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Republicans often complain about the U.S. Postal Service as yet another inefficient government bureaucracy, so it is somewhat surprising to see a GOP campaign point to the Postal Service as the deciding authority when it's time to play the Geography Card in a statewide election.
Rep. Mark Udall is the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Wayne Allard, who is retiring. Bob Schaffer is the Republican candidate; his campaign is being managed by Dick Wadhams, who managed Allard's two successful campaigns against Tom Strickland.
The Wadhams trick in 1996 and 2002 was to say
lawyer-lobbyist Tom Strickland
at least twice every
paragraph, thereby defining the opposition in a way that
helped Allard. Most of us, after all, aren't real fond of
lawyers and lobbyists.
This time around, the Wadhams pet phrase is Boulder
liberal Mark Udall.
Udall lives in Boulder County near
Eldorado Springs, and his press releases often list him as
D-Eldorado Springs.
There's a minor problem with
that, because nobody actually lives in Eldorado Springs.
The settlement is not an incorporated town, so it has no
formal boundaries. According to the Colorado Department of
Local Affairs, the only relevant local government is the
Eldorado Springs-Marshall Fire Protection District, and I
know not whether the Udall family abides within its
limits.
Eldorado Springs does have a post office, ZIP code
80025, but Udall's ZIP code is 80303. That's a Boulder ZIP
code, so Wadhams charges that Udall is lying and
misrepresenting his residency.
Maybe Wadhams can alert the authorities to this: I grew up in a house whose mailing address was 3025 11th Ave., Greeley, Colo. 80631. However, we were in the Town of Evans -- the municipal boundary then was our north property line, beyond which lay an unincorporated portion of Weld County, leading to the City of Greeley. By the Wadhams standard, my parents (both fairly staunch Republicans, by the way) were committing fraud every time they voted in an Evans municipal election, since they had a Greeley mailing address.
Mailing addresses and places don't always coincide. For instance, there's the incorporated town of Bonanza in Saguache County. But it has not held a post office for years, and its residents get their mail on a rural route out of Villa Grove. So by the Wadhams rule, anyone who says he lives in Bonanza is a liar.
If you live in Chaffee County west of Salida, with some exceptions, you have a Salida mailing address even if you're 20 miles from town.
One exception is Poncha Springs, which has a post office with boxes but no delivery. Thus if you live in the Maysville area, you're closer to Poncha Springs, but have a Salida mailing address. The Poncha Springs town government has attempted to open negotiations with the U.S. Postal Service to see if this can be changed, presumably so that Poncha will be better known.
The towns of Westcliffe and Silver Cliff in Custer County adjoin each other and share a post office and ZIP code -- but they're separate municipalities with their own mayors and boards of trustees. By the Wadhams postal standard of residency, their municipal elections offer all manner of opportunities for lying and misrepresentation.
Funny, though, he didn't mention that when he spoke at
the Custer County Lincoln Day dinner this year, when he
said that for Republicans, There's a great deal to be
optimistic about in 2008.
Perhaps there is, as long as he can keep playing the
Geography Card with Boulder liberal,
based on ZIP
codes that have everything to do with mail delivery and
precious little to do with place of residence, and nothing
at all to do with a candidate's positions. But hey, it's
surprising to hear a Republican say something good about
the Postal Service.
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