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DEM GUBERNATORIAL RACE VEERS NEGATIVE: Indiana’s Democratic primary race for governor took a sharp, negative turn Thursday as the campaigns sparred over ethics. Jim Schellinger’s campaign slammed former U.S. Rep. Jill Long Thompson’s ethical record in Washington by highlighting her involvement in a 1992 House banking scandal (Indianapolis Star). Long Thompson’s campaign stressed she was cleared of any wrongdoing in the matter and accused Schellinger’s campaign of making dirty political attacks. With a little more than a month left before the May 6 primary, the move by Schellinger’s campaign .jpg)
Thursday served as the most noticeable jab in the race. The swipe came in response to a challenge from Long Thompson on Wednesday that Schellinger either release his positions on campaign finance and ethics or agree to her proposal, which would ban companies that donate to political campaigns from receiving state contracts, among other reforms. Schellinger’s campaign manager, Tim Jeffers, shot back with a news release Thursday saying Long Thompson’s challenge was akin to someone who lives in a glass house casting stones. "I’m surprised that someone with her record would be challenging anyone to come out with an ethics plan," Jeffers said. He cited a pair of 1992 newspaper articles he said illustrate that Long Thompson lied about the extent of her involvement in the 1992 House banking scandal, in which 329 then former or current members of Congress were found to have bounced checks from the now-defunct House Bank. Jeffers points to a 1992 Chicago Sun-Times article in which Long Thompson said she had only two small overdrafts, but which reported that the House ethics committee later found she bounced 17 checks for about $1,700. Jeff Harris, communications director for Long Thompson’s campaign, said she never bounced any checks and later was cleared of any wrongdoing by the U.S. Justice Department, because the bank had sloppy operations. Harris accused Schellinger of distorting the facts by citing the 16-year-old news accounts. "This is totally false, and he knows it," Harris said of Schellinger. "Jill Long Thompson did nothing wrong and was one of the first members of Congress to be vindicated by the Justice Department." Harris said the "nasty, misleading attack" is a sign that Schellinger’s campaign is in trouble, despite outspending Long Thompson. "This is obviously a clear sign of desperation by Mr. Schellinger," he said. "His campaign is imploding, he’s losing staff, he doesn’t have any ideas and, unfortunately for them, they’re finding the electorate can’t be bought."
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