Funny, But Wrong
If we appreciate what has made America exceptional, we must take it seriously
This past week was filing week1 here in Washington. It was the week when all those seeking to be elected to political office had to make contact with County Auditors, or the Secretary of State to file the necessary paperwork to get their names on the ballot. A big deal to watch for political junkies like me, likely just another ordinary week for people without my particular obsessions.
The deadline was yesterday, at close of business.
Well, yesterday afternoon something really funny happened. I’ve got to admit, I laughed out loud when I first learned of it on X.
It was funny, but it was wrong.
It doesn’t take much to file for office here in Washington, so thirty people have filed to be our next Governor.2
But in reality, there are four serious candidates. Bob Ferguson our current Attorney General and Mark Mullet a State Senator are vying for the Democratic nomination, while on the Republican side the fight is between former Congressman & Sheriff Dave Reichert and former School District Director Semi Bird.
This is an interesting race. Senator Mullet would be a better Governor than Attorney General Ferguson, but is badly trailing in fundraising and support. The Attorney General has long been the heir apparent, and that seems to be holding true. Congressman Reichert is an electable candidate, he has a shot at winning the Governorship. But the Republican party has endorsed Bird, a candidate who wasn’t even able to hold on to his position on the School Board, having lost a Recall Election.
Ultimately, one of these four will be our next Governor, and most likely it will come down to either Ferguson or Reichert.
With all of that groundwork laid, now I can tell you what happened, why it was funny, and more importantly, why it was wrong, despite the humor.
A local political activist went out and found two other Washingtonians, with the same name as our Attorney General, and convinced them to file for the Office of Governor as well.3
So there will be three Bob Fergusons on the Primary Ballot. Democrats will have to somehow figure out which Bob Ferguson is the right Bob Ferguson.
As I mentioned above, my first reaction when I encountered this yesterday was laughter. It’s a creative trick, and it is rather funny to imagine what the Attorney General’s reaction must have been.
But while admittedly funny, it isn’t good.
The institutions that we have are one of the vitally important things that have worked to make America the nation that millions around the world line up to become a part of. Our Founding Fathers created these institutions, this system of Federalism full of checks and balances in order to build a nation in which liberty could flourish.
And as a result, those of us who live in the United States are the envy of the world.
If you doubt that, just take a look at the millions streaming across our borders. If this country wasn’t any good, they wouldn’t be looking to come in and build new lives here.
But today, our institutions are under attack, and our nation is under attack. From within. Just a month ago, media was reporting about rallies in which the participants were chanting “Death To America.” In Michigan.4 I remember when I used to see chants like that on the news every evening, way back in the late 1970’s, when our Embassy in Iran was overrun, and our diplomats taken hostage. Has Iran come to Michigan?
Into this extremely fraught political time, a political activist and his supporters decided to make a mockery of our electoral process. To take advantage of the system so that they could insert a trick into it. And who knows, their scheme could work. Undoubtedly some voters could be confused and end up voting for the wrong Bob Ferguson. If enough are confused, it could alter the result.
In the United States we are supposed to win elections by outworking and outspending our opponents. By championing issues and positions that are important to our electorate. By pointing out the differences between ourselves and our opponents. It’s not a perfect system by any means, and often it gets nasty, but it is the best possible system, and the system we have.
Trying to win through blatant trickery, by gaming the system, isn’t right. It is an outright attack on our institutions and our political system.
And the thing is, these wrong acts only grow over time.
Four years from now, how many Republicans sharing the same name will file for election to the Office of the Governor? When Democrats use abusive tactics against Republicans they find those same tactics later used against them. Just as Republicans suffer under unfair tactics used by Democrats that were first dreamed up by Republicans.
And with each such cycle, our civil society is further degraded.
Artificial divisions between people grow.
Our nation is weakened.
If America is to remain strong, it must have serious people leading it.
If we continue to make a mockery of our institutions, how can we survive?
Since I have three separate Substacks, I’ve decided to give Linktree a try. You can find mine here Cameron M. Bailey’s LinkTree.
Or if you’re really snazzy, give this a shot:
Damn. If I keep this up, I’ll have to stop calling myself a Luddite.
https://voter.votewa.gov/CandidateList.aspx?e=888
https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/bob-ferguson-ballot-filing
https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/2024/04/08/death-to-america-chant-dearborn-jihad-rally-al-quds-day-draws-condemnation/73247053007/
Well, following up, this was short lived as the attorney general threatened his opponents with 10 years of prison for running against him.
My reaction was the same as yours. A chuckle and then "how on earth are we going to figure out who we are voting for. It did not to the research or fact checking to realize it was a scheme and just who was behind that scheme. Creative, but not without risks. Politicians have VERY LONG memories when they feel they have been wronged.