The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee finally withdrew the advertisement they released last week after a hailstorm of criticism that wound up including at least two of the candidates the DCCC intended to help. DCCC chair Rahm Emanuel had defended the use of flag-draped military coffins as a political argument, but the argument failed to overcome the criticism:

Democrats pulled an Internet ad that showed flag-draped coffins Friday after Republicans and at least two Democrats demanded it be taken down on grounds the image was insensitive and not fit for a political commercial.

The ad by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee called for a "new direction" and displayed a staccato of images, including war scenes, pollution and breached levees as well as a photograph of former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay doctored to look like a police mug shot. ...

Democrats had featured the video ad for nearly two weeks on the DCCC Web site where it had gone largely unnoticed until Republicans began objecting to it this week. On Thursday, more than a dozen Republicans, many with military backgrounds, called on DCCC Chairman Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., to apologize. Democratic Reps. John Spratt of South Carolina and Chet Edwards of Texas asked Emanuel to pull or alter the ad.

As I wrote last week, I did not find the use of the imagery to be out of bounds for political debate. I thought the Democrats had shot themselves in the foot with a mond-numbingly incoherent advertisement, and the critics did the DCCC a favor by shaming them into deleting it. The DCCC talked about moving onto another subject, but they aren't fooling anyone -- it got chased off the air.

The DCCC has at least improved the product. In their new advertisement, they actually discuss policy; they scold the Republicans for not supporting an increase in the minimum-wage floor. Maybe this could signal a trend for the midterms, where parties and candidates have to form a coherent message on the issues rather than just put together slide shows with scary pictures. Perhaps we may see an end to "Daisy"-style political attacks. Will we finally have political debate on substance rather than style?

Naaaaaah.

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DCCC Uses Dead Soldiers to Raise Money AP: Democrats pull ad with flag-draped coffins Democrats pulled an Internet ad that showed flag-draped coffins Friday after Republicans and at least two Democrats demanded it be taken down on grounds the image w... [Read More]

Tracked on July 15, 2006 10:04 AM

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The Democrats were stupid to think they could get away with that trick, and they are even stupider to think they can lie, and act like innocent victims, and blame everything on Republicans. The American people can see through cheap lies like that, and ... [Read More]

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