The Reek of Republican Desperation

How low can they go?

· In New York, the NRCC ran an ad accusing Democratic House candidate Michael A. Arcuri, a district attorney, of using taxpayer dollars for phone sex. "Hi, sexy," a dancing woman purrs. "You've reached the live, one-on-one fantasy line." It turns out that one of Arcuri's aides had tried to call the state Division of Criminal Justice, which had a number that was almost identical to a porn line. The misdial cost taxpayers $1.25.

· In Ohio, GOP gubernatorial candidate J. Kenneth Blackwell, trailing by more than 20 points in polls, has accused front-running Democratic Rep. Ted Strickland of protecting a former aide who was convicted in 1994 on a misdemeanor indecency charge. Blackwell's campaign is also warning voters through suggestive "push polls" that Strickland failed to support a resolution condemning sex between adults and children. Strickland, a psychiatrist, objected to a line suggesting that sexually abused children could not have healthy relationships when they grew up.

· The Republican Party of Wisconsin distributed a mailing linking Democratic House candidate Steve Kagen to a convicted serial killer and child rapist. The supposed connection: The "bloodthirsty" attorney for the killer had also done legal work for Kagen.

· In two dozen congressional districts, a political action committee supported by a white Indianapolis businessman, J. Patrick Rooney, is running ads saying Democrats want to abort black babies. A voice says, "If you make a little mistake with one of your hos, you'll want to dispose of that problem tout de suite, no questions asked."

· In the most controversial recent ad, the Republican National Committee slammed Rep. Harold E. Ford Jr. (D-Tenn.) for attending a Playboy-sponsored Super Bowl party. In the ad, a scantily clad white actress winks as she reminisces about good times with Ford, who is black. That ad has been pulled, but the RNC has a new one saying Ford "wants to give the abortion pill to schoolchildren."
The Year Of Playing Dirtier

Then there is an article in the NYTimes about how Mark W. Everson, the commissioner of internal revenue, has ordered his agency to delay collecting back taxes from Hurricane Katrina victims until after the Nov. 7 elections .
Four former commissioners said such conduct was unacceptable.
I.R.S. Going Slow Before Election

Also from the NYTimes:

Representative Barbara Cubin, a Wyoming Republican facing a strong challenge in what should be a safe seat, this week told an opponent who uses a wheelchair that she would slap him were he not disabled.

Representative Christopher Shays, Republican of Connecticut, normally a low-key moderate, portrayed the treatment of Iraqis at the Abu Ghraib prison as the product of a sex ring rather than of abuse. . . .

Senator Conrad Burns, fighting for his seat in Montana, hinted that there was a secret party plan for the war in Iraq. . . . Representative John Hostetler, an embattled Indiana Republican, broadcast a radio advertisement accusing the House Democratic leader, Representative Nancy Pelosi, of harboring a radical homosexual agenda.

John Raese, a businessman running against Senator Robert C. Byrd, a West Virginia Democrat who is 88, disparaged Mr. Byrd’s physical condition.
Candidates Show Strain of Tough Election Season