Dear Meg,
Your campaign is so terrific and represents such a public service to California that it’s hard to choose my favorite thing about it.
But I think I’ve finally decided. It’s your commitment to making sure that Californians hear all sides of the story.
It was particularly refreshing to see you defend this principle by asking the California Nurses Assn. for permission to mail information to their lists. I, like you, was surprised and outraged when the nurses’ union didn’t open up its list to you.
I mean, how unfair was that? The nurses have this captive audience to which they send mail that their membership reads, and you only have barely $150 million to reach them via TV ads. How could anyone call that balanced? After all, it’s quite possible that at least a handful of nurses (those who don’t have TVs or reflexively Tivo through all the ads) aren’t getting the chance to hear your side of the story.
The nurses’ union seemed to respond to your request as though it were some kind of political trick, a gambit to put your union tormentors on the defensive. It is terrible how cynical people are these days, isn’t it?
I, for one, know you are completely sincere, and believe that mailing lists should be shared broadly and openly in the service of providing both sides of the story.
Which is why I’m sure there will be no problem with my own request to use your campaign mailing list to make sure people are getting all sides of the story about California’s current governing mess.
There are some people for governor – I’m not saying who – who suggest that we can cut taxes, preserve the supermajority rules on budgets and taxation, and spend more on prisons and higher education without breaking the bank.
I’ve co-authored a new book that argues otherwise, and I’m sure, in the interests of balance, you would be delighted to tell the people on your list about it. And since right now I’m limited to promoting the book through sneaky, back-handed references in online columns that might seem to be about something else, I could use your help.
Very truly yours,
Joe Mathews