Campaign tricks work both ways

We know Democrats aren’t talking about their agenda, but we hear them talking
an awful lot about those “shadowy” Republican groups spending
secretly donated money on “issue” ads that have expanded the playing
field and left Democrats scrambling to defend nearly 100 seats.

What Democrats aren’t telling you is that some of them are backing
third-party candidates they hope will be spoilers for the GOP challengers running
against them, according to The New York
Times.

Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) who has made quite a name for himself as a showman,
to put it politely, is reportedly one of those Democrats. Doug Guetzloe — a
local activist, GOP operative and radio host with connections with Grayson — is
accused of helping to launch a Tea Party candidacy that local
Tea Party activists knew nothing about. “The grassroots Tea
Party activists and state Republicans have homed in on a number of connections
between Mr. Grayson and Mr. Guetzloe that have become fodder in the
local news media,” states the Times story, which notes that Guetzloe’s son
worked as an intern in Grayson’s office and Guetzloe sits on two
business advisory boards established by Grayson. Separately, Guetzloe was
sentenced last week to 60 days in prison for a misdemeanor campaign
violation from four years ago, which he will begin after the
election.
 
Grayson, famous for taking to the House floor to accuse Republicans of having a
healthcare policy of wanting patients to “die quickly,”
is running behind his opponent, Republican Daniel Webster, in the
polls. He set himself back in September when he ran an ad against Webster
calling him “Taliban Dan” and comparing Webster’s positions
on women’s issues to the Taliban. FactCheck.org determined that the ad,
which manipulates edited video, distorted Webster’s statements.
 
That didn’t stop Grayson from criticizing all the outside money Republican
groups are spending on him, stating on MSNBC’s “The Ed Show” that
Democrats like Reps. Carol Shea-Porter (N.H.) and Tom Perriello (Va.) and
himself are being targeted because they have a conscience. “And they destroy us
with these negative ads, these blistering, evil, negative ads. In front of my —
in front of my children, on my TV set, they called me a liar, they called me a
loudmouth. They said I’m a national embarrassment. And this is their idea of a
constructive dialogue.”
 
If backing a third-party candidate, or calling his opponent a religious fanatic,
is Grayson’s idea of a constructive dialogue, he will likely be out of a job
next week.
 

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