Hutchinson attack ad using kids riles Beebe
Posted on Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Democrat Mike Beebe on Monday called a new television ad by his opponent, Republican Asa Hutchinson, “despicable” because it “uses children in a mudslinging way.”
Hutchinson countered that the ad is “lighthearted” and that “everyone who sees it will enjoy it.”
The dispute over the ad highlighted a busy day in the governor’s race — Beebe planned stops in seven cities, Hutchinson in four — with each side throwing punches the other’s way on multiple issues. The election is two weeks away.
The Hutchinson ad features about a dozen children. It starts with one saying, “When I grow up...” Then another says, “I want to be a politician.” Then, one after another, the children mention a negative political attribute, including, “backslapper” and “flip-flopper.” Others say, “raise taxes whenever I want” and “tell voters what they want to hear” and other things.
It concludes with a girl saying, “Just like Mike Beebe.” Another child says again, “Just like Mike Beebe” and then another laughs.
Beebe said Hutchinson should withdraw the ad.
“It’s shameful to use kids and hide behind kids,” Beebe said. “If he’s got something to say, he needs to say it.”
He said a woman from Lavaca and another from Conway e-mailed him and told him they were either undecided or leaning Republican but had decided to vote for Beebe after being bothered by the ad.
Beebe said his campaign has featured children in ads but in a “positive” way.
Hutchinson’s campaign said the ad won’t be withdrawn.
“In the spirit of politics, it’s a tough campaign,” Hutchinson said. “If you can have an ad that people will enjoy, then it’s a positive thing. It’s a good ad. He has very dark and somber and negative ads to attack me on my record of leadership.”
Hutchinson declined to say whether the children were properly informed about the ads.
“You see children in ads all the time,” he said. “There are means of informed consent, but I’m not going to get into the mechanics of that. Children enjoy the opportunity to engage in that.”
He said he’s made comments about Beebe in the past similar to the children’s remarks in the ad but the ad “breaks through the clutter of” the usual sort of political ads.
Beebe said Hutchinson “has a different sense of humor than I’ve got. I don’t think the ads are humorous. I think it’s very shameful.”
Ron Fuller, a former Republican lawmaker who’s supporting Beebe, said the ads indicated “absolute desperation” on Hutchinson’s part and called them “disgraceful.”
“It’s using very innocent children to carry a message,” said Fuller, a former campaign finance chairman for Republican Gov. Mike Huckabee. “I don’t think that’s anything the governor would have ever have approved or accepted.” Fuller emphasized that he called on his own to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette to complain about the ad, not at the direction of Huckabee or Beebe. Huckabee has endorsed Hutchinson. His office didn’t return an e-mail message Monday. Scott Howell and Co. political consultants in Dallas, which has worked for President Bush, is involved in the “development and production of all ads” for the Hutchinson campaign, said Hutchinson spokesman David Kinkade.
NICK WILSON Also Monday, Hutchinson said Beebe’s “record in the [state ] Senate represents a failure of leadership” in regard to dealing with former state Sen. Nick Wilson, D-Pocahontas.
On Nov. 4, 1999, Wilson was convicted by a U. S. District Court jury in Little Rock of two counts of tax evasion and one count of conspiracy. He submitted his resignation in mid-November of 1999 from the state Senate, effective Dec. 31, 1999. He later pleaded guilty to directing three schemes to defraud Arkansas taxpayers of more than $ 1. 9 million.
Hutchinson said Beebe should have tried to stop the 1997 legislation setting up the program that Wilson used to bilk the state.
“He didn’t stand with Gov. [Mike ] Huckabee who vetoed that legislation,” Hutchinson said. “He fought to override [the veto ].”
Beebe said, “Huckabee didn’t know about the Wilson stuff when he vetoed it. None of us knew it. Obviously we found out [afterward ]. It’s another case of [Hutchinson ] not knowing the facts.”
Hutchinson acknowledged that Beebe and Wilson weren’t in the same faction in the state Senate but that Beebe should have tried to “censure” Wilson.
Beebe said, “I was the guy who got it structured and put together to get Nick Wilson thrown out of the Senate.”
Beebe acknowledged that Wilson wasn’t expelled but resigned. But he said he helped prod Wilson to do that.
Later in the day, the Beebe campaign released a letter from former U. S. Attorney Paula Casey, the Democrat who prosecuted Wilson.
“To try to falsely associate Mike Beebe with that scandal is preposterous,” Casey wrote.
NEWT GINGRICH The same year the Wilson legislation passed at the state Capitol, Hutchinson was a freshman in Congress representing Northwest Arkansas. He voted to keep House Speaker Newt Gingrich as speaker, despite an ethics investigation at the time against Gingrich regarding campaign finance. Hutchinson said Monday, when the Democrat-Gazette asked about his Gingrich vote, that it was different from the Wilson situation. “I did take a stand,” Hutchinson said. “There was disciplinary action that was taken.” Hutchinson received national media attention as he initially debated whether to support Gingrich. But Hutchinson said at the time he decided to stick with Gingrich after Gingrich met with him privately. “He should have the benefit of the doubt, so I cast my vote for him,” Hutchinson said in January 1997. The House ethics committee later that month called for Gingrich to pay a $ 300, 000 fine and get a reprimand, which Hutchinson voted to support.
GUN VOTES Another Hutchinson ad says Beebe “hunts on TV but took both sides on gun rights.” Last week, Hutchinson declined to say what vote by Beebe the ad refers to. On Monday, he declined again. He said he knew but wouldn’t share it because he wanted to “focus on the issues I’m talking about.” He referred reporters to his campaign spokesman. Kinkade said the ad was referring to a 1993 bill to allow concealed weapons on which Beebe didn’t vote. In 1995, Beebe voted for another concealed carry bill. Of the bill involved in the first vote, Beebe said: “There wasn’t any protection to keep bad guys from having the guns. When you’re in Washington, you don’t know what’s going on in Arkansas. You are just pulling stuff out of the air. He’s wrong again.” During that time, Hutchinson worked as a lawyer in Fort Smith and was the state Republican Party chairman.
OBAMA’S VISIT On Saturday, U. S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., will be at the state Capitol for a Democratic Party event. Beebe is scheduled to attend.
Beebe’s campaign has criticized Hutchinson for bringing national figures, such as U. S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, President Bush, and Massachusetts Republican Gov. Mitt Romney for fundraisers.
Beebe’s campaign has said Beebe wouldn’t bring Washington political figures to Arkansas unless they had Arkansas connections, such as former President Clinton.
Beebe, asked by reporters about the Obama visit and his campaign’s previous criticism of Hutchinson’s visitors, gave several reasons Monday why Obama was an exception.
“He’s from Chicago [not Washington ],” Beebe said. “My campaign has criticized Mr. Hutchinson for bringing all those out-of-state folks in droves for the out-of-state money. Mr. Obama is coming here to get the vote out. It’s late in the campaign. They’ve done four or five of them. If they can do that, we can do one, too. I think he’s fundraising not for me but for the party. It’s not specifically for my campaign.”
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