Ohio GOP Trots Out Willie Horton
After being tipped off to its existance, I watched for the latest Ohio GOP attack ad on a local State Representative who is a client of mine. He's Dan Dodd and he's running for the second time in the 91st district. He pulled 47.36% against right wing nutcase Ron Hood in 2004.
Hood ran for and lost in the 31st state senate primary this year so the seat is open and is ripe for a change.
Dan Dodd was endorsed in 2004 by the Newark Advocate and won their endorsement again this year. The Advocate is no liberal rag.
So with all of this against him, what does Bill Hayes do against Dan Dodd? He trots out Willie Horton.
The 15 second ad opens with two pictures. On the left half is a very close in picture of a black man. You can see only his neck on up. He's bald and is looking down at the camera. Probably it's a mug shot, but I do not know.
On the right half, is a full sized, rather unflattering picture of Dan Dodd. It starts off rather small and is slowly made larger as the ad continues:
Man's stern voice:
"Dan Dodd does not want this man to be executed. He kidnapped, raped and murdered a 14 year old girl."
Superimposed over the convict's face are these words which are spoken by the stern man:
"Dodd's liberal plan would spare his life."
The image switches to an order man, smiling as he talkes to a similarly aged couple, white of course. The voice over switches to a woman's soft voice:
"We need Bill Hayes. He'll protect our families. Bill Hayes for State Representative."
And that's the end of it.
The Ohio House Republican Campaign Committee is the one who has paid for the ad, but Bill Hayes is responsible and has to be made to pay for this attack.
And the substance of the ad? I'll quote from Dan's website:
The topic of abortion and personal health choices is one of the most personal and divisive issues in politics. I am 100% pro-life and my religious faith leads me to not support abortion. However, I think many people who call themselves pro-life have a woeful record when it comes to improving the quality and culture of life for children.
I believe in what is called "a consistent ethic of life." This means that while I do not support abortion, I also do not support eliminating programs for pre-natal care or instruction for new parents. I also believe in the sanctity of all human lives, not just those at the beginning of life.
What Dan refers to as a "consistent ethic of life" also means that he is against the death penalty.
Most "pro-life" politicians are pro-life up to and including the moment of birth and then they long for death. Death to criminals as well as sending our parents, siblings and children off to die in a war based on a lie.
I'm sure this Bill Hayes is "pro-life" and I'm sure he'd salivate to pull the lever, or plunge the needle, or however Ohio administers the death penalty these days.
Read the quote again and tell me that Dan Dodd is a raging liberal.
We must help Dan win this seat. Please visit his website and do whatever you can to help. We cannot let the GOP retain this seat based on this racist attack.
