Legal Commentary

'Soft On Crime' Makes a Comeback

By TChris

The McCain campaign has been rummaging through the Republican attic for old attacks to launch against Barack Obama. Tax-and-spend liberal didn't take, so it was only a matter of time before they dusted off soft on crime.

The flier sent by the Republican Party in Nevada and other states this week says Obama has voted against tough penalties for drug and gang-related crimes, and is against "protecting children from danger."

Obama voted "present" on a bill that would have prosecuted children in adult court when they are accused of firing a gun near a school. Keeping children in juvenile court, away from the possibility of an adult prison sentence, constitutes "protecting children from danger" in my world. [more ...]

Unable to convince enough voters that Obama has a secret plan to help terrorists, the McCain campaign now wants voters to believe that Obama is a better "friend to criminals than to cops." The message is ultimately the same: Obama is scary.

The piece describes Obama as "Not who you think he is."

The Obama campaign is on top of it.

The Obama campaign issued a statement Wednesday from Tom Nee, president of the National Association of Police Organizations, denouncing the mailer as the most dishonest attack "from an increasingly dishonest, dishonorable campaign."

"It's clear that Sen. McCain and his agents would rather distort facts and scare people than talk about his disastrous public safety and economic policies that offer no change from the last eight years," Nee said.

Voters will take soft on crime over stupid on the economy. After the election, we can encourage Obama to be smart on crime.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on October 23, 2008 (boomark / email).