Ten minutes after the six o’clock start time of the Fair Budget Coalition’s At-large D.C. Council candidates’ forum, Statehood-Green Party’s David Schwartzman is the only pol present. Eventually, Republican incumbent Carol Schwartz strolls in with an entourage of yellow T-shirt-wearing supporters.
Incumbent Democrat Kwame Brown and Republican challenger Patrick Mara never arrive. Their name signs sit on a conference table, whispering that issues like elimination of poverty, regressive tax structures, and healthcare weren’t important to them.
“The issues are very important,” counters Mara, days after the forum. But, there probably were few Republicans there. “I have to be practical. I’ve focused more on a door-to-door effort. ”
Mara brings a deep red to the DC Republican Party, which often acts in blue. He wants to reduce all taxes and reduce the cost of government. He advocates parental choice, particularly vouchers, and reform of DC Public Schools.
Schwartz, a 30-year political veteran, operates inside a blur-a fiscal conservative and a social liberal. Gary Imhoff, co-founder of DC Watch, calls her a “liberal Republican,” taking us into the land of oxymorons.
“People may not agree with me on all the issues, but I’ve worked very hard” says Schwartz. As the chair of the Committee on Workforce Development and Government Operation, she monitors a large portion of the executive branch. From that expansive perch her non-conservative credentials are flaunted. She introduced legislation, like the Office of First Source Compliance Act, which increased-not decreased–the size of government. She wants to halt the sale of unused government property, handicapping the city’s moneymaking abilities. And, she proudly voted against giving the mayor control of schools.
Those actions won her friends, including the executive committee of the DCRC. They also brought enemies; Mara is their antidote to Schwartz.
“We’ve never seen the kind of dirty tricks we’re seeing in this campaign. I would never allow it. I’ve always run positive campaigns,” says Schwartz, acknowledging that business leaders are angry over her legislation mandating sick leave to all employees, including those who work part-time.
“If I go down…I’ll be proud to go down on that one,” she adds.
Kelvin Robinson, head of the D.C. Chamber’s political action committee, made telephone calls earlier this summer hoping to persuade registered Democrats to switch parties so they can unseat Schwartz, say sources who received a couple of calls.
Robinson didn’t return messages left at his office. Mara says he doesn’t know anything about that push. It worked: The D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics reports that as of August 11, there were 29,622 registered Republicans-up from July 31 total of 29,008.
Schwartz isn’t safe. In past primaries, her opposition has been marginal. In general elections, Democrats have come to her rescue. This time, she may fall in the Sept. Primary.
Mara is young, savvy, willing and ready to be a ‘true’ Republican. That package is very seductive.
