CityHallNews.com

Anytime, anywhere that people oppose a candidate for any reason, they seem to lob one dependable slur around: “opportunist.”

Dismissed is everything about the controversial candidate’s positions on the issues, everything about his or her biography. The only relevant fact, we are supposed to believe from these chest-thumping speeches, is that the man or woman in question is in the race because he or she might be able to win it, and would not mind doing just that.

This year, the target of these attacks is City Council Member David Yassky, who is one of four candidates in the Democratic primary for the 11th Congressional district seat.

Those attacking Yassky for opportunism never level the same charges at any of his three opponents, all of whom similarly sensed an opportunity with the impending retirement of Rep. Major Owens (D) and all of whom want to hold that House seat.

And it is not hard to see why. The word is cheap cover for their true meaning: Yassky is white, they fear he might win on account of the three remaining black candidates splintering the black vote and they want a black candidate to win the race. Sure, the cynical base ethnic and racial politics this logic assumes is almost certainly sound, and must have factored into Yassky’s thinking at some point.

But if those who spout the “opportunist” line followed through, they would encourage two of the three opportunistic black candidates—City Council Member Yvette Clarke, State Sen. Carl Andrews and Chris Owens—to follow Assembly Member Nick Perry’s lead and drop out of the race, as they are calling on Yassky to do. All the candidates are eager to be elected to Congress, at least as much as they are eager to make a difference on affordable housing, economic development, tax rates, homeland security and other national issues.

Michael Bloomberg switched from the Democratic Party to the GOP for his 2001 mayoral bid because he was opportunistic and did not want a crowded Democratic primary field to get in his way. Howard Dean ran for president and then national Democratic chairman because he was opportunistic and wanted to stay in the game after his terms as Vermont governor were done.

And those are just two notable recent examples.

Eliot Spitzer, Tom Suozzi and John Faso are running for governor, Scott Vanderhoef and David Paterson are running for lieutenant governor, Mark Green, Andrew Cuomo, Charlie King, Sean Maloney and Jeanine Pirro for attorney general, and Alan Hevesi and Christopher Callaghan for comptroller all because they are opportunistic. They see political opportunities and they are looking to take them, committed as each may be to sets of issues or causes. No one running or elected currently, or in the history of any democracy, has done so entirely selflessly.

Slinging the “opportunist” label at Yassky or others is a waste of time and a distraction. Those guilty of it—especially those among them who have ever sought election to anything themselves—should be ashamed for recycling this cheap political trick.