I get so many spam e-mail blasts from so many politicians of
every stripe that I usually delete them without even a cursory glance, but I
stopped and looked at one I got this morning from my new Congressman, Mark
Pocan. The subject line was “Tornado
Warning”.
OK, it caught my attention.
But as I glanced through the text of the e-mail, it suddenly became
obvious – annoyingly so – that this was just another spam blast begging for
more money.
The “hook” with the subject line was Mark’s assertion that “a
budget tornado is set to hit Wisconsin this Friday if Congress doesn’t act”. Then there was a short paragraph with a
recitation of all the horrible things that MIGHT happen with the so-called
sequester, and the concluding sentence, in bold black, “Wisconsin alone stands to lose 36,000 jobs”.
Three short sentences later, the REAL subject of the e-mail
was revealed: “Please stand with me and help me stand up for Wisconsin jobs”….yadda
yadda yadda….click here to send me money.
Then there was still another link for cheapskates who only
want to send in five bucks.
I like Mark. I’ve
known him for a long time, since his first campaign for state assembly. I think
he will do a fine job in “Tammy’s seat” in the house.
But now, apparently he’s just fallen right into step with
the rest of the Washington politicians, using some trumped-up
outrage/tragedy/crisis to ask for campaign money. The so-called sequester might be bad for
Wisconsin; it might not cause much more than a shoulder-shrug for the vast
majority of ‘sconnies; but what it’s NOT is an opportunity for politicians to
beg for more money. They’re the ones who
created this mess in the first place!
Do something tangible about it, Mark.
After you’ve accomplished something, tell me about it, and
THEN ask me for money.
But first DO something.
