McCaskill (D-MO) thinks that Jack Conway attack ad on Rand Paul is "very dangerous"

[WI_DEM]

(CNN) - A fellow Democrat warned Kentucky Senate candidate Jack Conway that his latest ad targeting Republican Rand Paul's reported behavior in college is "very dangerous."

Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Missouri, said the Conway ad that repeats an unsubstantiated GQ story about Paul when he was a student at Baylor University comes "close to the line" in what should be deemed inappropriate in political campaigns.

"Candidates who are behind at the end reach, and sometimes they overreach," McCaskill said on MSNBC. "This ad is very dangerous because it reaches back to college. The ad came close to the line."


The spot hit Kentucky airwaves over the weekend and references the story that - relying on anonymous sources - reported Paul blindfolded and tied up a female student, forcing her to take bong hits. The story also reported Paul told the woman his god was "Aqua Buddha" and that she should bow down and worship him.

Responding to the report in August, Paul said he did not remember the event and added, "I really don't think that politicians should be asked to answer anonymous accusers from 27 years ago, but I will categorically deny that I ever kidnapped anyone or forced anybody to use drugs."

But the new spot from Conway says Paul still hasn't adequately addressed the matter:

"Why was Rand Paul a member of a secret society that called the Holy Bible 'a hoax' - that was banned form mocking Christianity and Christ?" asks the narrator in the ad called “Why?” "Why did Rand Paul once tie a woman up? Tell her to bow down before a false idol and say his god was 'Aqua Buddha?"

Paul expressed outrage over the commercial at a Kentucky Senate debate Sunday night, asking Conway, "Have you no decency? Have you no shame?"

"You know how we know when you're lying? Your lips are moving," an angy Paul also said. "You're accusing me of crimes. Do you know nothing about the process? You're going to stand there and accuse me of a crime from 30 years ago from some anonymous source? How ridiculous are you? You embarrass this race."

Paul refused to shake Conway's hand at the end of the debate.

Conway, the state's attorney general, defended the ad during Sunday's debate, saying Paul had still not answered the "fundamental questions" the commercial raises.

But despite McCaskill's unease with the commercial, she said the Tea Party-backed Paul is "out there."


http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/10/18/mccaskil-says-dems-ad-%e2%80%98very-dangerous%e2%80%99/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_politicalticker+%28Blog%3A+Political+Ticker%29

[Hawkeye-X]

1. Yo McCaskill - don't you have an election to focus on than Conways?

Why are you wasting time there?

[Cosmocat]

34. F O R F R U C K S S A K E ...

the Rs left the truth dock a LONG time ago, I mean, they are in on flat out not even trying to be honest, and will attack shiite that is completely made up, and not only not admit it, they will make themselves the victim when called on it ...

Either say Paul is a self entitled, arrogant extremist and anything that brings that to light serves a purpose, or STFU and don't drill a D on the flanks ...

I swear to god, an R could say you should drill holes in your forehead with a dull knife, and the entire party would get in line behind, the Ds ...

[Mass]

2. What did she do in college she wants to hide?

More seriously, I agree with her that the ad is not appropriate, but why did we need her opinion on that. Shouldn't she focus on getting her Senate candidate elected?

[SemperEadem]

3. shut up Clare--you will sell out faster than a St. Louis minute.

[still_one]

4. Frankly, Conway should be attacking paul on the issues, there are sure enough of them /nt

[WI_DEM]

5. I agree--I'm thinking that this ad is kind of a mistake coming so late in the election, too.

[still_one]

11. We agree. In my view it is a distraction from the actually issues that will affect people /nt

[Bitwit1234]

6. SHE was dangerous she voted down that $250 dollars

for seniors while giving herself $3500 raise. I don't live in her state but I won't forget that and I bet a lot of other seniors won't either.

BUT getting to the subject. Calling Obama Nazi, socialist, showing pictures of him as a monkey, dressing Michell and Obama up as pimp and prostitute just to hit the tip of the ice berg is NOT DANGEROUS, but telling the truth about an incident is dangerous. She is the type of Democrat we have to get rid of. It is a shame that she wasn't primaried out of the race.

[xchrom]

8. +1 for stating the obvious. nt

[Mass]

9. +1 .

[butterfly77]

58. +10

[Supersedeas]

66. No, Claire has priorities. Tweety made an issue of this and she will cuddle up to Capt Superficial

[totodeinhere]

7. Good for Sen. McCaskill. This type of dirt should have no place in a political campaign and frankly,

I think it shows Conway's desperation. And it might well backfire and and end up facilitating the election of a tea party senator.

[themaguffin]

62. I agree, he should be aggressive but smarter

[OHdem10]

10. McCaskill has been the biggest disappointment. She has

turned out to be just another clueless.

[jaxx]

12. And then there was the birth certificate.

The pseudo 'values' of the repuke tea partiers is to be questioned on everything.

[Phx_Dem]

13. Yeah, well I think McCaskill's a bit dangerous to the Democratic party.

STFU Clair, and let Jack Conway run his own race. Who asked for your fucking opinion anyway?

[butterfly77]

60. +1

[kentuck]

14. Perhaps Conway should issue a "clarification"...

"My opponent, Rand Paul, says that was only a stunt. He doesn't say it didn't happen and we take his word for it. We apologize if he is not a true Aqua-Buddhist." :-)

[ProSense]

15. Agree with Josh Marshall

Josh Marshall

I'm hearing a lot of whining today on my Teevee from Democrats about Jack Conway's ad hitting Rand Paul. Appalling, wrong, brought it on himself. Oh please.

I'm sure we can all agree that it would have been better for Jack Conway to go ahead and lose his race in dignity and fairmindedness than resort to this accursed awfulness, matching Rand in the dignity of the campaign he's run. Voters resonate with candidates who don't attack their opponents and ignore attacks on themselves because their unwillingness to defend themselves signals steelymindedness and strength.

Via Daily Kos:

Jack Conway debating Rand Paul:

Conway: "as AG of KY, I'm always amused to get a lecture in constitutional law from a self-certified ophthalmologist"

[kentuck]

16. Conway drew blood..

and they know it.

Supposedly, it was a stunt. But it actually happened. It is not untrue.

[golfguru]

21. Are we to be judged from college years 30 years later?

Bush 43 was caught drunk driving.
Obama has written in his book about smoking crack.

Both incidents were from a quarter of a century ago.
Both went on to become Presidents.

I can never run for president if my college past is
dredged up!

[kentuck]

24. The voters decide.

If it's true, they may decide it doesn't matter, just like with Bush's DUI and Obama smoking cocaine. But the people have a right to know.

[golfguru]

65. I agree with you..that people have the right to know

all I am saying is that the news should be backed up
by some evidence. Anonymous sources without evidence
is like throwing shit around to see if something will
stick. Both parties do this and I am sick of it.

[ProSense]

26. The Republicans judged the President based on his writings from elementary school.

College students are adults. This is ad was not a criminal charge, and no amount of handwringing is going to detract from the humor and the overall message.

"I'm not a witch, I'm you."

Get it?

[kentuck]

28. Democrats are not used to playing politics like Republicans....

and you can bet the Repubs would use it if they had it.

[elleng]

33. Yes, they would, and we should when apropos.

Here, I think there was much more Conway could have focused on (in debate, anyway.) HOPE they had 'scientific' reason for doing the ad, like focus group/polling, as repugs do.

[golfguru]

56. How did the witch get into this?

I thought the topic was McCaskill talking about Conway and Paul.

[bemildred]

49. Seems to happen a lot, whatever one might think about it. nt

[fugop]

17. In 3-2-1 ...

Cue the Democrats attacking their own. Way to go, Claire.

Leaving out whether the ad was in good taste or not, I'm so sick of Democrats turning on each other so they can get media time. I was amazed every day at the lies and crap flung at Obama during the election (and since), yet no GOPer would stand up against it. But Democrats just love to go on tv and in print screeching about how some Democrat did something mean to an opponent. It just sickens me.

[tularetom]

18. How could he NOT use "Aqua Buddha" in a campaign ad?

If the shoe was on the other foot, every Reverend Billy Bob in the state would be railing about the idol worshiping Democrat and what a threat he was to our "Judeo Christian values".

Pundits from every right wing think tank in the country would whine incessantly about "character issues" and how this type of incident showed a "lack of character".

[golfguru]

19. This juvenile attack reminds me of my 2nd grade fights in

the school backyard during recess. For crying out loud,
attack Paul on his stance on marriage, healthcare, taxes
on the wealthy, defense and other issues.

Bringing up anonymous charges from 30 years ago when Paul
was in college is why politics is in the gutter.

[Hello_Kitty]

54. Right. Because the charge ONLY involved tying up and kidnapping a woman.

Nope. Not a big deal at all and bringing it up is gutter politics. :eyes:

[golfguru]

55. A very big deal if there is evidence

Anonymous tips from unidentified source is irrelevant
in every courtroom.

[Hello_Kitty]

59. This isn't a courtroom. eom

[golfguru]

63. I have seen you sell crack on the streets

and snatching an old woman's purse.
This is not court room, so it must be Ok for me
to throw out any wild charges at you. I am remaining
anonymous and I have no evidence.

Puleez,,,,I am sure you did'nt do any of those, but
just trying to make a point.

[PVnRT]

67. Except that isn't the focus of all this

Frankly, that's the more disturbing part - kidnapping, attempted drugging, etc. Yet everyone is focusing on the religious angle, and the ad basically says that anyone not a Christian shouldn't be elected.

[Teaser]

20. I would worship Aqua Buddha

.

[bemildred]

22. A knife has to be sharp to be useful. nt

[kentuck]

23. Isn't GQ a credible magazine?

This was reported by GQ. Does anyone think the Repubs would not use it if the shoe was on the other foot. Politics ain't beanbag. I would like to hear a better explanation from Rand Paul...

[cherokeeprogressive]

46. Anonymous accusations never carry any weight with me, no matter who they might be

leveled at.

So IMHO, GQ isn't credible in this instance. Name the accuser and I'll sing a different tune.

[elleng]

25. I tend to agree, and Conway spent too much time on this in 'debate.'

Kind of disappointed me.

BUT, McCaskill should NOT have raised this, and should have avoided it if asked. ENOUGH Dems eating our own!

Unfortunately, story tells us nothing about context wherein McC said this.

"Candidates who are behind at the end reach, and sometimes they overreach," McCaskill said on MSNBC. "This ad is very dangerous because it reaches back to college. The ad came close to the line."

[kentuck]

27. She has Lieberrosis sometimes...

Her self-righteousness is just a little much.

[elleng]

29. So we've gone from challenging rand for his b.s.

to castigating Conway AND McC! PERFECT (if we're repugs.)

(Don't mean to dump on you, kentuck, but noting the way things are.)

[Inuca]

32. If she was on MSNBC

I assume (did not see it) that she was asked about it. Was she? I had a glimspe at the ad this morning and it made me cringe. I think that Rand Paul is beyond horrible, and the thought of him in the Senate makes me sick. I would not mind his dad too much... but baby Paul seems much nastier and way less smart.

[ChiciB1]

36. Oh, He's Smart... SLIMY SMART! And For A Little Guy He Knows Just

how to fight in the ring. Lies or not, he is selling himself and actually looked like "the fighting back" in the debate made him look a bit stronger. Call him all the names you want, and he may be a real anaconda who hides behind many, many lies... still he seems to know how to PUSH BACK!

Airing the ad might not have been so bad, but it was HOW Paul reacted and how Conway might NOT have reacted to Paul's attack!

For heavens sake, Obama has been hit over the head about being a Muslim for way, way too long, but Paul gets one hit on his religion and he takes Conway on with a comment like "How Dare You?" If Obama had done THAT from the get-go, perhaps he wouldn't still be wrestling with people calling him something other than Christian.

When Paul said "how dare you" Conway should have replied with something like I DIDN'T create your past, you did. Something like that, but perhaps could have been said better than I just did.

I THINK this is where the problem is.

[Parker CA]

30. So is she denouncing the attack ads on O'Donnell for claiming to be a witch years ago? nt

[Aramchek]

31. put a sock in it, Claire

[ChiciB1]

35. I Only Saw The Ad Today, But What I Also Saw Was How Paul Put It

back on Conway! While the ad may be true and it SHOULD show what a creep Paul is, when Paul returned fire I DO think he was effective. And this coming from a person who thinks Paul is out of his mind!

Of course, I didn't see the debate and I didn't see any come back from Conway so I don't know what happened after the exchange. Had I been Conway I would have simply asked "are YOU ashamed of your past, and how has it changed since that time?" The ad was offensive, but I've seen TONS of offense ads from the other side. I'm just wondering how Conway handled it and what he will do from today forward.

Backing down isn't something he should do, but he could say that these are facts and he felt they needed to be aired. Still, at the moment that Paul basically chastised Conway, it kind of made Paul look like he had the ball in his court.

Does anyone KNOW what Conway's reply was?? The Democrats I'm seeing today don't seem to fight back or stand their ground much so I'm wondering.

[BootinUp]

41. He replied by re-iterating the questions from the ad. lol. nt

[ChiciB1]

50. WHOOPS! Don't Want to Be Waving A White Flag Or Anything... BUT

as I said in another reply here, Democrats of today are kind of meek! Which brings me to ANOTHER problem I have. I live in Florida and running for Senate is a man named MEEK. I have received almost NO information from Meek, and I see no signs on the road for him either.

I've just about accepted that I will once again be living under the THUMB of yet ANOTHER Bushie, named RUBIO! All the ads here are from Rubio or Crist. I saw ONE from Meek, JUST ONE! I don't understand it, he says he wants to win (Meek) but people on THIS side of the state don't really KNOW him. And as I've said many, many times before, so many Democrats or Independents who lean to the middle left are voting for Crist.

Argue with me if you want, it WON'T change the facts. Too many have ALREADY voted for Crist. So, since neither of the bottom two dropped out, all we hear is that RUBIO has it locked up!

Just typing this makes me want to :puke: :puke: :puke" AND :nuke: :grr:

[BootinUp]

51. My post was intended to answer your question

I have no interest really in debating its effectiveness or arguing about it.

On the Florida race: I assume Meek has to spend what little money he has where he thinks it will do the most good.

[Vinca]

37. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Democrats stepping on toesies.

To borrow from Angle-nut, "man up" Claire.

[PVnRT]

38. I don't like the ad, either

It basically says that if you're not Christian, you can't hold public office. Then again, there are plenty here at DU who agree with that sentiment, whether or not they voice it publicly.

[BlueIdaho]

39. By any means necessary.

Bullshit artists like Paul need to be defeated by any means necessary.

Period.

[totodeinhere]

43. No. If we resort to the same type of sleazy tactics that the other side uses,

we are no better than them. So if this is the case, what's the point? One reason why I am a progressive is because we stand for what is right, and we don't get down in the dirt like the pukes do.

And after all, if you are going you take "any means necessary" to it's logical conclusion, then we could turn this country into a police state or do anything else in order to accomplish our goals. Is that really what you want?

[BlueIdaho]

52. Police state no - Citizens filling the streets yes.

In France three million people filled the streets to protest raising the retirement age from 60 to 62 - twice. Now that's a vibrant Democracy.

If you're not part of the solution, you are part of the problem.

[Joanne98]

40. She was on Fox yesterday saying" I'm willing to work with the Republicans"

WE REALLY HAVE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE DINOS!

[zulchzulu]

44. Unfortunately, in governance, it's not Jackass 2

Democrats HAVE to work with Republicans in legislative processes. There aren't enough votes to do otherwise.

As for McCaskill saying she's be willing to work with Republicans, that's also what moderates want to hear. If you don't appeal to moderates in some fashion, the political reality is that you lose. Badly.

[BrklynLiberal]

48. Certainly not a comment that would get ME to vote for her..but I do not live in MO.

[zulchzulu]

42. She also said Rand Paul's reaction shows he's too thin-skinned to be Senator

I thought the ad was a cheap shot and IS dangerous in terms of using the character assassination and accusatory techniques that lower the bar for elections.

McCaskill did also say Rand Paul essentially is an unbalanced nutjob with her statement. Hopefully Conway's ad doesn't backfire.

[ProSense]

45. Kos: "Jonathan Chait has the vapors"

Kos

Jonathan Chait has the vapors:

The ugliest, most illiberal political ad of the year may be this one, from Kentucky Democrat Jack Conway.

No, he's not talking about the millions of ads by GOP candidates and Rove's outfit, or even reprehensible ads from Democrats like this one from WV's Joe Manchin. He's talking about this ad from Jack Conway mocking Rand Paul's Aqua Buddha:

I can see why Chait and other progressives might be a bit upset, as the ad attacks Rand Paul for his irreligious beliefs.

Personally, I see nothing wrong with it. Voters are less concerned with issues than values when casting their ballots, and for many voters, religion speaks to the candidate's values. I may not like it, but it's a democracy, and the notion that the source of a candidate's values are off-limits is patently absurd.

Sure, that means that as an atheist I would never get elected in Mississippi or Alabama or Kentucky, but so what? No one has a right to electoral office, and in a democracy, you have to sell yourself to the voters. In many places, religion is part of the package.

But this "controversy" is particularly stupid for one big reason -- Conway didn't inject religion into this race, Rand Paul did:

I'm a Christian. We go to the Presbyterian Church. My wife’s a Deacon there and we’ve gone there ever since we came to town. I see that Christianity and values is the basis of our society. . . . 98% of us won’t murder people, won’t steal, won’t break the law and it helps a society to have that religious underpinning. You still need to have the laws but I think it helps to have a people who believe in law and order and who have a moral compass or a moral basis for their day to day life.

If you're going to start the "holier-than-thou" bullshit, then you absolutely make religion a valid issue in the campaign. Remember, it was Rand Paul that tried to gin up the outrage machine when Conway said the word "hell" during his Fancy Farm picnic earlier this year. To criticize Conway for pushing back aggressively is not only wrong-headed, it's also self-defeating.

<...>

[BrklynLiberal]

47. The D from MO is commenting on the D campaign in KY...why??????????????

There aren't enough repuke lies and dirty tricks to keep her busy commenting?

[GreenArrow]

53. Well, the states do share a border

if that means anything.

[Telly Savalas]

57. The article says she was on MSNBC. She was probably asked about it.

[marlakay]

61. i am sick of spineless dems!

i don't care if it is election time, i am sick to death of no spine!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ibegurpard]

64. More handwringing about hard-hitting Democratic ads

perhaps those easily offended should just tune out the media.

[Inuca]

68. It's not hard hitting

It's stupid and rather vile. What would you say if the situation was reversed, i.e., a similar ad begrudging and amplifying something stupid that a D candidate did in college? We would all be shouting at the top of our lungs decrying the incredible R vileness and saying "how low can hey go?"