Brian Kalk’s First TV Ad: Did I Mention I Was A Marine?
Back during the 2004 presidential campaign Democrat candidate John Kerry got a lot of teasing over his constant mentioning of his military service in Vietnam. He was so myopic about it, he became the butt of late-night television jokes and Saturday Night Live skits.
US House candidate Brian Kalk isn’t nearly as obnoxious about name-dropping his military service as Kerry was, but he does work it into is campaign a lot. In fact, in his first television ad, he manages to mention the fact that he served as a Marine no less than twice.
To be sure, I have nothing against Kalk’s military service. I’m glad we have people like him to serve this country in that capacity, but military service alone isn’t enough for a candidate, and one problem I’ve always had with Kalk is that he’s never been all that specific about policy. He’s an ardent campaigner who speaks well and is very photogenic. With his military career he checks off a lot of boxes that are important for voters, but when it comes to where he stands on the issues he’s always struck me as vapid. I’ve never quite shaken the idea, when I talk to Brian, that he’s telling me what he thinks I want to hear rather than what he believes.
In the absence of evidence that he’s motivated by the issue he has always come off as motivated more by personal ambition.
Which, again, isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I would prefer to vote for someone who wants to get elected to address specific issues than someone who wants to get elected to fulfill certain personal ambitions.
Tags: Brian Kalk, Kevin Cramer, North Dakota News
