Rightwing astroturf group goes after W.Va. Democrats with false ads

by: heath_harrison

Thu Mar 04, 2010 at 01:35:34 AM EST

West Virginia Democratic Party Chairman Nick Casey responded to the commercials, created by rightwing group League of American Voters, via e-mail:

"Here we go again," said West Virginia Democratic Party Chairman Nick Casey.  Recently, the ubiquitously named League of American Voters (LAV) launched an ad campaign against Congressmen Nick Rahall and Alan Mollohan over their votes for health care reform in the US House. The ad refers to half-truths regarding legislation passed by the US Senate only.

"It's one thing for this so-called "League" to spread distortions about a bill, but to criticize our Congressmen for voting for provisions that were in a different bill than what they voted for is just dubious," added Casey.  "These poorly constructed ads should be taken down. Unfortunately, I fear that our state will be swamped with ads this election paid for by bogus out-of-state groups that don't disclose their donors. I am confident that the good people of West Virginia  will be able to sort it out."

Some of the examples Casey provides:

Audio: Our Congressman, XX, voted for Obama and Pelosi's health care takeover.

Factcheck.org: No Government Takeover of Health Care. According to the highly respected factcheck.org, previous claims of a government takeover of health care have been widely debunked. They write: "Obama hasn't called for such a government-run plan, also called a "single-payer" plan. In fact, he has flatly rejected it. The administration has said on the White House's "Health Care" Web page (and previously on its transition site) that "President Obama and Vice President Biden believe" that government-run health care is "wrong."  (Factcheck.org, 5/6/09)

Audio: Health care rationing

Politifact: False; No Rationing in Health Bill.  According to the nonpartisan and highly respected Politifact, "there actually are provisions in the bill about comparative research to make sure it is not used for rationing. Language in the House version of the health bill specifically states: "Nothing in this section shall be construed to permit the Commission or the Center to mandate coverage, reimbursement, or other policies for any public or private payer."... So we find Boehner 's claim that comparative effectiveness research findings "would be used by the government to ration care" to be False." (Politifact,/8/25/09)

Here's an example of one of the ads, which cuts-and-pastes the name of "Our Congressman." This one, with same script as the W.Va. spots, was aimed at Rep. Mark Schauer of Michigan:

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And if you're wondering who's really behind this fake concerned citizens organization, Huffington Post looked into the group a while back in a must-read piece.

- LAV's chief strategist is rightwing consultant and famed prostitute aficionado Dick Morris, who, you'll recall, got his start in TV ads helping with the massively racist "white hands" spot for Jesse Helms in the '80s. Morris, who's been repeatedly proven to be a huge liar, has even had to admit his ads are factually wrong.

Others involved with LAV:
- Failed West Virginia Republican candidate and national GOP activist Bob Adams, who serves as executive director of the organization. Interestingly, when Adams isn't hanging out with Morris, he likes to try to play the "values" card by going from state-to-stae and pushing for  bans on gay marriage.

- Rick Wilson, a Florida media consultant best known for the infamous ad that attacked the patriotism of then-Sen. Max Cleland (D-Ga.), who lost both legs and an arm in Vietnam, by flashing his picture with Osama Bin Laden's.

So, basically, a collection of ethically-bankrupt, professional smear artists is behind this (all they're missing is Tom DeLay or Ollie North to be in line with the high standards of one of Sean Hannity's "Great American Panels.")

But don't expect the opponents of Rahall and Mollohan to be anything other than completely thrilled to have these folks on board with their efforts.