New Haven Independent

posted by: Cedarhillresident on August 5, 2010  8:50am

Personally I think that the Garcia campaign did the right thing here. It is not really a scary negative ad like many are doing, it appears to be more of a fact ad. I think that his campaign has been one of the more classy ones out there. And because the is a Governor year the secretary of state position is mostly an unknown one and that makes it a hard one to campaign for.

Not negative just facts…and as a voter I want the facts!

posted by: CT Voter on August 5, 2010  9:09am

Grainy video clips taken out of context, using copyrighted material without permission, not giving CT Bob credit for using his tape, flashing selected words in a 30 second ad. 

Come on Jason, call it what it is, a classic unsubstantiated attack ad on a woman who has refused to get in the mud with you and your campaign.  When she wins on Tuesday, I hope it sends a message, to other candidates and they stand with Denise and bring civility back to our elections.

Thanks Denise for staying above the mud!

posted by: robn on August 5, 2010  9:12am

One thing is for sure…the Grateful dead-esque logo on the latest mailer lost him the punkrocker vote.

posted by: Lozinger on August 5, 2010  11:00am

CT Voter, do you think that if I attended Obama’s inauguration and video taped it, then posted that video on YouTube, I would own a copyright on that video footage.  I recommend you spruce up on your copyright law.  See the public interest exception and also the requirement that you create something unique.

posted by: Cam Staples on August 5, 2010  11:49am

I disagree, Jason. This does not present the facts. This ad claims that Denise “created the mess,” referring to the $3.5 Billion deficit. This mess was “created” by vanishing state revenues, which has happened in every state in the country, due to the recession we are in. While not perfect, the state budget was a compromise between a Republican Governor and Democratic legislature.

The bottom line is that no matter what you think of the imperfect budget, blaming Denise for creating the deficit is simply false. There is no more admirable public official that I have ever witnessed or served with than Denise. I’ve been in the budget negotiations and watched her consistently fight for programs and funding that are vital for our community. I think it’s sad that you and Gerry would stoop to this level in the last few days of the campaign, when her ability to respond is limited. Her intention to continue rising above your negative ads shows the character that she displays every day in Hartford.

Cam Staples

posted by: mjoseff on August 5, 2010  12:10pm

It’s actually sticking with the issues; there’s no personal attack or distortion of facts.  Is pointing out a relevant truth “negative”?

posted by: abg on August 5, 2010  12:24pm

The Independent’s coverage of this race has left a great deal to be desired. I recall one article by Christine Stuart, reposted by the Independent, about a forum held at the Hartford Public Library many weeks ago in which there was some discussion of actual issues.  The last few pieces have been about Garcia’s fundraising, Garcia opening an office on Orange St., and now a couple of pieces about the positive or negative tone of the advertising of the candidates. This is a lot like the horse-race fluff we get from cable news election coverage. Process is important and deserves to be covered - but it needs to be part of a larger picture.  Where is the discussion of issues?

posted by: Tessa Marquis on August 5, 2010  4:08pm

Bandwagon time: Mary Glassman sent out a negative mailer on Nancy Wyman. I received it on the same day as Garcia’s bad trip card, and another piece of junk from Jarjura!

The good spot is this video of people who support Kevin Lembo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5ScszCgAZM&feature=player_embedded

posted by: pavlov dog on August 5, 2010  8:39pm

Cam is right about the major objection here. Blaming Denise for “creating this message” is pure Republican spin. Are we blaming all the Democrats? What about Jason Bartlett? Is it his fault too?

Here is a real fact for Jason: Denise Merrill is the only statewide candidate in this election season not to go negative. And here’s an opinion: given that the role of the Secretary of the State is to encourage voting, and negative advertising is designed to suppress it, I’d say that’s a pretty good reason to vote for her.

posted by: justinh on August 6, 2010  10:37am

Merrill’s been ahead the entire race, so there’s been no motivation to go negative.  She may not have anyway, but “going negative” is simply part of the game of politics.  In short, I’d hesitate to attribute Merrill’s positive campaign to some virtue that transcends politics.

posted by: justinh on August 6, 2010  10:43am

Hey Tessa,

We can add to your list the negative mailers I’ve suddenly been getting indundated with from the Malloy campaign.  Lots of junk mail during primary season!

posted by: wmrourke on August 6, 2010  12:29pm

You could say Merrill went negative when she and her supporters spread “rumors” far and wide that Garcia’s campaign fundraising was tainted.