Tully: Kennedy's "Command of the Issues" Better than Ballard's

On Sunday, Matt Tully penned a column on the first debate, and some of the things he said were quite surprising things to say about a sitting Mayor. Tully gave the debate heavily to Melina Kennedy, but his opinions of Mayor Greg Ballard should give any voter some pause.

You can read the full Matt Tully piece here hiding behind an innocuous headline about debates. My favorite line from the piece, and, potentially the most troubling for Ballard, "She (Kennedy) is clearly more comfortable in the setting and, as a policy wonk and a former deputy mayor, she seems much more in command of the issues facing the city."

Tully doesn't come right out and say it, but one can read that statement that the Mayor is out-of-touch with the city he's been at the head of for four years. Further, Tully takes the Mayor to task for his robotic and unimaginative answers to questions asked. "Ballard, never a master of policy, these days comes across as a candidate who has been heavily coached. He fills his answers with a mix of rapid-fire talking points, provided by his advisers, and dry managerial statistics and jargon," writes Tully. Did I mention that Tully moderated the debate?

All of these things are ready-made campaign commercial material for Kennedy. Perhaps as you read this, her campaign staff is working on an ad right now with the quote about the "command of the issues" she has over the man who has been Mayor.

Of course, those of us that have supported Melina Kennedy are not surprised by this, but in a county that trends Democratic, Greg Ballard needs to have all the support he can get. Having the political writer of record for a historically pro-Republican newspaper give the "command of the issues" to your Democratic opponent is not a good thing for the sitting Mayor.

Tully's right. Melina Kennedy does know the issues better than Greg Ballard does, and it's one of the many reasons a vote for her is the way to go on November 8.