Letter to the Editor: Judge Campbell on Her Own Record, Not Trump’s

To the Editor:

The recent letter from Claudia Schmaus attempting to tie Republican Board of Education candidate Brandy Campbell to the national rhetoric of Donald Trump relies on a classic faulty association fallacy, or guilt by association. Schmaus leaps to the absurd conclusion that because Donald Trump made a generalized campaign speech telling voters to “pretend I’m on the ticket,” we must automatically accept Trump’s platform as Campbell’s personal agenda, completely ignoring what Brandy Campbell herself actually said, stands for and has proposed for our community.

Local school board elections should be decided on local issues and candidate qualifications, not national political theater. The author’s logic implies that local candidates have no independent opinion or personal platforms. To judge Campbell solely by the words of the president, while dismissing the candidate’s own public statements and record, is a profound disservice to the voters. 

Schmaus would have us believe that Campbell is an unvetted newcomer. To the contrary, she ran in the last general election, answered candidate questions in local publications, participated in the public BOE debate where she answered direct and tough questions. Campbell has circulated her reasons for running, and her goals as a board member. She ran again in the last special BOE election and has updated her goals each time. Most of the landing page of the RTC web page is dedicated to her writings and she was interviewed by this very publication. 

We cannot say the same for newcomer Devin Berke. What are his positions on DEI, transgender policies of boys in girls’ sports, critical race theory and revisionist history? What are his positions on the issues raised by Schmaus? Perhaps if you are a Democrat, you get a pass? What we do know is his abysmal attendance record on the Board of Assessment Appeals. He is a weak candidate and now the Dems are running scared and pulling out the specter of Trump. This worked last election, so they are sticking to the game plan.

Brandy Campbell is the current chairman of the Conservation Commission. She has been a valued member and the co-chair. If we apply Schmaus’s warped logic in this arena, Campbell must be paving the way for a coal plant on Hatchett’s Hill, reduced vehicle emissions within the town and the leasing of town open space for oil and mineral exploration. Nothing could be further from the truth.

In the last Board of Selectmen election, the Old Lyme Democrats sent out a mailer proclaiming, “Meanwhile, John Mesham and the Republicans are busy trying to… bring MAGA politics to Old Lyme.” I won’t grace those lies with the full quote, but my record shows I could be considered more moderate than my counterparts with the work we have done. The same DTC also had no problem falsely tying Campbell to Moms for Liberty on social media and now the DTC Chair Kim Thompson is unabashedly trying to tie Campbell to book bans. The lies need to stop. The good people of Old Lyme should wonder if Schmaus, after such a smear of a letter, is fit to serve on the Ethics Commission. The OLDTC apparently enjoy Thompson’s outrageousness. 

Voters deserve a Board of Education member who is tested, proven and willing to engage directly with the public. Brandy Campbell has shown that commitment. Let us judge her on her own merits, her own words and her record of leadership, not on flawed logic, lies and fear mongering. 

Sincerely,
John Mesham
Old Lyme

Editor’s Note: Mesham is a Republican member of the Old Lyme Board of Selectmen.