Antics and ignorance

Let’s take another look at the District 1 race to replace Wally Herger in Congress. On the Republican side, you’ve got Herger’s anointed successor, state Sen. Doug LaMalfa, who is being challenged primarily by a former state senator, Sam Aanestad. You would think that two such supposedly distinguished gentlemen would present themselves as responsible, thoughtful individuals worthy of representing us in Washington, but so far they’ve managed to embarrass themselves more than anything else.

It began with LaMalfa’s posting a phony website that attempted to slur Aanestad but came off looking silly instead. The thing was so poorly constructed and so over the top it was a joke. What was LaMalfa thinking? He blames it on a staffer and says he didn’t know about it, a dubious assertion at best. But if it’s true, what does that say about his leadership skills?

Then there’s Aanestad, who has stated on several occasions that he believes President Obama is a Muslim. Obama was raised Muslim, his background is Muslim, his father was a Muslim, Aanestad insists. This reveals a level of ignorance that by itself disqualifies him from being elected. It’s well established that Obama was reared by his mother and grandparents, white Christians from Kansas, and that he saw his Kenyan Muslim-turned-atheist father only briefly and never after the age of 2.

One of two things is true: Either Aanestad is abysmally ignorant, or he knows Obama is a Christian but also knows that anti-Islam sentiment runs high in his district and chooses to garner favor by tarnishing the president. It’s hard to know which is worse. Either way, he’s lost our respect.

Voters have choices. There are six other candidates in the race. We believe Jim Reed, the Fall River Mills attorney who challenged Herger in 2010, would serve the district well. He’s a moderate Democrat in the tradition of Harold T. “Bizz” Johnson, who held the seat from 1958 to 1981 and brought lots of federal money into the district to build roads, water systems and sewer facilities.

Reed has run a faultless and responsible campaign, one devoid of the antics coming from the LaMalfa camp and the embarrassing ignorance of Aanestad. He’s worthy of your support.