Amazingly enough, Christine O’Donnell has an ad in the Delaware Senate race that isn’t about addressing her apparent history of witchcraft and poor personal finances. Instead, it attacks her Dem opponent, New Castle County Executive Chris Coons, on the purely local issue of taxes.
The ad features an extreme close-up on Wilmington City Councilman Michael Brown, who is blasting Coons’s record on taxes. “He was left with a $200 million surplus when he took office. But yet still he raised the sewer tax 64%,” says Brown. “When he was campaigning he promised not to raise taxes. Shame on you, Chris. Shame on you, Chris.”
The Associated Press fact-checks the claim made in some O’Donnell ads, such as the on-screen text here, that Coons brought “New Castle County to the brink of bankruptcy.” It’s bunk: “Coons has balanced the budget each year, as required by state law, through a combination of spending cuts and tax increases. The county maintains a top-notch credit rating, showing that analysts and investors have high confidence in its fiscal stability.”
The TPM Poll Average gives Coons a lead of 55.2%-37.2%. Is the shame of the sewer tax enough to close that kind of gap?
