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Clay Bennett / Truthdig Aug 21, 2012 Dig deeper

Attack Ads

Pat Bagley, Cagle Cartoons, Salt Lake Tribune Aug 19, 2012 Dig deeper

‘Left, Right & Center’: Campaign Heating Up … The Planet Too

Staff / Truthdig Aug 11, 2012 Polls show Romney isn’t connecting with voters. Has Obama defined him? An anti-Romney ad features a steelworker’s story of losing his wife to cancer right after a Bain restructuring cost him his job and his company medical insurance. And the month of July set new temperature records, but policymakers aren’t budging on climate change. These issues and more are debated on this week's "Left, Right & Center." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Gentlemen, Sharpen Your Spears

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig Jun 20, 2012 Those who prize civility over frank talk or success in politics may be disheartened to learn that attack ads of the type President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have begun to fling at each other are as old as the republic itself, and as New York magazine columnist Frank Rich says, they’re absolutely essential for effective politics. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

What Happened in Florida Won’t Stay in Florida

Joe Conason / Truthdig Feb 2, 2012 Triumph in Florida could cost Romney much more than the million dollars or so that bought each point of his 46-32 margin over Newt Gingrich. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Newt’s Venom Is Mitt’s Medicine

Peter Z. Scheer / Truthdig Jan 16, 2012 Newt Gingrich has made it clear that if he can't be president, he's going to try to take Mitt Romney down with him. But the former House speaker’s endless stream of attack ads could, perversely, end up strengthening the "Massachusetts Moderate," who seems likely to survive the onslaught.The former House speaker’s endless stream of attack ads could, perversely, end up strengthening the "Massachusetts Moderate," who seems likely to survive the onslaught. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

The Supreme Court Approves This Vicious, Cowardly Message

Staff / Truthdig Jan 3, 2012 Joe Klein points out that the newfound anonymity of attack ads, made possible by the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, which allows faceless money conglomerates to run ads on a candidate's behalf without the usual "I approved this message," makes for much "more effective and brutal" adverts. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Stealth PAC Serves Romney in Iowa

Staff / Truthdig Jan 2, 2012 Observers credit a spate of attack ads for Newt Gingrich’s recent tumble -- and Mitt Romney’s rise -- in Iowa polls ahead of the state’s Republican caucus. But where did they come from? Not Romney’s campaign, but rather a PAC staffed by former Romney insiders and empowered by the Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling to spend as much as it likes to destroy his opponents. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

This Attack Ad Cannot Be Real

Staff / Truthdig Oct 15, 2010 The founder and publisher of the Political Wire, Taegan Goddard, wonders if this attack ad isn't the best of all time, and it may be, but it also feels like something that aired between segments of "Saturday Night Live." Only this is funny. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Team McCain, GOP in Full Attack Mode

Staff / Truthdig Nov 2, 2008 Wow. The Huffington Post rounded up all these new attacks on Barack Obama by the McCain campaign and various GOP operatives -- but before reading them, be warned: Prolonged exposure to some of these messages (e.g. voting for Obama might lead to a "tragic outcome" for Jewish people) made us want to take a shower. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

CNN’s Brown Blasts Dole’s ‘Godless’ Attack Ad

Staff / Truthdig Oct 30, 2008 It's hard to pick just one nutty attack ad from this election season's overflowing cornucopia o' nonsense, but CNN's Campbell Brown thinks she's found the worst in Sen. Elizabeth Dole's truth-challenged spot insinuating that her Democratic rival, Kay Hagan, is a secret atheist. Updated Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

McCain Campaign Ads: Dishonorable Edition

Staff / Truthdig Oct 8, 2008 If there was any lingering doubt as to the tone that will characterize these last weeks on the campaign trail, take a look at this disapproving, if vague, McCain ad, in which a disdainful-sounding narrator claims Barack Obama did something dishonorable at some point in the campaign, and also, liberals are bad or something like that. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )