Elizabeth Dole accepted $1,300 from Representative Robin Hayes, just days after he made headlines for using divisive rhetoric differentiating between people who love America, and those who hate America. At a rally for Republican presidential candidate John McCain, Hayes said, "Liberals hate real Americans that work and accomplish and achieve and believe in God." Hayes denied making the comments until an audio recording of the speech surfaced and he was forced to own up to the gaffe.
Yesterday, Dole made similar remarks implying that those people who were not supporting her did not have a "love of God." "We’re trying to save honesty and integrity and hard work and personal responsibility and love of family and love of God," said Elizabeth Dole. "That’s what this is all about, and it’s a serious time."
Disclosure: I am Kay Hagan's Online Communications Director
http://www.kayhagan.com
"Representative Hayes’ rhetoric won’t do one thing to help working families in North Carolina, and his tired attacks make it more difficult at a time when we should be reaching across party lines to get things done," said Hagan Campaign Communications Director Colleen Flanagan. "Senator Dole continues to put politics before people, accepting Rep. Hayes’ money even after North Carolinians and others reacted in outrage."
This is just the latest example of campaign tactics that a local newspaper likened to "jumping into the deep end of the slime pool."
"It is beyond inappropriate and beneath Senator Dole to be attacking Kay and her Christian faith. As a Sunday School teacher and an elder in her church, Kay’s "love of God" is strong, and her love of country and North Carolina are unquestionable," Flanagan said.
Kay is a Sunday School teacher and elder at the First Presbyterian Church in Greensboro. In addition, on Christmas mornings, she and her family go to the Bell House, a residential facility for adults with severe disabilities and cook breakfast for the residents and staff.
Elizabeth Dole has also accepted contributions from indicted Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska and Senator David Vitter of Louisiana, who was caught using a prostitution service. Dole returned a portion of Stevens’ money, but she has still refused to give back $11,000 of it, and she has yet to return any of the $5,000 she received from Vitter’s Louisiana Reform PAC.