Detroit News - Rep. Kilpatrick Braces for Battle

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Detroit News - Rep. Kilpatrick Braces for Battle

Scott, Waters mount credible challenge for seat held for 12 years by Detroit mayor's mother.

In a political climate where the national Democratic message is built on change, U.S. Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, the mother of the embattled Detroit mayor, is mounting a re-election campaign as if her own political career is at stake.

And it might be.

Tenured members of Congress don't often face credible primary challenges, but Kilpatrick is confronted in the Aug. 5 Democratic primary by state Sen. Martha Scott and former state Rep. Mary Waters.

Kilpatrick is waging an aggressive re-election battle -- with a well-stocked campaign treasury and an assist from several high-ranking national Democratic figures, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

"There's a change in the air, and if you're an incumbent, change being in the air makes you nervous," said David Bositis, a political and economic studies analyst with the Joint Center for Political Studies, a Washington, D.C., think tank. "If you have a serious challenger, someone you could imagine winning, it's enough to make you nervous. There are a number of members of the Congressional Black Caucus this year who are running a little scared."

Kilpatrick heads the 43-member Black Caucus and sits on the powerful House Appropriations Committee. A six-term House member, she was first elected in 1996 when she upset incumbent Rep. Barbara-Rose Collins in the Democratic primary. No one -- no Democrat, no Republican -- was brave enough to take her on in 2006.

The question this year is whether constituents who may be unhappy with Kwame Kilpatrick will take it out on his mother by voting for Waters or Scott.

On Sunday, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, who is overseeing the criminal case against the mayor, visited local churches with Waters.

Cheeks Kilpatrick herself has said her son's troubles are affecting her race.

"The affiliation through the family dynamic, as well as the overall level of suburban angst with the Kilpatrick name, then you have a closer than expected campaign," said Eric Foster, a strategist with the Detroit-based Urban Consulting Group. "Obviously, her numbers are showing it's closer than it needs to be."
Disenchanted with the name

Waters, a former state representative, has been the most aggressive in attacking the incumbent. A cable television ad shows the congresswoman firing up a crowd during her son's 2005 re-election campaign with a video clip of her saying: "Don't let nobody talk about y'all's boy."

"Sorry, congresswoman, but we deserve much better than 'y'all's boy,' " Waters' commercial states.

The words "eight felony counts" flash across the screen, along with the police mug shot of Kwame Kilpatrick.

Waters is banking on the messages resonating with 13th District voters, whom she described as "being disenchanted with Kilpatrick right now."

"Character and trust are issues in this election," said Waters, who vowed to bring in more federal dollars for education, help protect the Great Lakes and lobby for a spot on the Energy Committee. "Right now, people are feeling the trust in government is at an all-time low. Will the real Carolyn Kilpatrick stand up? I don't believe that she's being honest with the people."

The fact that she has two challengers, rather than one, may work to the incumbent's advantage.

"Because there are two who are dividing up the anti-incumbent vote, it's hard to believe that the connection with her son is causing that much of a difficulty for her," said pollster Bernie Porn of Lansing-based EPIC/MRA. "If she's in danger, it would mean the connection is really taking a toll. If there was one candidate, it would make her more vulnerable, possibly in serious jeopardy."

Cheeks Kilpatrick has fought back strong by taking advantage of the $710,654 that she's raised through June 30. She still had $481,543 in cash on hand at the end of the month, according to Federal Election Commission documents.

Candidates must file with the FEC if they raise or spend more than $5,000. Waters and Scott had not filed as of Friday. It was unclear if they hadn't met the threshold, or just hadn't filed.
Kilpatrick runs on earmarks

Kilpatrick's campaign touts her work in addressing the mortgage crisis, fighting to end the war in Iraq and creating transportation options. And she claims to have secured $500 million in federal money for Michigan.

Keith Ashdown, an earmarks expert at the Taxpayers for Common Sense, said Cheeks Kilpatrick is near the bottom in securing appropriations for the 2007-08 fiscal year. She requested four earmarks by herself that total $2.6 million and made $13.1 in requests with other lawmakers. Only five lawmakers requested less money by themselves.

"It's not just earmarks," said Kilpatrick campaign consultant Bob Berg. "If (Ashdown) came to Detroit, he'd see she's brought home a lot of dollars to the city and the state."

Berg said Kilpatrick is responsible for $7 million for the Rosa Parks Transit Center being built, for example, as well as money to buy 300 buses for D-DOT and SMART, $7.5 million for a high-tech diabetes management system at Henry Ford Hospital, $1 million for a minority blood back at the Karmanos Cancer Institute and $1 million for a wind energy project for the city of Wyandotte.

Kilpatrick "works well with people, and that has endeared her to a lot of folks, which is why she was elected chair of the (black) caucus," said Ron Walters, an expert on black politics at the University of Maryland, who has worked closely with Kilpatrick as chairman of the academic advisory committee to the CBC Foundation. "She has been strong on criminal justice issues, low-income women and children, and Africa."
A different race with three

Scott -- a state senator, former Highland Park mayor and former Wayne County commissioner with 30 years of public service -- said she's moving beyond the City Hall scandal and focusing on serving the people. She holds town hall meetings and coffee sessions every Monday morning. Her agenda includes attacking high insurance rates and health initiatives. She has been endorsed by a host of her fellow state senators, including Buzz Thomas and Hansen Clarke, both of Detroit, and Hamtramck Mayor Karen Majewski.

"It has nothing to do with her son. You have never heard me say that," Scott said of Cheeks Kilpatrick. "It's about me serving the people. I'm accountable, I'm here and I deal with their needs and concerns."

The three-way Democratic campaign has at least caused some 13th District voters to take a different look at the candidates.

"(Scott and Cheeks Kilpatrick) are two excellent candidates and quite frankly each have their strengths. I haven't made up my mind yet," said Frank Romano, 70, of Grosse Pointe Park.

Grosse Pointe Shores resident Kay Felt said Scott "is always working. She listens and does everything in her power for every part of her constituency. We need Martha's tireless energy. She has the vision and the judgment to be a very good congresswoman."

The Arab American Political Action Committee endorsed Waters.

"We are not complaining about the voting record of Congresswoman Kilpatrick," said the group's president, Osama Siblani.

"Mary Waters has worked with our community. She attends our functions. She deals with us on a daily basis and is near and dear to our hearts."

Still, Mike Fisher is sticking with Kilpatrick.

"It wouldn't be in our interest to start fresh," said Fisher, founder of the Detroit Community Initiative, a nonprofit group that builds low-to moderate-income homes.

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