About two weeks ago, TV stations in the Houston area balked at a political ad aimed at Tom DeLay after the lawmaker’s lawyers threatened legal action against stations that aired it. Campaign for America’s Future altered the wording of the ad slightly, and over the weekend, stations finally agreed to broadcast it.
A controversial ad linking Rep. Tom DeLay to former lobbyist Jack Abramoff will hit the airwaves in Houston today after local television stations had declined to show an earlier ad. […]
The 30-second spot by the Campaign for America’s Future and the Public Campaign Action Fund has more detailed information about the connections between DeLay, R-Sugar Land, and Abramoff, who pleaded guilty to corruption charges and is cooperating with a federal investigation of lawmakers and their aides.
The ad says DeLay “received tens of thousands in campaign contributions from indicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his associates” and that “he visited cliff-top Caribbean resorts, golf courses designed by PGA champions and four-star restaurants — all courtesy of donors who bankrolled his political money empire.”
Another allegation is that “Russians contributed $1 million to the group in 1998 specifically to influence Delay’s vote on legislation” and that a group related to Delay received $1 million from Russian tycoons to allegedly influence his vote.
So, what’s different about the revised ad? According to the AP, the new version says DeLay “received” campaign contributions from Abramoff, whereas the old one said DeLay “pocketed” Abramoff donations. Oddly enough, this wasn’t the language DeLay’s attorneys objected to, but apparently the change was enough to satisfy local broadcasters.
A DeLay spokesperson lashed out at, well, everyone.
“This is the same fraudulent ad from the same George Soros and labor-union-backed group that is working on behalf of Nancy Pelosi to elect Democrats,” said DeLay’s spokeswoman, Shannon Flaherty. “We’ve already unveiled the lies in the ad to the local stations, and they all agreed … Any new decision they make is probably based more on their need for cash than maintaining credibility,” she said
Slowly but surely, Team DeLay’s panic is becoming more apparent.