The Nevada Republican Party's Smears And Fears

On the lower left-hand corner of the Nevada Republican Party's slick four-page fold-over mailer sits a blurry picture of a mustachioed curly-haired white kid with the name AYERS superimposed on it. From the upper right-hand corner stares a somber Barack Obama, half his face menacingly darkened by a purposefully added shadow. In a white insert box strategically occupying the gray space between the two photos is the following quotation, "I don't regret setting bombs. I feel we didn't do enough." Credit for the quotation is not given to anyone, clearly leaving the implication that the incendiary words are attributable to either or both of the men.

Unfolding the mailer, the reader is confronted with a written sound bite about the radical terrorist friend of Obama. The litany starts with a false but cunning assertion -- that the activities of Bill Ayers occurred "three decades ago." You are supposed to do the math and figure out that three decades equal thirty years. Thirty years ago would have made Barack Obama eighteen-years-old, instead of the eight-year-old he was, when Ayers was operating. This blatant lie would make the gullible believe that at eighteen Senator Obama was running with terrorists.

Inside, brief simplistic summaries of Ayers' activities four decades ago are juxtaposed against pictures of an ancient FBI wanted poster, a burning urban brownstone, and a group of kids from the sixties, in the middle of whom is a young black man holding up a placard supporting the Weathermen. On the last page, there is another synopsis of Weathermen history, Ayers' mug shot, and the same menacing photograph of Senator Obama found on the front page.

Undoubtedly, the mailer is meant to trigger fear. But fear of what? Late sixties anti-war protesters? Hippies? Young people in general? Or shadowy, menacing black men?

The Republicans count on us to fear the other, people who don't meet the criteria required to be real Americans. Instead of winning the hearts and minds of Americans on the merits of their policy proposals, the Nevada Republican Party, like McCain/Palin, has plunged to the bottom of a cesspool and come up smelling like -- well you get the picture.

General Colin Powell, former Secretary of State, had it right when he lambasted the McCain/Palin campaign and the GOP for their obvious unwillingness to discuss real issues affecting all Americans and for their bottom-dredging tactics. General Powell described Senator Obama favorably, saying he was steady, intelligent, and most importantly, transformational.

Senator Obama has indeed been transformational during this campaign. Once he is president, he will have many problems facing him, not the least of which will be the task of healing the deep wounds caused by the slash-and-stab tactics epitomized by the Nevada Republican Party's mailer and the McCain/Palin campaign. One thing is clear, however, he will not govern through fear and distortion.

You can look at the mailer over at Obama's "Under the Radar" feature.

Comments

[jpaese]

I just moved to Sparks this summer, from Wisconsin. I have been shocked at the amount of negativity in McCain's ads compared to Obama's ads, which seem more focused on unity and personal responsibility. I have voted for both R and D presidents, and I have never voted straight-ticket. I strive to vote for the person who I believe will do the best job for the people they represent, not my own personal agenda.

One thing that impressed me was the effort of the Registrar of Voters to make sure I was able to vote this year. I got my driver's license before we had a permanent residency here, so I had to make an address change. They were extremely helpful and I voted early. I'm impressed with Nevada's early voting and the machines they use.

[lvdragonlady]

The biggest FEAR of all are the LIES, RACISM, FEARMONGERING that the re pub li cans have turned to in this campaign. Those ' wh ite' people are truely some scary people.

Nevada for Obama
I have voted and it was not for the 'wh ite' guy.

[drew044]

One can only hope that we all choose not to succumb to the politics of fear. Duty, honor and country should mean more than meanspirited attacks meant to divide and conquer. Shame on Sen. McCain for casting his lot with those he once, back when he really was kind of maverick, would castigate.

[Petey131]

I live in Las Vegas and received these mailings. I did not read them and just threw them away. Of course I am an Obama supporter since day one. They can keep wasting their money. The Republican party has nothing to run on. Never did, never has.

[rosal]

Mr. De la Cruz is right: Here in Nevada the Repbs are sending the inflammatory mailers right and left. My neighbor, a long time Republican, callled me to tell me how outraged she is with those mailers, "It makes you sick" were her exact words. She just voted for Obama. I hope this is the reaction of every true patriot, and every decent person.

[lynn49]

Mr. De la Cruz and Rosal are both right. As a long-term Nevadan, I can say that the Republican Party has hit new lows here--and not just with the McCain/Palin campaign. In addition to the hit piece mentioned in this article, we have received incendiary robo-calls, and the races for 2 Congressional seats are just as bad.

Dean Heller has so grossly distorted his Democratic opponent's record that he has been called out by the local media. He has not aired one ad that shows his record, but relies on attacks on Jill Derby and (gasp) Nancy Pelosi. The politics of division are alive and well here, and have gotten worse since the Democrats gained a majority of registered voters.

I for one plan to spend all election day driving voters to the polls to begin to put an end to this nonsense.

[oldgeek1]

We had almost 7 years of Republican control of over Government, we are worse for it.

It is sad to see a party that has nothing positive to show and nothing but negative to say.

Senator Mc Cain has shown that he cannot recognize and select talent from running a campaign to his Vice Presidential running mate. The country needs strong leadership, thoughtful decisions and proper stewardship, those qualities have not come from the Republican Party. Senator Mc Cain needs to return to the Senate where he has shown he can work with others. Sarah Palin should go home and her fate is in the hands of the State of Alaska. Anyone who claims that she is knowledgeable enough to deal with the issues of the United States should have learned from 2 terms of George Bush.

Hopefully the House and Senate have learned that lesson of basic economics and problems wild spending and trusting industries to regulate themselves.

Not that anyone is talking about this, but we need to withdraw from Iraq and let that country sort itself out. Too many lives and too much money has been spent in the so called war on terror or the search for WMD or whatever excuse some have offered.

Barney Franks call to cut Defense 25% is not irresponsible, the Defense budget more than doubled since President Bush came in office and that EXCLUDES the money being spent on the Global War on terror (code word for Iraq and Afganiistan).

[SilviaMaria]

This is the last thing that the Republicans have left: FEAR. Fear everything, including your own mother. Very sad. I just HOPE that the real Republicans out there are looking at this and thinking what has happened to his Party. The Republican Party needs a real CHANGE.

[DoTheMath]

Since it is now statistically likely that Obama will soon become president of this country, these fear/smear attacks raise the threat of violence, not only against a rival candidate, but potentially against the President of the United States of America. Free speech is one thing, but the mailer described here is misleading enough to at least border on libel and incendiary enough to be compared with shouting "fire" in a crowded theater.

Senator McCain, have you no honor?

[AmericasMostGangsta]

he'll tell you he is PROUD of that mailer!

[Just Joe]

Sorry, I don't agree with those kind of tactics. Bombing and violence is not a valid form of protest to me.
And it doesn't work, you only alienate people who otherwise might support your cause, and harm innocent people in the process.
Nope, never.
I think those people were misguided. If they killed anyone then they simply are criminals.
Now, having said all that, the attempt to paint Obama as a guy who pals around with terrorist is simply a fear mongering tactic of the increasingly dirty and desperate McCain campaign that isn't fooling anyone.

[Loki11467]

Im proud of Ayers. Our government was oppressing our kids, beating up hippies, and using fear mongering to promote a war just as wrong and unjust as iraq. I would love to meet such a patriot.