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Election-year slander politics in the Marianas
For the sake of Rep. Edwin Propst, his family, and the thousands of voters who have supported him since his first election, let me cast a little historical background on election-year slander politics in the Marianas.
When Carl T.C. Gutierrez returned from a tour in the U.S. Air Force in 1969, Joe T. San Agustin, then-director of Administration for the Government of Guam, recognized his talent and convinced him to join the Democratic Party of Guam and run for senator. He did and won on his first try.
The patron leadership of the Republican Party then recognized the talent of this young, aggressive, grass-roots Chamorro, and began a slander campaign against him. They claimed Carl was a drug dealer, using his friends from Micronesia, who were also rising stars in their own political realms. Of course, the media reported the accusation. Not only was Carl re-elected, so were all his Micronesian associates.
Every election after that, the same Republicans made false accusations against Gutierrez to block his political rise, and the media duly reported them. He was not only re-elected; he was chosen Speaker of the Guam Legislature by a 14-7 Democratic Party majority—on the first ballot.
The accusations against Carl increased when he became a gubernatorial contender. In the end, he became the first grass-roots Chamorro governor of Guam; he became the first and only honorary citizen of Palau; and he was re-elected governor of Guam, receiving the distinction of being a consecutive two-term governor.
Ed Propst has become a thorn in the side of this Republican administration, which earned him the distinction of becoming the target of a slanderous attack less than two months before the general election. He, Daisy, and the kids need to understand that this unsubstantiated attack is nothing more than “loser’s tactics.” Ignore it, and go on with your lives.
Ed has done great work in the Legislature, and has much more to do. I would not be surprised to see him be the top vote-getter in the legislative election this year.
Keep up the good work, Ed. You are not a “Gutierrez” yet, but you might be!
Don A. Farrell
Marpo Heights, Tinian
