Monday, July 26, 2010
Politics Henry's Attack Ad Raises Legit Question
Posted by Jeff Woods on Mon, Jul 26, 2010 at 1:53 PM
OK, so we were ready to really hate this scurrilous Henry campaign attack ad. Then we saw that frightful headline flash across the screen. Yikes!
"Ethics Cloud Hangs Over Squeaky Clean Yarbro"—Nashville Scene
Now, we remember why we hate Jeff Yarbro so much. Just kidding. Actually, Henry's ad makes a good point (if we do say so ourselves). It never claims Yarbro himself lobbies for Big Oil, nuclear waste firms and nursing homes. Yarbro doesn't lobby. But his lobbying/law firm certainly does, and Bass Berry represents all those corporate evildoers. The ad raises legitimate questions about the potential ethical conflicts that would arise if Yarbro wins this election. As we observed in the Pith post that Henry's ad cites, Yarbro would operate under an ethics cloud from Day One.
In that post, we also called Henry a slightly befuddled, old white-haired dude. Guess that'll be the headline in Yarbro's next ad.
Yarbro is trying to deflect the ad by claiming it's false. He says he never represented BP. Did too! Henry adviser Mike Kopp says in response. But this back-and-forth is beside the point. The issue is not whether Yarbro himself personally represented one business or another. Yarbro's firm represents lots of corporations that do business before the legislature. If he's elected, would he vote against the financial interests of his employer? He should quit Bass Berry.
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