Letter: Will’s column errs, leaves out pertinent facts

Thursday, May 16, 2002 | 8:52 a.m.

George Will's May 13 column, "Much on line in Berkley-Boggs McDonald race," errs more by omission than by what is included.

He mentions the challenger's assets; the most important, he claims, is that Lynette Boggs McDonald is a beauty pageant winner.

And he compares the two women's ages. Apparently, Will thinks a 38-year-old woman is inherently better than a 51-year-old woman. That may not fly with the voters, who tend to be an older crowd.

What Will leaves out of his column is that Boggs McDonald's campaign recently lost two key staffers: her fund-raiser and her highly paid campaign manager (who managed to spend down a huge amount of the candidate's money). To say that Boggs McDonald's campaign is in disarray is an understatement.

So what does Will say? He says "this race is one of the small number in 2002 ... that are truly competitive."

Will doesn't know what he's talking about. Polls have Shelley Berkley way out in front, and with good reason.

Boggs McDonald is an anti-labor Republican running in a pro-labor Democratic district against an incumbent -- Berkley -- with an outstanding record.

Will's column read more like a campaign fund-raiser letter for Boggs McDonald than an opinion piece.

Is he a syndicated columnist or paid political hack for the Republican Party?

LORI LIPMAN BROWN

Editor's note: The writer, a Democrat, is a former state senator.