One could reasonably expect those who follow the state attorney general race to be completely desensitized to the smear campaigns run by all four candidates as well as the media's critical response to them. Nevertheless, Democratic challenger Kathleen Falk's newest advertisement, which attacks incumbent Peg Lautenschlager, managed to stir up controversy over both its content and delivery.
The ad, which focuses on the Attorney General's 2004 DUI citation, the state crime lab's DNA backlog and a questionable campaign funding, is the first advertisement to mention Lautenschlager's citation, but not the first public recognition of the incident.
Democrats fear too much negative campaigning before the primary will end up putting the nominated candidate at a disadvantage. Indeed, in almost any other election this would be a serious concern.
However, intra-party bickering has already reached such a fever pitch in both Democratic and Republican parties that a lack of unity is the least of concerns for either side. The rift between candidates will not do any greater harm to the party than the shortcomings of the candidates themselves.
Falk has drawn additional criticism to herself for deciding to air the controversial ad all over the state but not in Madison, replacing it here with a different, more positive ad that does not mention Lautenschlager's arrest. Critics have charged that Falk's strategy, hoping to avoid a Democratic backlash in Madison, is duplicitous.
However, the issues raised in the ad are far from new. It is unlikely that anyone planning on voting in the election would be unaware of Lautenschlager's misdeeds at this point.
Aside from the DUI, the relevancy of the second charge in the ad, which blames Lautenschlager for the state crime lab's DNA backlog, is somewhat unfair. In sync with national trends, the lab dealt with a sharp increase in the number of cases. None of the attorney general candidates has a plan that goes significantly beyond hiring additional staff and using new technology.
Charging the Attorney General with ethics violations in regards to funding holds more water, though the ad fails to mention that Lautenschlager returned the funds.
Ultimately, it will be up to voters to decide whether Lautenschlager's scandals warrant voting her out of office.
