counter-weight.
Cecil has disavowed contact with "Progressive" Research Group, but I haven’t seen any mention of Charlie Thomas from him, other than Cecil’s reporting of the $500 contribution from Thomas. I’m not sure you can disavow a $500 contributor or would want to. Cecil is tied to Thomas and Lite, but not necessarily to all of their opinions and PAC activities.
While we’re on the subject, it would be good to hear from Gordon Smith, Elaine Lite’s champion in 2007, on his opinion of the emails and tactics of "Progressive" Research Group. (I’m sorry, I can’t write their name without putting the first word in quotes. Reactionary opposition to development is not progressive, it is reactionary. It is suburban. It is exclusive, elitist.)
PoliticsWatcher,
PRG is not associated with any candidate.
It’s true that I"ve personally voted for, contributed to, or otherwise supported a long list of candidates: Terry Bellamy, Holly Jones, Brownie Newman, Robin Cape, Bryan Freeborn, Elaine Lite, Cecil Bothwell, and Gordon Smith.
But naturally, none of those candidates are responsible for my actions.
Let’s discuss the message, instead of attacking the messenger.
To date, nobody’s come forward to say that any of PRG’s claims about Kelly Miller are false.
Cheers,
Charlie
http://www.PaveItAll.com
Here’s a link to my post of Sept. 20.
http://cecilsblog.wordpress.com/2009/09/20/a-watershed-year-in-asheville-politics/
Has Bothwell disavowed a connection with Charlie Thomas and the Progressive Rsearch Group?
Charlie, Thanks for your note!
Hi Ashvegas,
Thanks for mentioning our site, PaveItAll.com.
It’s ironic that your anonymous reader complained that we’re anonymous, since we registered as a PAC with the Board of Elections. I don’t hear that complaint about other PACs. What gives?
None of us are saying "stop all development in Asheville". Only your anonymous reader said that. We’re against stupid development, like building on our parks.
And apparently we do have our facts straight, since no complaints about our site list factual errors. If we got anything wrong, we all want to know, so we can correct it.
You can say that we "attack" Kelly Miller, but that doesn’t make it so. Listing the facts and getting them out to voters is not the same thing as an attack.
Miller really did vote in the Republican primary last year and then suddenly decide he’s a progressive Democrat. People need to know that.
Miller really does get his donations from the same big developers who support Carl Mumpower. He really did vote to give Grove Park Inn an option for a 15 story high rise on the park at Pack Square. People need to know that, too.
Thanks,
Charlie