Joe Wilson’s potential Democratic opponent

This came out a couple of months ago, but I just ran across it.

I knew former Justice Department attorney Adair Ford Boroughs had announced she was going to go after Joe Wilson next year, but hadn’t seen the video until now. It caused me to check out her website as well.

Random observations, in no particular order:

  • First, while I need to know more, she’s probably got my vote. Not because of this or that thing Joe has said or done, but because — as she correctly points out — Joe has done nothing in his almost 18 years in Congress. Joe loves being a congressman — he gets all breathless when he expresses how much he loves it — but he doesn’t seem interested in doing anything in the position.
  • Second, the odds are way, way against her. The district is drawn for a Republican, big-time. And once the Lexington County votes come in, it tends to be over for the Democrat.
  • This is neither here nor there, but I got a little confused, thinking “Adair” was her last name. Everywhere you look, it’s “Adair for Congress,” and since I’ve always seen it as a surname, well…. Interestingly, I can’t even find “Boroughs” on the home page of her website. It doesn’t mean anything; I just don’t remember seeing this before.
  • The video is OK, and probably the best part about it is the way it drives home the point I mentioned above — that Joe has gotten only one bill passed in all these years, and it was to change the name of a local post office. There are some things I’m not that crazy about, such as the populist cliches about “career politicians” and “good ol’ boy politicians.” Those are such tired expressions. If you’re going to go there, and least come up with a fresh way to say it.
  • Speaking of populism, I’m also not thrilled by the “going after corporations and millionaires who cheated on their taxes” stuff either. I’m all for getting people to pay the taxes they owe, but that smacks a bit of the class conflict stuff that’s so popular on the left now, which leaves me kind of cold. (By that I mean it seems to suggest she went after them because they were “corporations and millionaires” as much as because they were tax cheats. Maybe that’s unintentional, but the vibe is there.
  • I see she clerked for District Judge Richard M. Gergel, and I have a lot of respect for Richard, and if he chose to hire her, she must have something going for her.
  • Of course, I’d rather see someone who has done more in the public sphere — someone who has been a judge rather than a judge’s clerk, or someone who has held some lower office before shooting for Congress. Y’all know me. But when you’re going up against someone who has done as little as Joe has with the office, that’s not as important as it might be under other circumstances.

Anyway, it’s early, and I’m going to watch this with interest…

Adair

9 thoughts on “Joe Wilson’s potential Democratic opponent

    1. Brad Warthen Post author

      The only thing I know about him other than the Sanders association is that he “would be South Carolina’s first African-American Hispanic congressman.”

      Which, as far as I am concerned, is neither here nor there.

      Just as I’m not impressed by Adair Boroughs’ assertion that “SC-02 is ready to Ma’am Up.

      This is one 2nd District voter who’s not going to vote for anybody BECAUSE she is a woman, or because he is a man, or African-American Hispanic. But these are Democrats, and they talk like that…

  1. Doug Ross

    You had me at “she’s running against Joe Wilson”. That’s all I need to know. I’d vote for a rock over him.

    I happened to pass him in the Columbia airport the other day. He was shaking hands with someone as he walked through. I believe that is his primary skill.

    1. Doug Ross

      If I decide to run as the Libertarian candidate, would you vote for me? I promise to name a post office after you.

        1. Doug Ross

          Obviously, as a Libertarian, I would get the post office named after you AND THEN HAVE IT CLOSED AS A WASTE OF TAXPAYERS’ FUNDS! You’ve been hoodwinked!

Comments are closed.