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Expenditure of the Day: New Anti-Hutchison Mailer

News   October 27, 2009 at 12:11 pm Erica C. Barnett

The Washington Conservation Voters are spending $15,000 on a new mailer blasting King County Executive candidate Susan Hutchison for her record on the environment. The mailer, produced by Moxie Media, accuses Hutchison of wanting to roll back county environmental laws and of taking “tens of thousands of dollars” from “irresponsible developers”:

Picture 1

Picture 4

Speaking of those so-called “irresponsible developers,” the Affordable Housing Council—the political arm of the Master Builders Association—is spending $17,500 for its own mailer, this one supporting Hutchison. I have a call in to Scott Hildebrand, spokesman for the Affordable Housing Council (and public policy director for the Master Builders) requesting a copy of the pro-Hutchison mailer.


  • What the Puck?

    That is a stellar mail piece.

  • What the Puck?

    That is a stellar mail piece.

  • swatter

    Where are these ‘irresponsible developer’? This responsible person could use a job.

  • http://www.fattailed.com/ Fat-tailed

    Funny that “Master Builders” doesn’t describe their interests or record any more accurately than “Affordable Housing Council” does.

  • http://www.fattailed.com Fat-tailed

    Funny that “Master Builders” doesn’t describe their interests or record any more accurately than “Affordable Housing Council” does.

  • http://peacetreefarm.org N in Seattle

    Erica, I assume you’re asking for the AHC mailer because you’d never, ever, be one of the target recipients for them. :-)

    Me neither.

  • http://peacetreefarm.org N in Seattle

    Erica, I assume you’re asking for the AHC mailer because you’d never, ever, be one of the target recipients for them. :-)

    Me neither.

  • cvbn

    Hey, where is “Chairman Dao” now that the real Dow is crushing?

    http://www.washingtonpoll.org/results/OCT_27_SEA.pdf

    …has Dow up 47-34, with 19 percent undecided, among likely voters.

  • cvbn

    Hey, where is “Chairman Dao” now that the real Dow is crushing?

    http://www.washingtonpoll.org/results/OCT_27_SEA.pdf

    …has Dow up 47-34, with 19 percent undecided, among likely voters.

  • http://www.twitter.com/jjtweets Johnathon Fitzpatrick

    That Anti-Hutchison mailer reminds me of the classic ‘Daisy’ Ad from Johnson’s ’64 campaign: http://is.gd/4EJzn

  • http://www.twitter.com/jjtweets Johnathon Fitzpatrick

    That Anti-Hutchison mailer reminds me of the classic ‘Daisy’ Ad from Johnson’s ’64 campaign: http://is.gd/4EJzn

  • Chris Stefan

    @6
    In your guts you know she’s nuts!

  • Chris Stefan

    @6
    In your guts you know she’s nuts!

  • sarah68

    @6: Exactly what I thought! It was very effective then…but people mainly remember Johnson for bombing Vietnam. However, it got him into office. Anything that keeps Hutchison out of office is just fine.

  • sarah68

    @6: Exactly what I thought! It was very effective then…but people mainly remember Johnson for bombing Vietnam. However, it got him into office. Anything that keeps Hutchison out of office is just fine.

  • Craig M. Benjamin

    Nice work WCV, nice work.

  • Craig M. Benjamin

    Nice work WCV, nice work.

  • http://gomezticator.livejournal.com/tag/wsdot+tunnel Gomez

    I typically throw mailers in the recycle bin without a second thought. It’s all propaganda.

    I’d love to see a survey outlining how many others do the same.

  • http://gomezticator.livejournal.com/tag/wsdot+tunnel Gomez

    I typically throw mailers in the recycle bin without a second thought. It’s all propaganda.

    I’d love to see a survey outlining how many others do the same.

  • Jacob

    Moxie just has their dirty little hands all over this election…I mean I would think they would do everything they possibly could to still appear to not be collaborating with Dow’s campaign, and yet they use Dow’s logo in the mailing. One would probably think a campaign has to give a group permission to use their logo…

  • Jacob

    Moxie just has their dirty little hands all over this election…I mean I would think they would do everything they possibly could to still appear to not be collaborating with Dow’s campaign, and yet they use Dow’s logo in the mailing. One would probably think a campaign has to give a group permission to use their logo…

  • Mr. X

    @10,

    Year after year for as long as I’ve been following Seattle campaigns, candidates who do mass mailings win elections. I’m sure lots of people probably toss them, but they work.

  • Mr. X

    @10,

    Year after year for as long as I’ve been following Seattle campaigns, candidates who do mass mailings win elections. I’m sure lots of people probably toss them, but they work.

  • ivan

    Jacob @ 11:

    Why not click on THIS link over at Horse’s Ass and tell us how you like it?

    http://horsesass.org/?p=21509

    If you don’t want to, I’ll save you the trouble. Your candidate Hutchison is a lying sack of shit, unqualified and unfit to be County Executive, and the voters are starting to realize it.

  • ivan

    Jacob @ 11:

    Why not click on THIS link over at Horse’s Ass and tell us how you like it?

    http://horsesass.org/?p=21509

    If you don’t want to, I’ll save you the trouble. Your candidate Hutchison is a lying sack of shit, unqualified and unfit to be County Executive, and the voters are starting to realize it.

  • Stacy

    I can’t believe that I’m saying it again, go Ivan!

  • Stacy

    I can’t believe that I’m saying it again, go Ivan!

  • http://gomezticator.livejournal.com/tag/wsdot+tunnel Gomez

    12. I’d ask you for a sample but you’d probably give me a skewed one that supports your assertion.

  • http://gomezticator.livejournal.com/tag/wsdot+tunnel Gomez

    12. I’d ask you for a sample but you’d probably give me a skewed one that supports your assertion.

  • Sample Size

    @15 Mike McGinn, Robert Rozencrantz, Mike O’Brien, Dow Constantine, Sally Bagshaw…the list from the primary of candidates who sent an assload of mail and then won is longer, but I think you should do your own homework.

  • Sample Size

    @15 Mike McGinn, Robert Rozencrantz, Mike O’Brien, Dow Constantine, Sally Bagshaw…the list from the primary of candidates who sent an assload of mail and then won is longer, but I think you should do your own homework.

  • ivan

    @ 14:

    Learn to love me and everything I say, and your life will be so much more rewarding. :-)

  • ivan

    @ 14:

    Learn to love me and everything I say, and your life will be so much more rewarding. :-)

  • Mr. X

    @15,

    My sentiments are entirely nonpartisan. See all of that junk mail (and not just political) in your mailbox? Millions of dollars have been spent on market research that fairly conclusively proves that this stuff moves product, which is why marketers still use direct mail – whether it’s the Christian Coalition or the ACLU, the RNC or the DNC, or McGinn or Mallahan.

    In campaigns, other things being equal, the candidate with more money usually wins – and that money is largely spent on direct mail in most elections.

    You can go pay Blair Butterworth, Cathy Allen, Sandeep Kashuik, or any number of DC consultants to advise you on your campaign and they’ll tell you the same thing. That’ll be $5000, please.

  • Mr. X

    @15,

    My sentiments are entirely nonpartisan. See all of that junk mail (and not just political) in your mailbox? Millions of dollars have been spent on market research that fairly conclusively proves that this stuff moves product, which is why marketers still use direct mail – whether it’s the Christian Coalition or the ACLU, the RNC or the DNC, or McGinn or Mallahan.

    In campaigns, other things being equal, the candidate with more money usually wins – and that money is largely spent on direct mail in most elections.

    You can go pay Blair Butterworth, Cathy Allen, Sandeep Kashuik, or any number of DC consultants to advise you on your campaign and they’ll tell you the same thing. That’ll be $5000, please.

  • http://gomezticator.livejournal.com/tag/2009+election Gomez

    16. You didn’t exactly disprove my point in 15, anon. And neither did you, X. Links to objective sources, plz.

  • http://gomezticator.livejournal.com/tag/2009+election Gomez

    16. You didn’t exactly disprove my point in 15, anon. And neither did you, X. Links to objective sources, plz.

  • Mr. X

    I believe this is a textbook example of being willfully obtuse. The examples @ 16 were recent, specific, and relevant and I don’t think we need to cite the body of research literature on the effectiveness of direct mail to make our point any better than we already have.

    Tell you what, try running a few political campaigns without doing direct mail and let me know how that works out for you. There’s a reason EVERY professional campaign consultant will tell their clients to focus their resources on direct mail, which is that it works.

  • Mr. X

    I believe this is a textbook example of being willfully obtuse. The examples @ 16 were recent, specific, and relevant and I don’t think we need to cite the body of research literature on the effectiveness of direct mail to make our point any better than we already have.

    Tell you what, try running a few political campaigns without doing direct mail and let me know how that works out for you. There’s a reason EVERY professional campaign consultant will tell their clients to focus their resources on direct mail, which is that it works.

  • J.R.

    @20: Political campaigns are all direct mail and TV now, with local elections skewing toward direct mail. I think most consultants would tell you that TV (generally cheap cable buys) can work as a supplement in a local race, but cannot replace the impact of direct mail.

  • J.R.

    @20: Political campaigns are all direct mail and TV now, with local elections skewing toward direct mail. I think most consultants would tell you that TV (generally cheap cable buys) can work as a supplement in a local race, but cannot replace the impact of direct mail.

  • Mr. X

    @21,

    I would add radio into that mix, but it’s definitely subordinate to direct mail and/or TV.

    Candidates who are swimming in money also occasionally buy print ads in the weeklies and local papers, but, again, that doesn’t move votes the way direct mail does.

  • Mr. X

    @21,

    I would add radio into that mix, but it’s definitely subordinate to direct mail and/or TV.

    Candidates who are swimming in money also occasionally buy print ads in the weeklies and local papers, but, again, that doesn’t move votes the way direct mail does.

  • That’s what she said

    The Hutchison campaign is trying something a bit different–They had Jordan McCarran in a diaper, nailed to a cross, dragging up 4th avenue from the financial district to the center. Susan, wearing thigh high patent leather spike heel boots, followed behind scourging the poor bastard. Seems a little desperate, but who knows, might be effective.

  • That’s what she said

    The Hutchison campaign is trying something a bit different–They had Jordan McCarran in a diaper, nailed to a cross, dragging up 4th avenue from the financial district to the center. Susan, wearing thigh high patent leather spike heel boots, followed behind scourging the poor bastard. Seems a little desperate, but who knows, might be effective.

  • swatter

    Where are these 'irresponsible developer'? This responsible person could use a job.