Mail delivered to residents in the 73rd District does not tell voters who to cast their ballots for in the race for state representative, but it does tell those who they should not.
Jay Bush is running against Chris Todd in the Republican Primary for the seat that is being vacated by Jimmy Eldridge, and advertising paid for by a Political Action Committee money from the mid-state has apparently selected Bush as public enemy No. 1.
NEWS/TALK 101.5 FM & WNWS.COM held a question and answer session with Jay Bush about his campaign – and the literature being circulated to voters in District 73.
Question: What were your thoughts when you received the mailout about your campaign?
Answer: I was disappointed that a PAC run by a career politician from Nashville was targeting our local election and spreading false and malicious information about me.
Question: Why do you believe your campaign is being targeted?
Answer: My campaign is being targeted because we are ahead in this race and Glen Casada does not want me to be elected. Rep. Casada is running for Speaker of the House and does not view me as a vote because of a prior friendship I have with Rep. Curtis Johnson, who is from Clarksville, where I grew up.
Question: Do you know the individual – Glen Casada – who is involved with the Political Action Committee sending the campaign literature?
Answer: I do not know Glen Casada personally. He left me a voicemail back in March expressing support for my campaign before his PAC starting running negative ads against me in June. I assume he learned of my friendship with Curtis Johnson sometime between March and mid-June when the attack ads began running on Facebook.
Question: What were your thoughts about the photo of President Trump ‘supposedly’ urging voters not to vote for you?
Answer: I laughed. My kids loved it because they think President Trump actually knows who I am! It’s so over the top and ridiculous, I plan to frame it.
Question: Have you discussed this with your opponent in the Republican Primary, or heard from him about the advertising?
Answer: The first day I learned of the attack ads being run on Facebook I contacted Mr. Todd. He told me he did not condone this kind of campaigning and would get to the source.
The attacks continued to escalate, culminating with the mail pieces that landed over the weekend.
Mr. Todd texted me on Friday evening to say that he was appalled by these mail pieces and would try to get them shut down, which is the same thing he told me when the attacks began.
After nearly of month of relentless personal attacks, I felt we had no choice but to defend ourselves and have called on Mr. Todd to publicly disavow the smear campaign, pledge not to vote for Casada for Speaker and to return the PAC money he accepted from Casada.
The only way to keep this dirty outside money from influencing our local race is for Mr. Todd to publicly state he will not vote for Casada for Speaker under any circumstances and to return the PAC money he accepted from him.
(PHOTO: Jay Bush)
David Thomas, Twitter – @DavidThomasWNWS
https://www.facebook.com/NewsTalk1015/
