Potential Obama attack ads have Pierce County roots

Veteran political operative Floyd Brown made his name in 1988 by helping to create the infamous "Willie Horton" piece that dogged Democratic nominee Michael Dukakis with distorted facts and race-baiting tactics. Twenty years later, living in University Place, he hopes to make just as strong an impact.

The New York Times has an article on Mr. Brown from Saturday discussing his current operation.  Brown presides over two PACs, the National Campaign Fund and the Legacy Committee, and a 527 group called Citizens for a Safe and Prosperous America. Through those he hopes to create an ad that moves voters beyond what he calls the "tipping point" of a successful political attack ad.

His National Campaign Fund has already produced two videos, including one that misleadingly portrays Barack Obama as a Muslim. Brown hopes to raise up to $8 million between now and November to air these and others in order to help him live up to the biblical verse the Times reports motivates Brown daily, "That is why for Christ's sake I delight in weakness, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties."

"The vehicle will be there," Brown told the Times in a reference to his material. "The talent will be there. Everything's prepared."