Statement by Dennis Lamb for Congress: Associated Press Attacks on Republican Candidate are Shameful and Uncalled For

While I reserve this site for political blog posts and rarely donate space to actual candidates, I believe that one candidate sticking up for his primary opponent in order to further the truth and to help the party makes him deserving of space on this site. Accordingly:



OCTOBER 9, 2009
CONTACT: Lamb for Congress
954.381.4876
www.LambForCongress.com


Today Dennis Lamb, Republican Candidate for Congress in Florida's 20th District, issued the following statement:


I understand that the Associated Press has mischaracterized an incident in which an activist jokingly scribbled on the target of another candidate at an event sponsored by the Southeast Republican Club. From what I've been told, the candidate's campaign was forthright with the Sun-Sentinel, explaining that they had indeed found the joke tasteless, chastised the activist who scribbled on their target and even asked for a new one. When pressed as to why they didn't purchase a new one, their campaign told the Sun-Sentinel that it had been a mistake not to spend the extra money. The AP, relying on second hand information from the Sun-Sentinel, spun that statement to imply that the candidate had changed his story, which was totally untrue.


I am the first Republican in the campaign, but I know the candidate mentioned in the story and he is a fine person. The attacks on him are shameful and they will not help us defeat Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a goal that me, my wife and my campaign are committed to. I also ask whatever happened to truth in journalism.


The mischaraterization of events by the Associated Press makes all candidates who challenge well known incumbents wonder. If the job of the media is now to protect entrenched Democrats then that should be reflected in their name. The DWSP is admittedly less recognizable than the AP, but if they are to lie and smear Debbie Wasserman Schultz' opponents, they can at least have the decency to be open about it.


What this boils down to is that if you're a local candidate and you challenge a strong incumbent, the media will smear you with lies. No one should stand for that.


Dennis Lamb