* First things first. If you’re gonna attack a congressman for his military/war voting record, you should probably use a local veteran instead of somebody from Peoria. Then, make sure you vet the vet…
North Shore Democratic congressional candidate Dan Seals’ campaign on Tuesday defended using an Iraq War veteran with ties to the 9/11 conspiracy movement in a new TV ad attacking Republican U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk for supporting the war.
Seals spokeswoman Elisabeth Smith said she didn’t “really see what is so controversial” about using Caleb Davis in the ad. Davis, 25, is a Peoria native who spent five months in Iraq as an Army diver and got an honorable discharge in 2004.
Last June, the Peoria Journal Star reported that Davis wore a black T-shirt proclaiming “Investigate 9/ 11@911truth.org” while sitting at a table at a Peoria library where books, fliers and DVDs supporting conspiracy theories about the 9/11 attacks were on display. The organization argues the government’s version of the terrorist attacks is fraudulent and offers a “Top 40 Reasons to Doubt the Official Story” and an “Official Coverup Guide.”
Kirk, who was in the Pentagon when the airplane crashed into it Sept. 11, 2001, called on Seals to stop airing the ad.
In case you missed it before, the Seals ad is here.
* Kirk sponsored a press conference yesterday attended by several veterans who blasted Seals and his ad…
Local veterans for Kirk countered with 23-year-old Joe Cook of Wauconda, an Army vet who lost a portion of his left leg to a roadside bomb while on patrol. Cook said he was outraged when he saw the ad. He supported Davis’ right to an opinion, but said the statement that Kirk doesn’t support veterans is false.
“When I got injured, Mark Kirk was one of the first people to call my household and asked if there was anything he could do,” he said. “I know enough to know that what he did at the North Chicago VA is something special.
* Seals apparently has some local support from veterans…
An hour later, Seals gathered his own group of North Shore veterans who thought the ad was on the mark.
* And Caleb Davis denies he’s a conspiracy theorist…
ABC7 could not reach Caleb Davis for comment. He has issued a statement through the Seals campaign saying he believes the 911 attacks were committed by Al Qaeda terrorists, in effect denying that he is a conspiracy theorist.
But why go with an out-of-district spokesperson who has such an iffy past?
It just doesn’t make sense.
Seals says he will not pull the ad. Kirk says his campaign will answer with an ad blitz during the last weeks before the election.
I’m sure he will.
* Seals isn’t doing all that well on the money front, either…
Now it looks like Seals, a Wilmette Democrat has a bit of a cash squeeze for such a tight contest. He reports having had $240,479 on hand on Sept. 30. He raised $660,936 in the last three months – just shy of the $700,000 his campaign claimed he raised in a press release earlier.
* More…
From July 1 through Sept. 30, Kirk reported having more than $1.8 million on hand, compared with about $240,000 for Seals. Kirk listed total receipts of $852,000 for the three-month period compared with about $714,000 for Seals. […]
“I would put a little less stock in those (cash on hand) numbers because we’re spending now,” [Seals] said. “The thing to watch is the turnout - how many people are interested.”
* Meanwhile, Jim Oberweis is getting creamed by Democratic incumbent Bill Foster…
According to campaign finance reports provided by the campaigns, Foster has approximately $692,000 in available cash, compared to Oberweis’ $324,000.
Foster’s camp boasted more than $621,000 in contributions between July 1 and Sept. 30, which supporters described as a quarterly record for a Democrat in the district. […]
Oberweis’ quarterly take was bolstered by his $225,000 personal loan to the campaign, while he received a little more than $88,000 in donations, his report states.
* Democrat Colleen Callahan is also getting creamed in the 16th…
…Callahan has raised a total of about $443,600 and has about $53,170 left to spend in the final weeks leading up to the Nov. 4 general election. […]
Republican Aaron Schock raised a total of about $2,303,155 and has about $466,000 left to spend, although he said the bulk of what’s left will be used on television advertisements this month.
* PI has a nifty spreadsheet…
* More…
* Halvorson has slight fundraising lead over Ozinga
* Bean still way ahead in fundraising race