Preying “upon children," bringing "ruin," "out of touch with the community (because) … he's a parent."

Such was the screeching heard from candidates Jose Guzman and Laura Manriquez in one Democratic primary in Milwaukee, a smearing of Wisconsin’s sole Latino member of the state legislature, Pedro Colón (D-Milwaukee), representing the Eighth Assembly District.

The campaigns were one part trash bash and one part outlandish political theater with the satisfying conclusion that Guzman and Manriquez will go the way of Tom Reynolds and Clean Sweep Wisconsin.

I mean the levels of deceit employed would make Karl Rove blush.

Following Guzman and Manriquez in the primary, I expected them to accuse Colón of concocting the Ebola virus and being the manifestation of Satan alive and not well in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

But in the end, the Manriquez (Robert Miranda), Guzman (Tom Reynolds) smear show was panned by Milwaukee voters as Colón won by a two-to-one margin.

Colón's simple message of community and fairness to Wisconsin families prevailed. And Colón picked up the endorsements of the LGBT community, women's groups, labor and Voces de la Frontera, the superb civil and economic rights organization.

Neighbors beat negativism.

Common sense beat smear and slime.

Let's hope for these results in the national analogue to the Milwaukee race in the presidential campaign, in which John McCain and an in-the-dark Sarah Palin play the con game like that which played out on Milwaukee's south side.