Political candidates
can be trashed by false allegations and are not afforded the assumption of
innocence. They may lose votes from those who believe these false allegations.
When candidates square
off in a political race, the “campaign staff” gathers opposition research to
find out if their candidate’s challengers have potential scandals in their
background.
They look for criminal
background, personal and family arrest records, police reports, traffic
violations, law suits, financial difficulties, marital difficulties,
bankruptcy, credit score and repossession of goods,
They also look at
employment background, the character of close associates, business associates,
political associates, campaign contributors, net worth and industry
connections.
All of this
information is used to create a picture of opposing candidates based on their
difficulties and associates. The campaign staff then identifies promising
material and develops scenarios to “define” their opponents. It’s like writing
a book where none of it has to be true. The best scenarios are used in campaign
ads aimed at attacking the opponent.
Campaign Staffs avoid
“Issues Campaigns”, where the issues are discussed and positions on issues are
revealed. The risk there is that some voters may not like their candidate’s
positions on issues. That is their biggest failing
Norb Leahy, Dunwoody
GA Tea Party Leader
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