Cross-posted from Chattarati.

Jean Howard-Hill, a former political science professor at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, said that a move by Chuck Fleischmann to get candidates to help him close ranks against major rival Robin Smith is “bad politics,” even though she doesn’t hold it against Fleischmann himself.

Here is the campaign’s press release:

“Just when you think Third Congressional District Republican politics is bad and is going in the wrong direction, then it gets worse,” says Third District congressional candidate Jean Howard-Hill.

According to her, she along with the other Republican candidates, have been asked by Chuck Fleischmann to drop out of the race and to endorse him.

“Granted,” she said “there may be those as Fleischmann suggests who may not want to see Robin Smith elected, but nevertheless, this is not how the political process should play out in real time. It wreaks of politics as usual, which should trouble and concern every voter within the Third District.”

“As a political science educator, we try to teach government in such a way that citizens understand the importance of the role they play in elections and in holding those elected responsible for how they govern. It is the people who determines who is most qualified. But what I am seeing is a bad model, which produces bad politics because it fails to take a look at the qualifications of all of the candidates, and then to leave the decision up to voters.”

Dr. Howard-Hill says that this grandeur positioning of both candidates who have been made to be forerunners, has been taken serious to the point that even now the two of them believe it and are using it to cause qualified candidates to perhaps consider dropping out of the race.

“When will the focus be on qualifications and issues, rather than money, political backing and polls.”

She also says that polls taken which do not reach the grassroots voters should not be taken serious and that depending upon who does the polling, it can be biased in one direction.

“Voters should ask themselves, how many of us have been actually polled?”

“The only poll that is legitimate,” she contends “is the one on election day, which is not until August 5, 2010.”

She says she has no beef with Fleischmann, but to his request, her response is, “I don’t think so! Because this goes against everything I teach and believe — which is the people should be the ones to decide who is most qualified, and not some within the media, the dubbed forerunners or anyone else!”

UPDATE: added “former” in front of “political science professor” in the blockquote.