Ouch! www.serioussins.com/

[babylonsister]

SHINING A LIGHT ON A 'SERIOUS SIN'.... When it comes to Sen. David Vitter (R), seek re-election in Louisiana this year, the question was never whether his humiliating scandals would be a campaign issue. The question was how Democrats would make the case to voters that Vitter's dishonesty and character problems are a key campaign issue.

Yesterday, we got a pretty clear sense of the pitch. Vitter's Democratic opponent, Rep. Charlie Melancon, unveiled one of the season's hardest-hitting ads, shining a light on Vitter's background with prostitutes and hiring an abusive criminal to oversee women's issues for his Senate office. Just as importantly, Melancon's ad ties these scandals to Vitter's votes against equal pay for women workers, against mandatory coverage for mammograms, and against protections for women who are raped on the job.

The closing line is pretty devastating: "David Vitter: for women, his 'serious sin' isn't even his worst.'" It coincides with the Melancon campaign launching a new website: SeriousSins.com.

http://www.serioussins.com/

The ad serves multiple purposes. The obvious goal is to remind voters of Vitter's character problems and poor judgment, especially when it comes to women. Even if voters aren't moved by Vitter running on a family-values platform and then getting caught with prostitutes, this ad connects that scandal to a larger pattern that makes the right-wing senator untrustworthy.

What's more, as Jed Lewison noted, Melancon's larger goal "is to make this election a referendum on Vitter. If he can do that, he actually stands a shot at winning."

I'd add that it's very likely Melancon's only shot at winning. Given Louisiana's political direction in recent years, and the general tilt of the electorate in 2010, Vitter's far-right record and hostility to the middle class probably won't be enough to undermine his re-election bid. The key is to make the case that the senator simply isn't trustworthy -- a case that includes his background cheating on his wife with hookers, but as the ad shows, goes further. If this doesn't undermine Vitter's support, it's very likely nothing will.

more...

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2010_08/025205.php

[blm]

1. If Vitter had been a Democrat, he would have been hounded out LONG AGO by the corpmedia.

Corpmedia manages to cover for Republicans by shrugging their collective shoulders at the enormity of their hypocrisy and repeating the mantra that their elections won't be harmed.