With much of the blogosphere all aflutter about Sherrod Brown's decision to redirect his ads towards ActBlue's fund for whoever wins the primary, it's worth calling his move what it is: savvy. Not charity, not kind, but a spot of smart political jujitsu. Brown's got an impressive war chest, a large fundraising base, and a huge financial head start. By giving the undecideds online the option to simply contribute to whomever wins, Brown is drying up funds that Hackett was hoping to have.
Now, there's nothing wrong with that, it's brilliant and speaks very well of his political abilities. But we in the blogosphere shouldn't get so snookered by it. It's not a classy move and it's not an act of selflessness. The couple tens of thousands the netroots would've given don't matter to Brown, but they're Hackett's financial lifeblood. I should say, here, that so far as I have a dog in this fight, it's Brown, who I think would be a far superior senator, should still call a spade a spade. Further, that spade is advertising on my site, and since I want Brown and think he'll win, I encourage you to donate. Ads on your left.
