Pete Hoekstra Racist Ad During Super Bowl
The Michigan Republican began taking heat after his ad targeting Democratic incumbent Debbie Stabenow as “Debbie Spenditnow” ran statewide Sunday during the Super Bowl. Some detractors said the ad was racially insensitive, while national GOP consultant Mike Murphy tweeted that it was “really, really dumb.” Foreign Policy magazine managing editor Blake Hounshell called the ad “despicable.”
The 30-second ad created by media strategist Fred Davis of California-based Strategic Perception Inc opens with the sound of a gong and shows the Asian woman riding a bike on a narrow path lined by rice paddies.
Stopping her bike, the woman smiles into the camera and says, “Thank you, Michigan Senator Debbie Spenditnow. Debbie spends so much American money. You borrow more and more from us. Your economy get very weak. Ours get very good. We take your jobs. Thank you, Debbie Spenditnow.”
The scene then shifts to Hoekstra telling viewers near a cozy fire, “I think this race is between Debbie Spenditnow and Pete Spenditnot.”
Hoekstra defended the ad, calling it a “home run” during an interview Monday with Detroit radio WJR-AM’s Paul W. Smith. He said it’s only “insensitive” to the spending philosophy of Stabenow and Democratic President Barack Obama.
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Nipping controversy in the bud, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today (January 23) requested Left leaders belonging to the opposition to garland the statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose near Raj Bhavan at the main function on the leader’s 116 birth anniversary today. As per convention the chief minister garlands the statue of Netaji first followed by the council of ministers and opposition leaders to observe the day as ‘Deshapran Diwas’.
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Nov. 8 (Bloomberg) — U.S. Senator John McCain, an Arizona Republican, talks about a Senate Armed Services Committee probe into suspected counterfeit components being used by U.S. defense contractors.
Nov. 11 (Bloomberg) — Italy’s Senate will vote on debt-reduction measures today in an attempt to shore up investor confidence and pave the way for a new government. David Tweed reports on Bloomberg Television’s “Countdown” with Linzie Janis. (Source: Bloomberg)
Nov. 2 (Bloomberg) — Al Hunt, executive editor at Bloomberg News, talks about the so-called Wal-Mart mom vote in the 2012 U.S. presidential election.