Ervin endorsement reduces Haley camp to incoherence (which is kind of weird, since they’re ahead and all)

Ervin campaigning with Sheheen in Charleston this morning. Photo is from Sheheen's Twitter feed.

Ervin campaigning with Sheheen in Charleston this morning. Photo is from Sheheen’s Twitter feed.

But then, I’ve noticed that a lot of things have that effect.

So, when Tom Ervin, after spending $2.5 million of his own money on a fairly sophisticated and well-run campaign, drops out endorses Vincent Sheheen at the last minute — and does so in sober, coherent, mature language — we get this kind of grade-school-taunt-level bluster from our governor’s campaign:

Haley’s campaign said Ervin and Sheheen, both attorneys, shared the same agenda with “their liberal trial lawyer cronies.”

“They have spent millions on false and shameful attacks, and gotten nowhere with South Carolina voters,” Haley deputy campaign manager Rob Godfrey said. “It’s no surprise that two pro-Obamacare trial lawyers would officially tie the knot at the end of the race.”…

Oh yeah? Oh yeah?!? Well, you’re… you’re a TRIAL LAWYER, that’s what YOU are…

I guess he told them.

And yet, she’s the one leading in the polls — which would make you expect her to be the calmer party in the equation.

Anyway, thoughts on this? Frankly, I don’t expect it to change anything, in terms of the electoral outcome. But I could be wrong…

9 thoughts on “Ervin endorsement reduces Haley camp to incoherence (which is kind of weird, since they’re ahead and all)

  1. Doug Ross

    Dropping out now is inexcusable. He took over $100K in donations in addition to spending his own money. It seemed like a scam from the beginning — an attempt to draw votes away from Haley to help Sheheen except it backfired because people saw Ervin as a better choice than Sheheen instead of Haley.

    Instead of blowing millions on TV ads, he should have donated the money to a food bank.

    He’s a quitter. Simple as that.

  2. Dave Crockett

    Just after I saw the story on this on the local NBC affiliate last night, one of Ervin’s last TV commercials aired (the one linking Haley to three suspiciously foreign-named financial types). The tenor of that and other his various spots wasn’t much better than that of the Haley campaign (esp. the one blasting Sheheen for doing his job of defending accused criminals) and the wasted Sheheen ad budget firing puffed rice at Haley. In any event, I’d already resigned myself to voting less-than-enthusiastically for Sheheen next Tuesday and that sentiment is unchanged by the Ervin decision. Nor is the likely outcome of the election… *sigh*

    1. Brad Warthen Post author

      You know why? Because you’re a, you know…

      I’m going to do another post on how it’s little wonder that she holds lawyers in such low regard — she has little regard for the law itself.

      Which is, as Cindi wrote yesterday, an issue that SHOULD have been raised by her opponents in this election, but for some reason was not…

      1. Doug Ross

        ” but for some reason was not…”

        Because Sheheen demonstrated his leadership ability and judgment by selecting a campaign staff that produced an abysmal campaign. He actually will do worse this time around than the last time.

        I decisive leader would have fired his staff six months ago.

    2. Kathleen

      You aren’t alone in your annoyance. Someone with such blatant disregard for the law can’t be a good governor. When all humanity reaches Nirvana, laws and “trial lawyers” won’t be necessary. In the meantime, a good litigator is worth his/her weight in gold, and one of superior ability can make that platinum.

  3. Kathryn Fenner

    Haley supporters seem to like her middle school level of public engagement. These are “Forget? Hell!” types, with belligerent sentiments plastered on their trucks and tee-shirts…Nikki knows how to tap into the alienation of the “majority”–they are not “trial lawyers”–more likely their clients! They hate their ex-spouse’s lawyer, and the one who didn’t get their DUI completely quashed, and are convinced that lawsuits are killing jobs—until one of them gets injured and then….1-800-LAWYERS

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