DaleWatch ’08: Update 1:46 p.m.
January 2, 2008 at 1:54 pm by Andisheh Nouraee in News
CL INTERVIEWS SENATE CANDIDATE DALE CARDWELL ATOP THE COREY TOWER: Meet the David Blaine of Georgia politics.
(photo by Joeff Davis)
“I didn’t expect it to be this cold.”
So said Dale Cardwell, speaking to me via phone from his perch atop Corey tower, a disused 300-feet tall smokestack near the state Capitol.
The Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate and former TV reporter says he won’t come down until Georgia voters understand the extent to which their government is being controlled by special interests and big corporations, and understand how dedicated he is to fixing government if he’s elected.
“I feel as though I have to do something significant to show my resolve,” he said.
As Cardwell explains it, camping out atop the tower isn’t so much a stunt as it is a political necessity. He can’t afford to buy attention for his campaign by buying ads, so he’s doing something dramatic to attract the attention of a fickle news media obsessed with providing what he calls “30-second Britney updates.”
The plan may be working. As of noon, Cardwell says he’s done 12 newspaper interviews and three radio interviews. He expects TV reporters to show up tomorrow when the weather’s better.
Despite icy temperatures and wind that kept him awake for all but two hours last night, Cardwell sounded relaxed and cheerful when we spoke. He was also impressively on-message, politely replying to each of my stupid questions with thoughtful answers echoing his campaign platform.
The only hint that the cold might be getting to him came when the conversation turned to global warming.
“I believe we have a serious problem with global warming,” he said, “but I’d like to delay any solution for at least a week.”
January 2nd, 2008 at 5:05 pm
When i saw this posting, the ego stroke began to work it’s magic hahahaha
Then I read the post and wondered how much Cardwell’s ego is growing?
Then I thought “Does he have WiFi up there?”
Then I thought, “I want a Snikcer bar”
Then I thought, “Look a brd outside my window”.
Then I realized that Cardwell has probably had only two alternating thoughts lately “Damn it’s old” and “I am a Total Tard for doing this”.
January 3rd, 2008 at 12:09 pm
I am so glad that someone can publish an unbiased report about what Dale is doing. As everyone is well aware, Dale is taking no money from PAC’s. If you note his contributors you see quickly that most contributions are from friends, family and Georgians who haven’t thought that individual contributions mattered very much. Now, contrast that with the incumbent, and his closest Democrat rival. They have over 95% of their contributions from those who stand the most to gain from their favor, not individual voters.
Lastly, Dale wishes to get his point across to those whom he hasn’t been able to reach thus far. In the 45 years I have known Dale; he has never backed down, or given up when he stood even a small chance of standing up for anyone without a voice.
What he is doing has been planned and thought out well in advance. I know he didn’t think of how cold it was going to be, but he is not a quitter. I wish him well.
Go Dale!