Mark Green's positive campaign

The Xoff Files on Aug. 6:

Green vows to run positive campaign

By Charlie Mathews
Herald Times Reporter

MANITOWOC-- Gubernatorial candidate Mark Green sought votes and money Friday in the Lakeshore area, while promising to run a clean, positive campaign.

"Politics has to be about giving people something to vote for," said the Republican congressman from Green Bay, who is seeking to unseat incumbent Gov. Jim Doyle.

"Negative ads that are over the top turn people off," Green said of TV commercials he admitted he hasn't seen, but believes do not help either major party gubernatorial candidate.

His excuse then was that he "hadn't seen" the ads his friend Steve King was running.

What's his excuse now, since his own campaign is running the slimiest ad of the year.

The Journal Sentinel will be surprised to find out that "The Journal Sentinel reports Doyle rigged the State Elections Board vote to try and steal the election." That's what the ad says. It uses newspaper "clippings" that are put together like a ransom note -- a word here, a word there.

UPDATE: The Greenies and their allies are in full negative attack mode. The Republican Governors Assn. just finished running a Georgia Thompson spot Monday, and today All Children Matter pick up where the RGA left off. The ACM spot, you won't be surprised to hear, is another attack ad on Doyle trying to make him look like a crook. What's it all mean? Green's losing, down in the polls, has no positive message that works, and is going to spend the next six weeks trying to tear down Doyle. All of the negatives they've run so far haven't worked; I don't think these will, either.

WHY GREEN'S WORRIED. Two recent polls show Doyle beating Green on his home turf, the Spice Boys report.