Tillis hits Hagan for hypocrisy in campaign memo

Newly minted North Carolina Senate nominee Thom Tillis’s (R) campaign is out with a new memo hitting Sen. Kay Hagan (D-N.C.) for hypocrisy, using her own words from her 2008 election against her.

{mosads}The memo points out Hagan attacked then-Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.) for voting with President George W. Bush 92 percent of the time before compiling a record in which they say she’s voted with President Obama 96 percent of the time last year.

“It is time for someone to reach across party lines and finally get something done in this country. Voting 92 percent of time with the president, whether you support him or not, doesn’t work here in North Carolina,” Hagan said in 2008, according to the memo.

Tillis senior adviser Paul Shumaker also knocks Hagan for voting to raise the debt ceiling after blasting Dole for doing the same, for voting for ObamaCare and for voicing support for climate change legislation.

The memo comes two days after Tillis’s big primary win, and Hagan released a memo of her own painting Tillis as divisive and extreme.

Her memo included a 2011 video of Tillis saying the GOP needs to “divide and conquer” those who legitimately need government help from those who don’t, comparing them to Mitt Romney’s “47 percent” comments.

“What we have to do is find a way to divide and conquer the people who are on assistance,” Tillis said then. “We have to show respect for that woman who has cerebral palsy and had no choice, in her condition, that needs help and that we should help. And we need to get those folks to look down at these people who choose to get into a condition that makes them dependent on the government and say, ‘At some point, you’re on your own. We may end up taking care of those babies, but we’re not going to take care of you.’ And we’ve got to start having that serious discussion.”

Hagan returned to those remarks Thursday morning.

“Speaker Tillis’ remarks show how completely out of touch with North Carolina values he truly is. As we say in our state toast, North Carolina is supposed to be a place ‘where the weak grow strong and the strong grow great.’ I still believe in this ideal and work everyday to honor it. It is up to our elected officials to help our state live up to that value, but Thom Tillis’ agenda to ‘divide and conquer’ violates the spirit of our state and his duty as a public servant,” Hagan said in a statement.

Each candidate’s memo heavily emphasizes attacks over reasons to vote for the candidates in what’s already become a nasty, negative and expensive race. Both sides and their allies have been spending millions on negative TV ads in a top-targeted Senate battle. Polls have found a neck-and-neck race.