Hillary Clinton and videotape...
Gardner Selby reported in the Statesman that a video of KBH being chummy with Hillary Clinton is being disseminated via email to GOP activists. I didn't get the clip, so I have to read about it in the Statesman. Guess that means I'm not very well connected, eh?

Watch the video here. It basically consists of Clinton saying that KBH is "[her] partner on so many important fronts" before showing the two hugging and posing for a few pictures together.

In short,it's rather silly and not to be taken seriously. But it's also not the sort of thing a Republican candidate wants to be circulated widely. [Incidentally, Clinton was also in Austin for a fundraiser.]

Hutchison spokesman Chris Paulitz accused aides of Perry of sending the video to state GOP leaders. Perry campaign manager Luis Saenz denied the charges.

Jay Root in the FWST also got a few quotes from some Republican activists calling the video "alarming" and "disturbing." Read his take here.

That was all yesterday. Today, Perry's campaign admits that it videotaped the clips. A Hutchison spokesman said it was "stalking" while Saenz replied that "Potential opponents trashing my governor are not going to get a free ride." (Statesman link -- Gardner Selby, Mike Ward) (FWST link -- Jay Root)

Saenz claims to have shared the tape -- which they paid $2000 to tape -- with supporters for its humor value, but he claims not to be reponsible for the clip currently circulating. Not surprisingly, the KBH campaign shot back that Perry's campaign had been "caught in a lie."

Meanwhile, Texas Sen. Bob Deuell claims that Hutchison spokesman David Beckwith (formerly of the Cornyn campaign, among others) told him that KBH was running, and that if he supported Perry, Deuell might get a primary challenge.

Remember "Charlie from Flower Mound"? The KBH campaign has confirmed that it was indeed Chad Wilbanks.

To quote Saenz, "We're being very aggressive in everything we do. And you ain't seen nothing yet."

This is gonna be a fun campaign. Especially for Democrats.
- posted @ 6:57 AM permalink