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Daily News - Democrats unveil TV ad against Blackwell

(Dayton Daily News)

Democrats unveil TV ad against Blackwell

Party alleges Republican governor nominee flip-flopped on bill to limit spending.

By William Hershey

Staff Writer

COLUMBUS | The Ohio Democratic Party has launched a TV ad attacking Republican J. Kenneth Blackwell right where Blackwell is supposed to be strongest — as a man of strongly held beliefs who sticks to them.

He declined to say how much the party is spending, but said he believes this is the earliest the party has aired an ad in a governor's race.

"We were waiting for the day in which Ken Blackwell's flip-flop became reality," Rothenberg said Tuesday as the legislature prepared to vote on a bill that partially mimics the constitutional amendment to limit government spending that Blackwell made a centerpiece of his campaign for governor. In response to the legislative action, Blackwell, the secretary of state, agreed to work to get the amendment, known as TEL or Tax Expenditure Limitation, off the ballot.

Ohio Republican Chairman Robert Bennett called the ad "a desperate attempt by the Democrats to distract from Ted Strickland's inexperience and inconsistency."

U.S. Rep. Strickland of Lisbon is the Democratic candidate for governor.

A look at the ad: 'What Does Ken Blackwell Really Believe'

Visuals: Two copies of the same big photo of Blackwell face each other on the screen, as a female narrator describes alleged flip-flops. The photos are brightened and dimmed to reinforce the narrator's points.

Script: "Ken Blackwell says Ohio need a governor who won't run away from what he believes. "Blackwell called for ending Ohio's new commercial activity tax, but just last week he said the tax must stay. While Blackwell says he opposes gambling, he owned stock in a company that makes slot machines. Ken Blackwell called the TEL amendment a major part of his platform, but last week he changed his mind. Ken Blackwell says Ohio needs a governor who won't run away from what he believes. How can we know what that really is?"

Analysis: The 30-second ad attempts to put Blackwell on the defensive, where he has seldom found himself. The ad exaggerates and oversimplifies — a Blackwell spokesman, for example, said Blackwell still opposes the commercial activity tax, but is willing to give "the benefit of the doubt" to legislators who support it. And the ad is tame compared to the charge of "hypocrite" his Republican opponent used against him in the primary.

— William Hershey