If I See One More Negative Campaign Ad...

Actually, I don't have much of a problem with negative advertising, mostly because it's effective and supported by the First Amendment. Although campaign finance laws have muddied the picture, political speech is afforded strict scrutiny by our courts, for the First Amendment was drafted specifically for this purpose.

It is in this context that I view the recent uproar over an ad that ran in the Tennessee Senate race connecting Rep. Harold Ford, an African-American, with a white woman at a Playboy party. It was attacked immediately from all directions, including his opponent, Republican Bob Corker. The sponsor of the spot, the Republican National Committee, pulled it shortly thereafter.

Steve Chapman is right on in his argument that levity is needed in a campaign lacking in creativity, where candidates either present themselves as choir boys or tar and feather their opponents as common criminals who steal from the public coffer. In an election season where we are once again forced to choose between the lesser of two evils (if we choose at all), a fictional candidate, Josh Jennings, stands as an appealing alternative. Check out these campaign commercials starring Mike Mauloff and co-created and edited by Nathan Gotsch. Should we send him to Congress or continue his service as a sandwich artist?