Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Kotz / Media / Politics / Presidential Politics McCain Campaign Takes Letter Writing to a New Level -- Fraud
Posted by Pete Kotz on Wed, Sep 24, 2008 at 12:45 PM
John McCain: From straight talk to organized fraud
Every sophisticated campaign understands the PR power of letters to the editor. A few weeks ago, after Sarah Palin’s address to the Republican convention, the Obama campaign mobilized its supporters in Nashville. Suddenly, Scene was flush with letters from everyday Tennesseans, describing in varying detail how much Lady Palin sucks.
But according to Dutch writer Margriet Oostveen, the McCain campaign has taken the tactic to a whole new level – a level usually described as “fraud.”
Oostveen, who volunteered for the McCain campaign, says the former Straight Talker’s new strategy is utter fabrication. She was assigned to write letters to the editor for McCain. She could say whatever she wished, pretend to be anyone she wanted to be, so long as it advanced McCain’s cause. These letters would then be sent to campaign offices around the country, where some dupe would sign their name and mail it to a local paper.
Oostveen’s story appears in Salon, along with instructional letters provided by the campaign. In the annals of pure shamelessness, this here’s a playoff contender.
Comments (4)
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A legislator once told me that he got a corporate-generated "constituent letter" that was dutifully signed at the bottom, "Sincerely, (Your name here)"
I'll have to check out the Salon.com article. Sounds like a hoot!
Posted by
Scrivener
on September 24, 2008 at 7:56 PM
I'm pretty sure that when you knowingly write a letter pretending to be someone you're not, then pass it on to someone who signs it (also pretending to be someone else they're not), and it's all orchestrated in a very calculating way, that's pretty much the essence of fraud.
Posted by
Pete Kotz
on September 25, 2008 at 1:06 PM
