North Carolina Senate Candidates Battle Over 'Godless' Ad
Sen. Elizabeth Dole's campaign is refusing to take down an ad that accuses her Democratic rival, Kay Hagan, of accepting money from "godless Americans."

FOXNews.com

Wednesday, October 29, 2008


Photos

Sen. Elizabeth Dole's ad, shown here, accuses her rival Kay Hagan of taking money from "Godless Americans." (YouTube)

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North Carolina Sen. Elizabeth Dole's campaign is refusing to take down an ad that accuses her Democratic rival, Kay Hagan, of accepting money from "godless Americans," after Hagan demanded that the Republican incumbent "cease and desist."

The two campaigns are in a nasty dispute over the commercial, which began running statewide in North Carolina Tuesday.

Hagan sent Dole a letter Wednesday demanding she take down the ad, and held a press conference in the morning at which, according to prepared remarks, she called it an attack on her "Christian faith."

The ad accuses Hagan of attending a "secret fundraiser" hosted by the Godless Americans PAC last month.

"Godless Americans and Kay Hagan. She hid from cameras. Took godless money," the narrator says. "What did Kay Hagan promise in return?"

The ad then plays a clip of a female voice saying, "There is no God."

Hagan complained Wednesday that the final clip is not her voice.

"This entire ad was a deliberate attempt to mislead, and it speaks volumes about Ms. Dole's character and conviction and how she feels about how she's doing in the polls right now," Hagan spokesman Colleen Flanagan told FOXNews.com.

Hagan, a North Carolina state senator, is leading Dole by a few points in several state polls. An Associated Press-GfK poll out Wednesday showed the Democratic challenger leading by 47 to 43 percent.

Dole's campaign said the ad never implied that the voice at the end of the ad was Hagan's.

Dole spokesman Dan McLagan said the "There is no God" line was actually a recycled quote from a Godless Americans PAC representative played earlier in the commercial.

"She bears no resemblance to Hagan. She's blonde, sounds totally different," he said.

He told FOXNews.com the ad is 100 percent accurate and the campaign will "absolutely not" take it down.

"Every word in the ad is true," he said. "They know it. They don't like it, but it's staying up."

Hagan's campaign says the fundraiser was hosted by 40 people, including Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry. But McLagan noted that the event was held at the home of a Godless Americans PAC member.

He said Dole was not questioning Hagan's Christian faith, but whether Hagan would support the PAC's call for the "elimination of God from all the public domain."

"What we're questioning is a public policy issue," he said.

Dole's seat is one of several Republican Senate seats that are at risk on Election Day.

"We've been up in every single poll for just about a month," Flanagan said. "This is nothing more than a desperate political attempt to save her seat. This kind of personal attack on Kay's faith is atrocious.

"Does Elizabeth Dole vet her supporters based on religious faith? It's just so offensive."

Flanagan said the September event was "not a Godless Americans fundraiser," and that Hagan has not accepted money from the PAC.

Campaign finance records, however, show that Woody Kaplan -- who is listed as an advisory board member for the PAC and according to Dole's campaign hosted the September fundraiser -- contributed the maximum $2,300 to Hagan's campaign in September.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee says Hagan raised at least $35,000 from the Boston fundraiser.

Click here to see the Dole ad.

FOXNews.com's Judson Berger contributed to this report.

http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/10/29/north-carolina-senate-candidates-battle-godless-ad/comments/


P:S Dole lost the election to Hagan.

Elizabeth dole is actually my ex-senator. I am so Happy that Kay Hagn won.She use to run nasty ads abot Kay over here in North Carolina. You Reap What You SOW!!