Republicans were never good at advertising to African Americans.

[Black Dynamite]

Anti-Granholm ad taps Nazi images

Full-page splash in the Michigan Chronicle urges African-Americans to ditch allegiance to Democrats.

Charlie Cain / Detroit News Lansing Bureau

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LANSING -- A full-page ad in this week's Michigan Chronicle urging African-Americans to not vote for Gov. Jennifer Granholm and other Democrats this fall and featuring pictures of the governor as well as Adolf Hitler and a swastika, touched off a political firestorm Thursday.

The ad in the Chronicle, which has a large African-American readership, claims that for the last half-century, Democratic Party leaders have relied on blacks to be "foot soldiers" and that their reward has been a dependency on welfare, high unemployment and a disproportionate number of black men locked up in prison.

"And now during this crucial election year, the Democrats expect African American voters to stay in their place," the ad says. "African American voters should not only demand respect from the Democrats but also stop putting all their eggs in one basket. Say NO to Governor Granholm in November."

Dick DeVos, the Republican who is challenging Granholm, was quick to denounce the ad.

"There is no place in Michigan politics for this ad," DeVos said. "It is appalling and this approach is despicable and wrong. Use of imagery and text that trivialize the worst tragedy of the 20th Century is disgraceful and vile."

Chris DeWitt, Granholm's campaign spokesman, said Granholm is the leader of a "very inclusive party and the most diverse administration in the nation."

He took exception to the ad's photographs of Democratic presidents Lyndon Johnson, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton.

"To say these presidents took African-Americans for granted is an equal outrage. President Johnson was the one who signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964," DeWitt said. "The real question is who is behind this and what are their motives?"

Tina Abbott, vice chairwoman of the Michigan Democratic Party, was equally incensed

"This is not politics: It is fear mongering and race-baiting of the worst kind. I'm very upset about this," she said. "It's outrageous to compare any American to Hitler, a man who murdered people for a living.

"I'm extremely disappointed in the Michigan Chronicle."

A call from The Detroit News to the newspaper's publisher was not returned Thursday.

The ad was paid for by Voice the Vote, a little-known political action committee.

Nataki Harbin is the PAC treasurer and an employee at Adolph Mongo & Associates, a Detroit-based political consulting firm.

"This ad is not about associating Hitler with Gov. Granholm. It's about choice," she said.

The ad also features a picture of Jesse Owens, a black American athlete and gold-medal winner in the 1936 Munich Olympics.

"Jesse Owens didn't get any love from Hitler when he won four medals and he didn't get any love from his own president (Franklin D. Roosevelt)," Harbin said.

"We have the same thing here where black voters are not getting any love from Jennifer Granholm and the Democratic Party and that's what this ad is about."

Voice to Vote registered with the state in the fall of 2004 and has yet to file a single campaign statement with the state, as required by law, that shows where it gets its money and how it spends it. The group owes $4,000 in state fines.

Harbin said her group was inactive until recently, when it began to host fundraisers. She said the PAC will file its financial disclosure statements this month.

Democrats suggested that consultant Adolph Mongo was responsible for the ad and that he might be on the DeVos campaign payroll.

"We have not worked with Adolph and will not work with Adolph and this is a perfect example of why," said DeVos spokesman John Truscott.

Harbin said Mongo is her stepfather and "a political guru that I do look to for advice. But I am an intelligent woman and I cooked this up on my own," she said.

She said the group, despite the political flak its ad generated, has no intention of stepping back.

"Hopefully, we will be able to spread the message about choice through the summer and into the general election," she said.

Mongo said he is not working for DeVos or suggesting Detroiters vote for him.

"I'm encouraging people to make a choice. Detroit has been a one-party state for too long," he said. "We are expected to follow the party regardless of how they treat us and don't do anything in the city. This has nothing to do with being racist. It has to do with getting respect."

You can reach Charlie Cain at (517) 371-3660 or ccain@detnews.com.

Umm the Repubs may need to fire their campaign manager or whoever is trying to help them with this Ad. Its a little Archaic. A picture from the ad is on the link below.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art...TICS/607070353

[Black Dynamite]

Also for the record i don't think devos had anything to do with it. but there are alot of psycho neo cons in michigan. i read articles on some repubs trying to keep people from voting a couple times back in the day(dont know if the accusations were ever proven to be true).

[Glenn]

oh no they dident!

[Uncle Mxy]

Adolph's related to Ming, who you may remember from Flash Gordon times. He can be reached at http://www.mongoandassocaites.com, if you say it, say it loud.