Editor’s note: This op-ed is by Kate O’Connor, a former aide to Howard Dean, consultant to Senate candidate Rich Tarrant and a candidate for the Windham 3-3 Brattleboro seat in the Vermont House of Representatives.
As the Brattleboro state House candidate named in a recent VTDigger opinion column, I’ve spent the summer meeting local voters door-to-door. Not one of the nearly 2,800 residents in my walking tour asked me about my consulting work for 2006 U.S. Senate candidate Richard Tarrant – that is, until my opponent’s friend and neighbor aimed to make this an issue by contacting the media just days before the Aug. 28 primary vote.
Yes, I’ve said repeatedly, I’ve worked for Democratic Vermont governors Madeleine Kunin, Howard Dean and Peter Shumlin – and one Republican, Tarrant. No, that doesn’t mean I was Tarrant’s campaign manager (I was a consultant hired to report the Democratic Party’s position on policy issues) nor does it mean I agreed with how Tarrant ran his campaign – and I told him so.
(If you read my book “Do The Impossible: My Crash Course On Presidential Politics Inside The Howard Dean Campaign,” you’ll see I also disagreed with many of the choices made by campaign manager Joe Trippi – and I told him so.)
Yes, I’m sure people can find dozens of Internet posts implicating me for almost anything. That doesn’t mean they’re true. A 2004 Washington Post story after the end of Howard’s presidential bid cited an anonymous source charging I single-handedly torpedoed the campaign by hiding important information in my garage. What information? Even I’d like to know – I can only confirm I’ve never had a garage.
I shared all this with my opponent’s friend and neighbor. He decided to spread another story to the media in hopes of discrediting my candidacy and character.
The Brattleboro Reformer received the same column and took the unusual step of offering its own opinion. As the paper concluded Friday: “Rather than listening to rumors and innuendo, people should take it upon themselves to talk to the candidates directly, ask them what their positions are on the issues and find out what they are going to do to address your concerns.”
I have and continue to be open to speaking with any and all voters about any and all of their concerns.
