THIS JUST IN from investigative reporter Andy Borowitz:
In Sign of Confidence, Clinton Airs Vicious Attack Ads about Herself
Bid to Pre-empt Rivals, Aides SayIn a sign of confidence befitting her status as frontrunner, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) today began airing what her aides are calling “extremely vicious attack ads about herself.â€
The ads, airing in such key early states as New Hampshire and Iowa, take Ms. Clinton to task for everything from her position on Iraq to her failed health care proposals of the 1990’s to what aides characterized as her “whiny voice and annoying cackle.â€
With Sen. Clinton showing double-digit leads in many polls and steamrolling her rivals in recent debates, aides said that spending precious campaign funds to attack herself sends a message to voters that the New York senator “feels good about how the campaign is going.â€
While negative ads have become commonplace in political campaigns, Sen. Clinton’s bruising ads are believed to be the first time a political candidate has spent her own money to attack herself.
“The American people want a leader,†said Clinton campaign spokesperson Carol Foyler. “And if her rivals won’t come out and attack her, Sen. Clinton is going to show leadership by attacking herself.â€
Perhaps in a bid to blunt the effect of Sen. Clinton’s self-attacking ad campaign, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill) today began airing what his aides are calling “his politest ads to date.â€
There’s more so read the whole thing.
You can get and read Andy Borowitz’s other investigative reports here.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.