Oil spill surfaces in political campaign

Meanwhile, Friends of the Earth(FoE) released a television ad that replays Sarah Palin and Michael Steele’s calls to “Drill, baby, drill,” interspersed with scenes of environmental damage caused by oil spills.

“The oil catastrophe in the Gulf should serve as a wake-up call,” FoE President Erich Pica said in a statement.

Nick Berning, a spokesman for FoE, said the ads were being run on cable news channels. He declined to say how long the campaign would run or how much it would cost.

The League of Conservation Voters had already named Lincoln to its “dirty dozen” list for what it sees as a poor voting record on environmental issues. The group is supporting Lincoln’s primary opponent, Bill Halter.

According to the group, Lincoln has received $12,000 from BP’s PAC since the 2001-02 election cycle.