Marty Seifert Sinks to New Low with Desperate April Surprise

Breaks his own code of ethics with personal smear

Wednesday, April 21, 2010 · Saint Paul

Saint Paul — Eight days before the start of the Minnesota Republican State Convention, after falling behind in the straw poll vote, Marty Seifert sunk to a new low in dirty campaigning today by attacking Tom Emmer for his two DWIs from 20 and 30 years ago. Seifert used the story of a woman whose husband and son were injured by a drunk driver to help deliver his cynical personal attack.

“We’re all used to October surprises by the Democrats, but we never thought Marty would sink so low to launch this April surprise against a fellow Republican at the last minute before the convention,” said Rep. Mark Buesgens, Chairman of the Emmer for Governor Campaign. “The fact is that Tom has been upfront with delegates about this issue. They were the subject of a newspaper article last year and Tom has been very forthcoming about his actions to anyone who asked.”

The Emmer for Governor campaign added information rebutting these claims to its EmmerTruth.com website.

The Seifert campaign has been consistently attacking Emmer for his voting record and public statements, but this personal attack coming directly after more straw poll losses indicates a significant change in strategy. Political science professor Steven Schier already called out Seifert’s negative campaign in a recent article in MinnPost:

In Schier’s eyes and those of other political observers, Seifert has seemed to be more of the attacker, which fits with the general belief that, for the moment, Emmer has momentum on his side. “If you’re seen as being negative in a two-person race in your own party, it’s a sign of weakness," Schier said. "You’re doing it because you have to.”

“Marty Seifert will do anything to win this nomination and he’s clearly more concerned about his own political future than he is about the well being of the Republican Party and our ticket,” added Buesgens. “We are confident delegates will see this desperate attack for what it is and join the Emmer campaign as we take the high road to victory.”

“Perhaps Marty should read his own published code of ethics: ‘Any member of the Seifert for Governor team that engages in negative campaign tactics of a personal nature … will be fired.’”