Republican third district congressional candidate Marlin Stutzman is calling on his opponent to stop what Stutzman says are personal attacks.
Stutzman says the most recent campaign ad (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bfs958oyDM&feature=player_embedded) from Democrat Tom Hayhurst crosses the line. In it, Hayhurst says Stutzman’s family accepted almost a million dollars in farm subsidies—a practice Stutzman has said he opposes.
Stutzman says subsidies that his own farming operation accepted are fair game, but that Hayhurst should leave his family alone.
“Attack me, don’t attack my family,” said Stutzman. “Leave my family out of it.”
Hayhurst says Stutzman is a co-owner of his father's business. However, he says, the point of the ad is to highlight Stutzman's record, not to focus on his family.
“It has to do with the fact that he made, in black and white on tape, a very specific statement that he was against farm subsidies, and then accepted them,” said Hayhurst.
According to the Environmental Working Group, Marlin Stutzman accepted $179,370 in farm subsidies from 1995-2009. His father's business accepted $819,202 during that same time (http://farm.ewg.org/).
