McCain’s Challenger Says He Regrets Infomercial

The Wall Street Journal ^ | 06-25-10 | Eliza Gray

[GOP_Lady]

Former U.S. Rep. J.D. Hayworth, the Republican primary challenger to Sen. John McCain in Arizona, said he had made a “mistake’’ in acting as a spokesman for a company that has been criticized for misleading consumers, the Associated Press reported.

In an infomercial taped in 2007, the National Grants Committee invited viewers to a seminar to learn how to access “hundreds of billions” of government grant money.

“It is for real!” Hayworth assured viewers, waiving his hands for emphasis. “Now, I understand the skepticism, in part because President Regan used to say the greatest contradiction ever uttered was ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help,’ but I’m telling yah this is really true.”

When the three-year-old ad resurfaced recently, the McCain campaign seized on it, producing its own ad that said Hayworth had sold a “lie’’ to viewers and suggesting he was a “pork barrel spender’’ and a “huckster.’’ McCain’s ad concludes with a photo of the senator and the slogan: “Character matters.’’

[stephenjohnbanker]

Thanks Arthur!