Del. Mike Watson (R-93rd District) has been running a television ad blasting Democratic challenger Monty Mason with allegations from non-partisan group FactCheck.org, but according to the group, there’s a problem with the ads: They never said what the ads claim they said.
D’Angelo Gore of FactCheck.org posted a blog entry Tuesday explaining the situation. He said FactCheck.org has never written about the races in the 93rd District, which includes Williamsburg and parts of James City and York counties. In his post, Gore said, “We said no such thing,” referencing quotes in Watson’s ad, which says FactCheck.org said Mason’s attacks “go too far” and are “beyond the facts.”
The ad in question opens with an image of Watson overlaid with his voice saying his campaign sponsors the ad. The narrator in the commercial then goes into the FactCheck.org quotes before attacking Mason’s record as chairman of the Williamsburg Economic Development Authority, saying Mason spent thousands of taxpayer dollars and unemployment in Williamsburg remains second highest in the state.
Gore said FactCheck.org has never written about Mason, his record on small business or local unemployment rates.
“This doesn’t change the fact that Monty Mason is lying about Mike Watson, plain and simple. Monty Mason is running one of the most negative campaigns Hampton Roads has ever seen. His false attacks are a desperate effort to hide his failed record and support for job-killing tax and spending hikes,” said Matthew Moran, Watson’s campaign spokesperson.
Mason issued a statement to WYDaily Wednesday afternoon.
“I am glad that FactCheck.org is publicly standing with us in condemning my opponent’s ads as factually untrue. This is just another example of a cynical ploy by a desperate politician to distract from his record of votes to deny women the right to make their own healthcare decisions,” Mason said.
Throughout the campaign, Mason has condemned Watson for his vote on personhood bill HB1, which would give unborn children at every stage of development the rights, privileges and immunities available to Virginia citizens. That bill passed the House of Delegates with Watson voting yes in February before it died in the Senate.
According to Gore’s post, the “go too far” and “beyond the facts” lines were from a Sept. 19 FactCheck.org story about the Virginia governor’s race. In that story, FactCheck.org said a TV ad from Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe “goes a bit too far” and “goes beyond the facts.” Those lines were directed at an attack McAuliffe was making on Republican candidate Ken Cuccinelli’s position on abortion.
FactCheck.org reached out to the Watson campaign and the campaign for David Yancey, the Republican candidate in the race for the 94th District, which comprises much of Newport News. Yancey aired an ad using the same quotes about attacks from his opponent, Democrat Robert Farinholt.
Moran sent a statement to FactCheck.org, saying “FactCheck.org and other independent news sources have ruled that identical claims in other races are ‘beyond the facts,’ ‘mostly false’ and ‘go too far.’ Monty Mason, Robert Farinholt and Democrats all across Virginia are making the exact same claims using the exact same language, so it’s no stretch to conclude that their claims are likewise ‘beyond the facts,’ ‘mostly false’ and ‘go too far.’”
To which Gore replied: “But it’s not true that Farinholt and Mason are ‘making the exact same claims’ and ‘using the exact same language’ that we fact-checked in our article.”
FactCheck.org is a nonpartisan, nonprofit group that aims to reduce confusion and deception in U.S. politics by educating voters.
“We monitor the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases. Our goal is to apply the best practices of both journalism and scholarship, and to increase public knowledge and understanding,” according to the group’s website.
To read Gore’s blog pots and view Watson’s ad, click here.
Related Coverage:
- Watson Continues to Lead Mason in District 93 Fundraising Race
- Watson, Mason Spar on Tourism, Transportation in Final Debate
- District 93 Delegate Candidate Q&A: Monty Mason
- District 93 Delegate Candidate Q&A: Mike Watson
- Watson, Mason Touch on Jobs, Education in Debate at William and Mary (w/ Video)
- Watson Leads Mason in Fundraising Race for 93rd District
