As the nation remembered the attacks of 9/11 Tuesday, political campaigns across the country—including the presidential race—halted for the day out of respect.
But one Virginia politician didn’t get the memo, and her partisan play on 9/11 may have just dealt her own campaign a blow.
Jeannmarie Davis, a GOP candidate for lieutenant governor in Virginia, sent out a campaign email invoking 9/11 as a way boost support.
The Huffington Post obtained the email:
"As we remember those fallen Americans from 11 years ago, please encourage everyone to participate in our great Democracy," wrote Davis, director of the Virginia Liaison Office in Washington and wife of former Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.), in a campaign email that was forwarded to The Huffington Post.
"I would appreciate it if you would take a minute to go to www.jeannemarie4LG.com and give me your feedback on a survey as I begin my tour of the Commonwealth," Davis wrote. "Please provide information on any ways that the Obama Administration has hurt you or your community, so that I can better tell the story of why it is so important that Virginians replace President Obama and his Democratic Senate.
She also issued robo calls that mentioned Romney.
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The blogosophere—and her fellow conservatives—weren’t too happy with her. The Romney camp distanced itself completely and said it had nothing to do with it. Conservative Blog Bearing Drift said “this is horrific” The Virginia Gentleman wrote “I don’t think using 911 as an excuse to send out a mass email to appeal to voters is in good taste.”
(Bearing Drift has a good round up of the reactions to her campaign move.)
Davis, the wife of former U.S. Rep. Tom Davis, just launched her campaign Monday. The Virginia election for governor and lieutenant governor is in November 2013.
To be fair, Davis isn’t the only one who didn’t follow political protocol on the anniversary of 9/11. Crossroads GPS, the conservative Karl Rove-backed super PAC, did not observe the 9/11 negative ad blackout in the Va. Senate race and instead put anti-Kaine ads on the air.
Kaine issued this statement in response:
"Both presidential campaigns rightly suspended negative ads today. It is a sad reflection of the divisiveness of our politics that outside groups like Crossroads GPS cannot set aside false partisan attacks even as our elected officials and citizens of all walks of life, political parties, and religious faiths join together to honor the dead, thank our first responders and service members, and celebrate the freedoms we enjoy as a nation."
IN OTHER NEWS:
* Mitt Romney and Michelle Obama make campaign stops in Virginia
* Mayor Vincent Gray’s campaign chairwoman’s daughter submitted a letter vouching for Howard Brooks, a former Gray campaign aide, in the hopes that he will avoid jail time for his roll in the mayor’s illegal shadow campaign.
* Elections officials in Florida said they were asking prosecutors to investigate allegations that former Maryland congressional candidate Wendy Rosen was registered and voted in both Maryland and Florida.
* The Capital Bikeshare triathlete speaks out
* Mt. Pleasant Branch library prepares to reopen after two years of renovations
* Capitol Heights high school student is killed on the way to school
* Montgomery County schools is looking for a program to test for concussions in student athletes
