U.S Rep. Candidate's Mudslinging FAIL

By Prescott Carlson in News on Aug 7, 2010 9:00PM

Chapter one of Political Smear Campaigns for Dummies states that if you're going to try and tie your opponent to a scandal, at least make sure you get the names right. Apparently State Sen. Randy Hultgren (R-Wheaton) didn't read that book, which might have prevented a recent gaffe he made in his campaign for U.S. Representative against incumbent Bill Foster (IL-14th).

According to the Batavia Sun, Hultgren's campaign issued a press release last Monday that stated Foster had received a $1,000 campaign donation from U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters (CA-35th), who is currently accused of ethics violations over possibly shading dealings involving assistance to a bank her husband was a board member of for four years.

Waters did indeed make a $1,000 donation -- but to Gary Foster, not Bill. Gary is a former top aide for Minister Louis Farrakhan, was a former chief of staff for then-president Ben Chavis at the NAACP, and is the founder of Upliftment Jamaica . Bill Foster is a balding, bespectacled physicist who lives in Batavia, so one could see how easily the two might be confused. Bill Foster's team was quick to jump on the error, sending out a press release response titled, "Hey mon! You got the wrong guy."

Hultgren's campaign demonstrated he would be a good fit in the current Washington climate by pointing the finger elsewhere instead of taking direct responsibility for not fact checking. They say that the Federal Election Commission's website is to blame, and that it showed a direct contribution from Waters to Bill Foster, not Gary. As of this writing, the FEC website shows no such donation.