Ohio Sen. Joy Padgett helped make a campaign flier mailed earlier this week charging her opponent, Terry Anderson, with blaming America for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Padgett, R-Coshocton, said she helped make the flier to illustrate Anderson's liberal views.
He is a liberal; part of a group of people who want to blame America (for the Sept. 11 attacks)
she said, adding that terrorism is an important issue in the campaign.
We are not exempt from the issue in Southeast Ohio she said. We are on the target list. I don't blame America. I think (terrorists) are crazy.
The flier, distributed by the Ohio Republican Party, showed Anderson interviewing a member of the Lebanese group Hezbollah in 1984, shortly before he became its hostage for seven years.
Beside the picture is a statement declaring Anderson to be part of a blame America crowd for the Sept. 11 attacks, including a quote from Anderson in October 2001 in which he said, Are we willing to accept that they hate us not because they're crazy
but because we've done something wrong?
In response, Anderson on Tuesday read a prepared speech at the beginning of a debate between the two in Marietta and then walked out.
She's been doing negative campaigning and advertising for a couple weeks now
Anderson said in an interview. I didn't think they were fair and this was a little too much. I felt I had to make a statement.
