Some may say they make the perfect couple: “Lock ‘em up” Charlie, the guy who used to pull out handcuffs during the 2005 mayoral race—and Melanie Bates, whose husband was shot to death in front of their home.  As a political dynamic duo, they seem to have everything going for them in creating this alliance.  One is black, the other white.  One is male, the other female.  One has been talking about locking up criminals for years, the other suffered a great loss at the hands of violent crime.  Now, they have a new website designed to make you afraid.  The politics of fear is upon us.

Everything about TheCriminalNextDoor.com is designed to make you afraid.  Just check out some of these pictures from their template:

The site includes a ”Letter to the citizens of Cincinnati,” co-written by both Winburn and Bates.  Bates’ first sentence makes reference to the death of her husband, and then she states statistics:

So far, every time Bates has gone public with her campaign, she talks about her husband.  She did it when she and Winburn unveiled their “likely killers” list.  She has done it here at TheCriminalNextDoor.com.  It is still rather early in the campaign season.  If she keeps at this rate, she will be accused of using her husband’s death for political profiteering, desensitizing her audience to her experience. 

A link at the site allows you to download Winburn’s “crime plan,” which is really just this brochure.  Winburn’s “plan” seems to lack substance when compared to this document recently released to The Cincinnati Beacon.

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