Nov4 |
 |
Al Schmidt never had a chanceNot even the combined weight of Philly’s media establishment could save him: The Republican candidate for controller only collected 28 percent of the vote. Schmidt carried the hopes and dreams of a lot of folks who would like to see a genuine opposition party rise up in Philadelphia in order to give the fat, lazy and complacent Democrats a little bit of a spark to try to run City Hall honestly and effectively. After last night, there’s two options: • Treat Schmidt like Barry Goldwater: Not as a devastating loss for his party and movement, but as a necessary first (painful) step to rebuilding the Philly GOP to provide the competition. • Look elsewhere. I’m not always sympathetic to Republican candidates, but Schmidt deserved better support than he got. His head might be hanging low this morning, but hopefully he and his pals see the first option as a real opportunity, instead of deciding to let the city’s hidebound GOP establishment go back to collecting patronage crumbs. |
|
|
The Trouble with Spikol | Make Major Moves | PW Style | Cup o'Joel
Notwithstanding the media backing — which, in my experience, is rarely a determinative factor — isn’t 28 percent a respectable return for a Republican in Philadelphia? Nobody really expected him to win in that crowded field and he didn’t really have establishment support. And what’s the Republican registration there again?